CC SR 20210420 I - SB 556 Letter of Opposition Report
CITY COUNCIL MEETING DATE: 04/20/2021
AGENDA REPORT AGENDA HEADING: Consent Calendar
AGENDA TITLE:
Consideration and possible action to authorize the Mayor to sign a letter in opposition to
SB 556.
RECOMMENDED COUNCIL ACTION:
(1) Authorize the Mayor to sign a letter in opposition to SB 556.
FISCAL IMPACT: None
Amount Budgeted: N/A
Additional Appropriation: N/A
Account Number(s): N/A
ORIGINATED BY: McKenzie Bright, Administrative Analyst
REVIEWED BY: Karina Bañales, Deputy City Manager
APPROVED BY: Ara Mihranian, AICP, City Manager
ATTACHED SUPPORTING DOCUMENTS:
A. Draft letter in opposition to SB 556 (page A-1)
B. Text of SB 556 (as amended March 16, 2021) (page B-1)
BACKGROUND AND DISCUSSION:
Senate Bill No. 556, introduced by Senator Bill Dodd, would require cities to make
streetlight poles, traffic signal poles, utility poles, and support structures available to
telecommunications providers with limited regulations.
Under the Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC) adopted regulations on
wireless services deployment, local governments are explicitly enabled to manage the
public right-of-way, to ensure that telecommunications installations meet appearance
and design standards, maintain traffic safety, protect historical resources’ integrity, and
safeguard citizens’ quality of life.
This bill directly conflicts with this regulation by requiring local governments to make
space available on City-owned poles for telecommunications structures. Additionally,
SB 556 creates ambiguity in the fees governments can charge for access to their
1
infrastructure, by not incorporating federal standards. Federal law explicitly outlines
conditions for valid fees, limiting fees to a "reasonable approximation of the local
government's actual and direct costs," including costs to maintain a structure within the
right-of-way, process an application or permit, and review a siting application. SB 556,
on the other hand, chooses not to incorporate these federal standa rds, further restricting
fees to "actual cost" and "reasonable actual cost."
The intent of the bill is to help close the digital divide in California, but it should not
conflict with authority granted to local governments in federal law. The City currently has
agreements with multiple telecommunications companies for colocation of equipment on
City-owned property. These agreements are a mechanism for preserving local authority
while improving the telecommunications infrastructure in the City. The City is not
opposed to having telecommunications equipment potentially collocated on City-owned
poles, but it is opposed to the requirement that space be made available on all specified
poles. Local oversight is essential to protect the public’s investment in the public rights-
of-way.
Given this bill would eliminate local authority related to telecommunications
infrastructure, and directly conflicts with authority granted in federal law, Staff
recommends the City Council authorize the Mayor to sign a letter to Senator Dodd as
drafted or with revisions, opposing SB 556.
ALTERNATIVES:
In addition to the Staff recommendation, the following alternative actions are available
for the City Council’s consideration:
1. Identify revised language to add to the letter.
2. Do not authorize the Mayor to sign the letter.
3. Take other action, as deemed appropriate.
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April 20, 2021 Via Email
The Honorable Bill Dodd
California State Senate
State Capitol, Room 2082
Sacramento, CA 95814
SUBJECT: Notice of Opposition to SB 556
Dear Senator Dodd:
The City of Rancho Palos Verdes strongly opposes SB 556, which would require cities
to make certain public infrastructure available to telecommunications providers with
limited regulations granted to cities to protect their quality of life.
SB 556 directly conflicts with the Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC)
adopted regulations on wireless services deployment. This measure requires local
governments to make space available to telecommunications providers without
recognizing local authority to manage the public right-of-way, as preserved in federal
law. FCC regulations explicitly enable local governments to ensure that such
installations meet appearance and design standards, maintain traffic safety, protect
historical resources’ integrity, and safeguard citizens’ quality of life.
Additionally, SB 556 creates ambiguity in the fees local governments can charge for
access to their infrastructure. Federal law explicitly outlines conditions for valid fees,
limiting fees to a "reasonable approximation of the local government's actual and direct
costs," including costs to maintain a structure within the right-of-way, process an
application or permit, and review a siting application. SB 556, on the other hand,
chooses not to incorporate these federal standards, further restricting fees to "actual
cost" and "reasonable actual cost."
The City of Rancho Palos Verdes currently has agreements with multiple
telecommunications companies for colocation of equipment on City -owned property.
