Rural Adirondack Broadband Customers Lose Service Over Pole Dispute

May 20, 2026 – Remote broadband customers in upstate New York were left without internet access after the New York Public Service Commission ruled that Adirondack Broadband had improperly attached service lines to utility poles without authorization.

The PSC’s enforcement action affected between 75 and 100 customers last week, according to Adirondack Broadband founder Chuck Robertson. The company serves roughly 1,000 customers across five North Country counties, many in rural areas with limited broadband options.

At the center of the dispute is the industry’s “make-ready” process, the often lengthy and expensive procedure which must be completed before broadband providers attach infrastructure to utility poles.

Broadband providers have increasingly criticized the process, arguing that utilities impose high costs and delays that slow rural broadband expansion.

Robertson said he believed the company could temporarily attach lines to poles while avoiding the full make-ready process.

“My takeaway was that if we were to use what they call a temporary attachment – which is basically just putting [lines] on J hooks and hanging it from pole to pole – that it’s not something that has to go through the make-ready process,” Robertson told the Adirondack Explorer. “Evidently I was very incorrect about that.”

The PSC notified the company about the alleged violations roughly a month ago, leading to the recent service disconnections. Robertson said the ruling now threatens the future of the small rural provider and has forced the company to search for alternative ways to reconnect customers.

Robertson said the company was working with the counties and towns to see if they can bore under roads to reconnect things, or potentially set their own poles in a few spots where aerials are needed to cross the roads.

“But it’s been a journey. It’s a very overwhelming journey,” he said.

The dispute comes as pole attachment conflicts intensify nationwide amid federally funded broadband expansion projects. A recent study from the Advanced Communications Law & Policy Institute estimated pole-related costs tied to Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment projects could reach as high as $4.63 billion nationwide.

FCC Chairman Brendan Carr has also made pole attachment reform a priority. New FCC rules that took effect earlier this month aim to accelerate broadband deployment by streamlining contractor approvals and reducing delays utilities can impose during the attachment process.

Industry groups and broadband providers argue such reforms are increasingly necessary as rural deployment costs continue rising and providers face mounting pressure to connect last-mile communities.