Chronic, duty‑cycled RF radiation (RFR) was normalized under a heat‑only safety model that ignored known non‑thermal biology, while federal law gagged local health review—so the industry and Washington could sell spectrum and deploy at speed, externalizing the true cost onto pregnancies, children, and communities.
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Congress gagged health‑based objections.
Section 704 of the 1996 Telecom Act forbids states or cities from regulating tower siting “on the basis of the environmental effects of radio frequency emissions” if FCC limits are met. That removed health from local police powers by design. -
A federal court already called the limits record inadequate.
In 2021 the D.C. Circuit held the FCC’s decision to keep the 1996‑era limits “arbitrary and capricious” for failing to explain protection against non‑cancer harms (developmental, neurological, etc.). The case was remanded; the core framework still hasn’t been modernized. -
Flagship animal evidence exists—and the U.S. program was wound down.
The U.S. National Toxicology Program reported clear evidence of malignant heart schwannomas (and some gliomas) in male rats exposed to GSM/CDMA‑type RFR. NIEHS/NTP now indicates no further RFR studies are planned—leaving promised mechanism work unfinished.
What the FCC actually adopted (and what was already known).
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In 1996 the FCC adopted ANSI/IEEE C95.1‑1992 (a revision of the 1982 thermal standard), embedding a 6‑minute averaging, heat‑only rubric (OET Bulletin 65).
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Pre‑1996 non‑thermal signals existed in the literature:
– DNA strand breaks in rat brain after RFR (Lai & Singh 1995/1996). PubMed
– Blood–brain barrier leakage at low power densities (Oscar & Hawkins 1977). Oxford Academic
– Long‑term rat study reporting increased malignancies under microwave exposure (Chou/Guy 1992). PubMed
Today’s scientific floor (not ceiling).
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WHO‑commissioned 2025 systematic review of animal cancer studies: high‑certainty evidence for gliomas and malignant heart schwannomas in male rats. (Environment International 199:109482). ScienceDirect
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Developmental neurobiology: a 2025/2024 research line shows prenatal/early‑life 900 MHz exposure at 0.08/0.4 W/kg (the public/worker whole‑body SAR thresholds in ICNIRP 2020) produces synapse loss, E/I imbalance, ↓BDNF, reduced cortical proliferation, and DNA damage/apoptosis in neural stem cells—the exact pathway to attention/memory/agitation phenotypes. Federal Communications Commission+1
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Interphone’s “heavy use” was defined as ~30 min/day (1,640 h/10 y)—a level many children now exceed by multiples. ScienceDirect
Follow the money.
Spectrum auctions are a federal cash machine (e.g., $81.1 B C‑Band Auction 107 in 2021; $44.9 B AWS‑3 in 2015). Revenue flows to the Treasury while §704 shields deployments from local health objections. That is how you monetize bandwidth and socialize risk.
Bottom line.
This was never “outdated.” It was profitable. Fix the law. Fix the standard. Put photons and wires back indoors.
Immediate demands.
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Repeal/amend 47 U.S.C. §332(c)(7)(B)(iv) to restore health‑based siting authority.
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Compel FCC to finish the 2021 remand with non‑thermal, developmental, pulsing/duty‑cycle protections.
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Restart federal RFR biology to complete mechanisms.
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Optical‑first indoors (IEEE 802.11bb Li‑Fi) with fiber backbones; keep RF for mobility/emergencies. (Standards now exist.) ScienceDirect