These agreements preserve local authority while improving the telecommunications
A-1
Senator Dodd
April 20, 2021
Page 2
infrastructure in the City. This oversight is essential – to protect the public’s investment,
and the control of the public rights-of-way must remain local.
While the City appreciates the goal of the author to close the digital divide in California,
this bill does not encourage or incentivize telecommunications companies to service
unserved and underserved communities. This bill inherently conflicts with federally-
mandated local authority to manage the right-of-way and to comply with existing FCC
decisions. For these reasons, the City of Rancho Palos Verdes opposes SB 556.
Sincerely,
Eric Alegria
Mayor
cc: Senator Ben Hueso, Chair, Senate Energy, Utilities, and Communications
Committee
Ben Allen, Senator, 26th State Senate District
Al Muratsuchi, Assembly Member, 66th Assembly District
Jeff Kiernan, League of California Cities
Meg Desmond, League of California Cities
Marcel Rodarte, California Contract Cities Association
Rancho Palos Verdes City Council
Ara Mihranian, City Manager
Karina Bañales, Deputy City Manager
A-2
AMENDED IN SENATE MARCH 16, 2021
SENATE BILL No. 556
Introduced by Senator Dodd
February 18, 2021
An act to amend Section 9510.5 of Sections 9510, 9510.5, 9511,
9511.5, 9512, 9513, 9514, and 9515 of, to amend the heading of Part
2 (commencing with Section 9510) of Division 4.8 of, and to add Section
9514.5 to, the Public Utilities Code, relating to communications.
legislative counsel’s digest
SB 556, as amended, Dodd. Utility poles Street light poles, traffic
signal poles, utility poles, and support structures: attachments.
Existing law requires a local publicly owned electric utility to make
appropriate space and capacity on and in their utility poles, as defined,
and support structures available for use by cable television corporations,
video service providers, and telephone corporations. Under existing
law, “utility poles” include electrical poles, except those electrical poles
used solely for the transmission of electricity at 50 kilovolts or higher.
This bill would revise the definition of a utility pole to include an
electrical transmission tower, while continuing to exclude an electrical
pole, but not an electrical transmission tower, used solely for the
transmission of electricity at 50 kilovolts or higher. The bill would
require a local publicly owned electric utility to make available
appropriate space and capacity for use by cable television corporations,
video service providers, and telephone corporations on and in their
street light poles, traffic signal poles, and supporting structures. The
bill would require local governments to make appropriate space and
capacity on and in their street light poles, traffic signal poles, and
supporting structures in a similar manner as is required for a local
98 B-1
publicly owned electric utility. By placing additional requirements upon
local publicly owned electric utilities, utilities and local governments,
the bill would impose a state-mandated local program.
The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local
agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state.
Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.
This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act
for a specified reason.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes.
State-mandated local program: yes.
The people of the State of California do enact as follows:
line 1 SECTION 1. (a) The Legislature finds and declares all of the
line 2 following:
line 3 (1) Communities across California face a multitude of barriers
line 4 to the deployment of resilient and accessible networks. Broadband
line 5 internet access service in urban communities varies by
line 6 neighborhood, with great discrepancies in infrastructure
line 7 technology. Communities in rural areas often lack sufficient
line 8 broadband internet access service, as well as the backhaul
line 9 infrastructure, to provide broadband services.
line 10 (2) The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the extent to which
line 11 broadband access is essential for education, telehealth, remote
line 12 working, public safety, public health and welfare, and economic
line 13 resilience. The pandemic adds greater urgency to develop new
line 14 strategies and expand on existing successful measures to deploy
line 15 reliable networks. Connection to the internet at reliable speeds is
line 16 also crucial to California’s economic recovery from the impact of
line 17 COVID-19. Millions of children are attending classes remotely,
line 18 telehealth visits have skyrocketed, and many more Californians
line 19 are telecommuting from their places of residence. Additionally,
line 20 with unprecedented growth in unemployment caused by COVID-19
line 21 and the need to participate in society from home, the demand for
line 22 reliable broadband internet access service has significantly
line 23 increased as millions of additional Californians need access to
line 24 successfully weather the pandemic and to recover.
line 25 (3) Mobile broadband internet access is critical to distance
line 26 learning. Just as important, mobile broadband internet access is
line 27 needed to address the digital divide. In 2017, for example, 73
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line 1 percent of households accessed the internet using a cellular phone.
