FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
January 13, 2026
Environmental Health Sciences Calls on Congress to Hold FCC Accountable for Cell Tower Radiation Safety Failures
New evidence shows lack of oversight, transparency, and enforcement as FCC and House consider cell tower fast-track proposals.
Washington, D.C. Environmental Health Sciences (EHS), a science-based nonprofit organization, today called on the U.S. House Committee on Energy and Commerce to demand answers from the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) regarding long-standing failures in oversight, transparency, and enforcement of cell tower and wireless radiation safety.
In a heavily referenced letter submitted ahead of the Committee’s January 14, 2026, FCC oversight hearing, EHS urges lawmakers to question why the FCC continues to fast-track wireless infrastructure deployment despite ignoring a 2021 federal court mandate requiring the agency to explain how its decades-old cell tower radiofrequency (RF) exposure limits protect public health in light of growing scientific evidence of harm.
“The FCC has assured the public that cell tower radiation exposures are safe, yet it has failed to respond to a federal court order, conduct meaningful oversight, withheld critical safety data, and ignored its statutory responsibility to protect public health,” said Theodora Scarato, Director of the Wireless and EMF Program at Environmental Health Sciences. “This is reckless. Congress must now step in.”
The FCC oversight hearing comes as both the FCC (Build America Docket 25-276) and Congress (HR 2289) are considering proposals to fast-track cell towers by limiting state and city authority. Over 5,000 comments representing over 200 million Americans have been filed in opposition to the FCC’s proposed rules.
The International Commission on the Biological Effects of Electromagnetic Fields (ICBE-EMF), an international consortium of physicians and scientists with expertise in the field, also sent a letter to House members, which formally cautioned Congress that U.S. cell tower and wireless radiation limits are outdated, flawed, and scientifically unable to protect the public. EHS referenced a landmark ICBE-EMF publication that documented how “Adverse effects observed at exposures below the assumed threshold SAR include non-thermal induction of reactive oxygen species, DNA damage, cardiomyopathy, carcinogenicity, sperm damage, and neurological effects, including electromagnetic hypersensitivity. Also, multiple human studies have found statistically significant associations between RFR exposure and increased brain and thyroid cancer risk.”
Key concerns raised in the EHS letter include:
- Withholding of safety data: Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) records show the FCC conducted internal cell phone radiation tests, some finding exposure levels exceeding FCC limits in body-contact conditions, yet withheld these results from the public, courts, and rulemaking proceedings.
- Apple iPhone 12 testing secrecy: Despite France identifying radiation exceedances and requiring corrective action for the Apple iPhone, the FCC has refused to release its own Apple iPhone 12 laboratory test measurement data.
- No national monitoring program: The FCC does not operate a national RF radiation measurement or environmental monitoring program, leaving the public without real-world data on cumulative exposures from cell tower radiation in homes and schools.
- Lack of enforcement: The FCC does not routinely audit cell towers, conduct surprise inspections, or require post-installation testing, relying largely on industry self-certification.
- Outdated exposure limits: Current U.S. RF exposure limits have not been meaningfully updated since 1996 and are based solely on short-term heating effects, failing to account for effects of long-term, cumulative exposures, children’s unique vulnerabilities, or environmental impacts.
The letter also highlights stark contrasts with other countries, such as France, which operates a robust post-market surveillance program and has required corrections or withdrawals for more than 64 cell phones and wireless devices found to exceed radiation limits.
Scientific backing
The letter references dozens of peer-reviewed published studies, including two recent peer-reviewed reviews by Scarato and U.S. experts published in Frontiers in Public Health, including a landmark policy review detailing regulatory gaps in U.S. wireless safety oversight and a comprehensive science review on impacts to wildlife and ecosystems.
A call for accountability
EHS urges Congress to require the FCC to:
- Release all withheld cell phone radiation test data
- Establish transparent pre- and post-market compliance programs
- Implement national measurement and monitoring of RF exposures
- Explain why the FCC has not updated the 1996 cell tower exposure limits to protect for long-term impacts.
- Explain why the FCC has not responded to the 2021 federal court order to explain how limits are adequately protective for children, long-term exposure, and wildlife.
- Explain what the FCC is doing to incentivise and fast-track safer low low-radiation technology.
About Environmental Health Sciences
Environmental Health Sciences (EHS) is a scientific nonprofit organization focused on environmental health issues. The EHS Wireless and EMF Program is a leading voice in cell tower safety issues and works to create and disseminate knowledge resources that increase understanding of the health and ecological risks posed by cell towers, cell phones, wireless, and other non-ionizing EMF exposures, counter industry misinformation, promote safer technology, and support meaningful policy change.