In one three-month stretch of 2024, there were 4,000 reported cases of copper theft, according to a study by NCTA, the Internet & Television Association. The thefts hit hundreds of thousands of customers and cost millions of dollars.
The National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners cited that study in a resolution it put forward at its 2025 Winter Policy Summit in Washington. The group, which represents the state public service commissioners who regulate utility services, wants Congress to make copper theft and vandalism a federal crime.
“NARUC encourages Congress to protect communications networks similar to other critical utility infrastructure, including energy facilities and transportation systems, by criminalizing at the federal level acts of theft and vandalism,” the resolution says.
Telecom networks, NARUC said, are “essential for emergency response systems, law enforcement coordination, and critical government operations.” When thieves knock them out, it added, the damage “jeopardizes public safety, imposes significant costs on providers, consumers, and the American economy.”
The group described a problem that has grown bold. Criminals have hauled away loads of copper wire in broad daylight, and in one case thieves posed as tech crews.
NARUC did not limit its appeal to Capitol Hill. It urged members to back prevention efforts at every level of government, in law enforcement and across industry, and to work with state legislatures, local governments, police, the communications industry and the scrap metal industry “to help raise awareness of this issue and assist in efforts to implement comprehensive solutions that protect infrastructure.”
The four-day summit was due to close on Wednesday, Feb. 26.