line 2 The Federal Communications Commission reports that nearly 70
line 3 percent of teachers assign homework that requires broadband
line 4 access. Although California has made progress closing the digital
line 5 divide at schools, internet access at home is still a challenge.
line 6 Almost 16 percent of schoolage children, about 945,000, had no
line 7 internet connection at home in 2017 and 27 percent, about 1.7
line 8 million, did not have broadband connections. Access varies
line 9 significantly by family income, parental education, race or
line 10 ethnicity, and geography. For example, 22 percent of low-income
line 11 households with schoolage children did not have any internet
line 12 connection at home and 48 percent reported no broadband
line 13 subscription at home.
line 14 (4) Over 2,000,000 Californians lack access to high-speed
line 15 broadband at benchmark speeds of 100 megabits per second
line 16 download, including 50 percent of rural housing units. More than
line 17 14,000,000 Californians, over one-third of the population, do not
line 18 subscribe to broadband at the minimum benchmark speed to
line 19 support distance learning and technologies that depend on upload
line 20 speed. Only 34 percent of adults over 60 years of age use the
line 21 internet, excluding older adults from access to telemedicine, social
line 22 services, and other support.
line 23 (5) The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services define
line 24 telehealth as “a two-way, real-time interactive communication
line 25 between a patient and a physician or practitioner at a distant site
line 26 through telecommunications equipment that includes, at a
line 27 minimum, audio and visual equipment.” Telemedicine encompasses
line 28 a growing number of applications and technologies, including
line 29 two-way live or streaming video, videoconferencing,
line 30 store-and-forward imaging along with the internet, email, smart
line 31 phones, wireless tools, and other forms of telecommunication.
line 32 These technologies facilitate and leverage the latest innovations
line 33 in computer, network, and peripheral equipment to promote the
line 34 health of patients around the world. Critical to its success is
line 35 reliable broadband internet access.
line 36 (6) Telehealth technology permits health care services to be
line 37 delivered without in-person contact, reducing the risk of disease
line 38 transmission to both patients and health care workers, and frees
line 39 up in-person resources for COVID-19 patients. Telehealth allows
line 40 patients to receive health services away from settings where the
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SB 556 — 3 — B-3
line 1 potential for contracting COVID-19 is high, such as hospitals,
line 2 health clinic waiting rooms, private practices, and other medical
line 3 facilities. Telehealth can also expand the reach of resources to
line 4 communities that have limited access to needed services.
line 5 (7) Due to widespread restrictions, and with fewer elective
line 6 procedures occurring in California and around the country to
line 7 reserve beds for COVID-19 patients, the telehealth share of total
line 8 medical claim lines, which is the individual service or procedure
line 9 listed on an insurance claim, increased 8,336 percent nationally
line 10 from April 2019, to April 2020. Similar percentage increases have
line 11 occurred in California.
line 12 (8) Millions of Californians are working from home while
line 13 sheltering in place. Even employers that had not previously
line 14 permitted remote-work arrangements have changed their policies
line 15 during the pandemic. The Department of General Services reports
line 16 that 83.9 percent of state workers are working from home. Survey
line 17 data indicates that nearly two-thirds of those who still had jobs
line 18 during the pandemic were almost exclusively working from home.
line 19 That compares with just 13 percent of workers who said they did
line 20 so even a few times a week prior to the COVID-19 pandemic.
line 21 Telework is expected to continue at rates much higher than before
line 22 COVID-19 even after the pandemic is over. Among those workers
line 23 surveyed who had previously not regularly worked from home, 62
line 24 percent said they were enjoying the change, and 75 percent expect
line 25 their employers to continue to provide flexibility in where they
line 26 work after the pandemic has passed. Indeed, the State of California,
line 27 one of California’s largest employers, has stated the desire for 75
line 28 percent of the state’s workforce to remain home, at least part time,
line 29 for the foreseeable future. The Metropolitan Transportation
line 30 Commission in the San Francisco Bay Area voted to adopt a
line 31 strategy to have large, office-based companies require people to
line 32 work from home three days a week as a way to slash emissions of
line 33 greenhouse gases from car commutes. Critical to the success of
line 34 telework is reliable broadband internet access.
