Get list of broadband providers serving a county. Returns provider names, technology types, and speed tiers available in the specified county. Useful for BEAD applications to identify which providers serve an area and what technologies they deploy. Args: county_fips: 5-digit county FIPS code (e.g...
Part of the FCC Broadband Map server.
Free to start. No card required.
AI agents call get_providers_by_county to retrieve information from FCC Broadband Map without modifying any data. This is common in research, monitoring, and reporting workflows where the agent needs context before taking action. Because read operations don't change state, they are generally safe to allow without restrictions -- but you may still want rate limits to control API costs.
Even though get_providers_by_county only reads data, uncontrolled read access can leak sensitive information or rack up API costs. An agent caught in a retry loop could make thousands of calls per minute. A rate limit gives you a safety net without blocking legitimate use.
Read-only tools are safe to allow by default. No rate limit needed unless you want to control costs.
{
"version": "1",
"default": "deny",
"tools": {
"get_providers_by_county": {}
}
}See the full FCC Broadband Map policy for all 4 tools.
These attack patterns abuse exactly the kind of access get_providers_by_county gives an agent. Each links to the full case and the policy that stops it:
Other read tools across the catalogue. The same approach applies to each: allow, with a rate cap to control cost.
Get list of broadband providers serving a county. Returns provider names, technology types, and speed tiers available in the specified county. Useful for BEAD applications to identify which providers serve an area and what technologies they deploy. Args: county_fips: 5-digit county FIPS code (e.g. '11001' for Washington DC, '53033' for King County WA). Always a string, never an integer. technology_code: Filter by technology (0=All, 10=Copper, 40=Cable, 50=Fiber, 60=Satellite, 70=Fixed Wireless). speed_download: Minimum download speed threshold in Mbps (default 25). speed_upload: Minimum upload speed threshold in Mbps (default 3). as_of_date: BDC filing date in YYYY-MM-DD format (default 2024-06-30).. It is categorised as a Read tool in the FCC Broadband Map MCP Server, which means it retrieves data without modifying state.
Register the FCC Broadband Map MCP server in PolicyLayer and add a rule for get_providers_by_county: allow, deny, rate-limit, or require approval. Point your MCP client at the PolicyLayer proxy URL and the rule is enforced on every call, before it reaches FCC Broadband Map. Nothing to install.
get_providers_by_county is a Read tool with low risk. Read-only tools are generally safe to allow by default.
Yes. Add a rate_limit block to the get_providers_by_county rule in your PolicyLayer policy. For example, setting max: 10 and window: 60 limits the tool to 10 calls per minute. Rate limits are tracked per agent session and reset automatically.
Set action: deny in the PolicyLayer policy for get_providers_by_county. The AI agent will receive a policy violation error and cannot call the tool. You can also include a reason field to explain why the tool is blocked.
get_providers_by_county is provided by the FCC Broadband Map MCP server (https://mcp.olyport.com/fcc-broadband/mcp). PolicyLayer sits as a proxy in front of this server to enforce policies before tool calls reach the server.
Deterministic rules across all 4 FCC Broadband Map tools. Per-identity grants. Full audit log. Live in minutes. Nothing to install.
Free to start. No card required.
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