line 35 (9) The enormous increases in distance learning, telehealth,
line 36 and telework require a significant boost in broadband
line 37 infrastructure, especially near the homes where these activities
line 38 take place. To promote wireless broadband internet access near
line 39 homes, it is in the interest of the state to ensure the deployment of
line 40 wireless facilities on utility poles, street light poles, and traffic
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line 1 signal poles. It is in the interest of the state to ensure that local
line 2 publicly owned electric utilities and local governments that own
line 3 or control utility poles, traffic signal poles, or street light poles
line 4 make available appropriate space and capacity on and in those
line 5 structures to communications service providers, under reasonable
line 6 rates, terms, and conditions.
line 7 (10) The state has a compelling interest in ensuring that local
line 8 governments provide access to utility poles, traffic signal poles,
line 9 or street light poles, with nondiscriminatory fees that recover
line 10 reasonable actual costs. Therefore, it is the intent of the Legislature
line 11 that this part supersedes all conflicting local laws and this part
line 12 shall apply in charter cities.
line 13 (11) Time is of the essence to approve small wireless facility
line 14 siting applications given the immediate need for broadband internet
line 15 access, as amplified by the COVID-19 pandemic.
line 16 (b) It is the intent of the Legislature to facilitate the deployment
line 17 of wireless broadband internet access and to bridge the digital
line 18 divide by connecting students, families, and communities with
line 19 reliable internet connectivity that will remain a necessity after the
line 20 COVID-19 pandemic has abated.
line 21 SEC. 2. The heading of Part 2 (commencing with Section 9510)
line 22 of Division 4.8 of the Public Utilities Code is amended to read:
line 23
line 24 PART 2. STREET LIGHT POLES, TRAFFIC SIGNAL POLES,
line 25 UTILITY POLES POLES, AND SUPPORT STRUCTURES
line 26
line 27 SEC. 3. Section 9510 of the Public Utilities Code is amended
line 28 to read:
line 29 9510. (a) The Legislature finds and declares that in order that,
line 30 to promote wireline and wireless broadband access and adoption,
line 31 it is in the interest of the state to ensure that local governments
line 32 and local publicly owned electric utilities, including irrigation
line 33 districts, that own or control street light poles, traffic signal poles,
line 34 utility poles poles, and support structures, including ducts and
line 35 conduits, as applicable, make available appropriate space and
line 36 capacity on and in those structures to cable television corporations,
line 37 video service providers, and telephone corporations under
line 38 reasonable rates, terms, and conditions.
line 39 (b) The Legislature further finds and declares that the oversight
line 40 of fees and other requirements imposed by local publicly owned
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SB 556 — 5 — B-5
line 1 electric utilities or local governments as a condition of providing
line 2 the space or capacity described in subdivision (a) is a matter of
line 3 statewide interest and concern. Therefore, it is the intent of the
line 4 Legislature that this part supersedes all conflicting local laws and
line 5 this part shall apply in charter cities.
line 6 (c) The Legislature further finds and declares that local publicly
line 7 owned electric utilities and local governments should provide
line 8 access to street light poles, traffic signal poles, utility poles poles,
line 9 and support structures structures, as applicable, with a
line 10 nondiscriminatory fees that allow for the recovery of reasonable
line 11 actual costs without subsidizing for-profit cable television
line 12 corporations, video service providers, and telephone corporations.
line 13 SECTION 1.
line 14 SEC. 4. Section 9510.5 of the Public Utilities Code is amended
line 15 to read:
line 16 9510.5. As used in this part, the following terms have the
line 17 following meanings:
line 18 (a) “Communications service provider” means a cable television
line 19 corporation, video service provider, or telephone corporation.
line 20 (b) “Governing body” means the governing body of a local
line 21 government or local publicly owned electric utility, including,
line 22 where applicable, a board appointed by a city council.
line 23 (c) “Local government” means a city, including a charter city,
line 24 county, or city and county.
line 25 (c)
line 26 (d) “Street light pole” means a pole, arm, or fixture used
line 27 primarily for street, pedestrian, or security lighting.
line 28 (e) “Traffic signal pole” means a pole, arm, or fixture used
line 29 primarily for signaling traffic flow.
line 30 (d)
line 31 (f) “Utility pole” means an electrical pole, electrical transmission
line 32 tower, or telephone pole, but does not include a street light pole
line 33 or an electrical pole used solely for the transmission of electricity
line 34 at 50 kilovolts or higher and not intended for distribution of
line 35 communications signals or electricity at lower voltages.
line 36 SEC. 5. Section 9511 of the Public Utilities Code is amended
line 37 to read:
line 38 9511. (a) (1) (A) A local publicly owned electric utility shall
line 39 make appropriate space and capacity on and in a street light pole,
line 40 traffic signal pole, utility pole pole, and support structure owned
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— 6 — SB 556 B-6
line 1 or controlled by the local publicly owned electric utility available
line 2 for use by a communications service provider pursuant to
line 3 reasonable terms and conditions. Rates,
line 4 (B) Rates, terms, and conditions that are specified in a contract
line 5 executed with a local publicly owned electric utility before January
line 6 1, 2012, shall remain valid until the contract, rate, term, or
line 7 condition expires or is terminated according to its terms by one of
line 8 the parties. If an annual fee is included in a contract executed
line 9 before January 1, 2012, but the amount of the fee is left
line 10 unspecified, the requirements of Section 9512 apply.
line 11 (2) (A) A local government shall make appropriate space and
line 12 capacity on and in a street light pole, traffic signal pole, and
line 13 support structure owned or controlled by the local government
line 14 available for use by a communications service provider pursuant
line 15 to reasonable terms and conditions.
line 16 (B) Unless the communications service provider and local
line 17 government otherwise agree, if the contractual rates exceed two
line 18 hundred seventy dollars ($270) per year per pole, the rates, terms,
line 19 and conditions that are specified in a contract executed before
line 20 January 14, 2019, shall remain valid only for wireless equipment
line 21 that has already been attached to a pole by a communications
line 22 service provider before January 1, 2022, and only until the
line 23 contract, rate, term, or condition expires or is terminated according
line 24 to its terms by one of the parties.
line 25 (b) (1) A local publicly owned electric utility or a local
line 26 government shall respond to a request for use by a communications
line 27 service provider of a street light pole, traffic signal pole, utility
line 28 pole pole, or support structure structure, as applicable, owned or
line 29 controlled by the local publicly owned electric utility or local
line 30 government within 45 days of the date of receipt of the request, or
line 31 60 days if the request is to attach to over 300 poles. If the request
line 32 is denied, the local publicly owned electric utility or local
line 33 government shall provide in the response the reason for the denial
line 34 and the remedy to gain access to the street light pole, traffic signal
line 35 pole, utility pole pole, or support structure. If a request to attach
line 36 is accepted, the local publicly owned electric utility, utility or local
line 37 government, within 14 days after acceptance of the request, shall
line 38 provide a nondiscriminatory cost estimate, based on reasonable
line 39 actual cost, as described in the Federal Communications
line 40 Commission’s Declaratory Ruling on Wireless Broadband
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SB 556 — 7 — B-7
line 1 Deployment (FCC 18-133, 33 FCC Rcd 9088 (2018)), for any
line 2 necessary make-ready work required to accommodate the
line 3 attachment. The requesting party shall accept or reject the
line 4 make-ready cost estimate within 14 days. Within 60 days of
line 5 acceptance of the cost estimate, the local publicly owned electric
line 6 utility or local government shall notify any existing third-party
line 7 attachers that make-ready work for a new attacher needs to be
line 8 performed. The requesting party shall have the responsibility to
line 9 coordinate with third-party existing attachers for make-ready work
line 10 to be completed. All parties shall complete all make-ready work
line 11 within 60 days of the notice, or within 105 days in the case of a
line 12 request to attach to over 300 poles. The local publicly owned
line 13 electric utility or local government may complete make-ready
line 14 work without the consent of the existing attachers, if the existing
line 15 attachers fail to move their attachments by the end of the
line 16 make-ready timeline requirements specified in this paragraph.
line 17 (2) The timelines described in paragraph (1) may be extended
line 18 under special circumstances upon agreement of the local publicly
line 19 owned electric utility or local government and the communications
line 20 service provider.
line 21 (c) A Unless the communication service provider agrees to
line 22 replace the street light pole, traffic signal pole, utility pole, or
line 23 support structure, a local publicly owned electric utility or local
line 24 government may deny an application for use of a street light pole,
line 25 traffic signal pole, utility pole pole, or support structure structure,
line 26 as applicable, because of insufficient capacity or safety, reliability,
line 27 or engineering concerns. In denying an application, a local publicly
line 28 owned electric utility or local government may also take into
line 29 account the manner in which a request from a communications
line 30 service provider under this part could impact an approved project
line 31 for future use by the local publicly owned electric utility or the
line 32 local government of its street light poles, traffic signal poles, utility
line 33 poles poles or support structures for delivery of its core utility or
line 34 municipal service.
line 35 (d) This part does not limit the authority of a local publicly
line 36 owned electric utility or local government to ensure compliance
line 37 with all applicable provisions of law in determining whether to
line 38 approve or disapprove use of a street light pole, traffic signal pole,
line 39 utility pole pole, or support structure. structure, as applicable.
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— 8 — SB 556 B-8
line 1 SEC. 6. Section 9511.5 of the Public Utilities Code is amended
line 2 to read:
line 3 9511.5. (a) If a A local publicly owned electric utility or local
line 4 government that has the authority pursuant to other law to impose
line 5 a fee to provide the use described in Section 9511, that 9511 shall
line 6 adopt and levy only the fee shall be adopted and levied described
line 7 in Section 9511, consistent with the requirements of this part.
line 8 (b) The governing body of the local publicly owned electric
line 9 utility or a local government shall determine the fee pursuant to
line 10 Section 9512.
line 11 (c) This part does not grant additional authority to a local
line 12 publicly owned electric utility or local government to impose a
line 13 fee that is not otherwise authorized by law.
line 14 SEC. 7. Section 9512 of the Public Utilities Code is amended
line 15 to read:
line 16 9512. (a) (1) An annual fee charged by a local publicly owned
line 17 electric utility or a local government for the use of a street light
line 18 pole, traffic signal pole, or utility pole pole, as applicable, by a
line 19 communications service provider for an attachment shall be
line 20 imposed pursuant to reasonable terms and conditions, and shall
line 21 not exceed an amount determined by multiplying the percentage
line 22 of the total usable space that would be occupied by the attachment
line 23 by the annual costs of ownership of the pole and its supporting
line 24 anchor. As used in this paragraph and paragraph (2), “usable space”
line 25 means the space above the minimum grade level that can be used
line 26 for the attachment of wires, cables, and associated equipment. It
line 27 shall be presumed, subject to factual rebuttal, that a single
line 28 attachment occupies one foot of usable space and that an average
line 29 street light pole, traffic signal pole, or utility pole contains 13.5
line 30 feet of usable space.
line 31 (2) An annual fee charged by a local publicly owned electric
line 32 utility or local government for use of a support structure by a
line 33 communications service provider shall not exceed the local publicly
line 34 owned electric utility’s or local government’s annual costs of
line 35 ownership of the percentage of the volume of the capacity of the
line 36 structure rendered unusable by the equipment of the
line 37 communications service provider.
line 38 (3) As used in this subdivision, the “annual costs of ownership”
line 39 is the sum of the annual capital costs and annual operation costs
line 40 of the pole street light pole, traffic signal pole, utility pole, or
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SB 556 — 9 — B-9
line 1 support structure, which shall be the average costs of all similar
line 2 street light poles, traffic signal poles, utility poles poles, or
line 3 structures owned or controlled by the local publicly owned electric
line 4 utility. utility or local government. The basis for the computation
line 5 of annual capital costs shall be historical capital costs less
line 6 depreciation. The accounting upon which the historical capital
line 7 costs are determined shall include a credit for all reimbursed capital
line 8 costs. Depreciation shall be based upon the average service life of
line 9 the street light pole, traffic signal pole, utility pole pole, or support
line 10 structure. “Annual cost of ownership” does not include costs for
line 11 any property not necessary for use by the communications service
line 12 provider.
line 13 (b) (1) A local publicly owned electric utility or local
line 14 government shall not levy a fee that exceeds the estimated amount
line 15 required to provide use of the street light pole, traffic signal pole,
line 16 utility pole pole, or support structure structure, as applicable, for
line 17 which the annual recurring fee is levied. If the fee creates revenues
line 18 in excess of actual costs, those revenues shall be used to reduce
line 19 the fee.
line 20 (2) A local publicly owned electric utility or local government
line 21 establishes a rebuttable presumption that its fees are based on
line 22 reasonable actual costs if they conform to the presumptively
line 23 reasonable fees set forth in the Federal Communications
line 24 Commission’s Declaratory Ruling on Wireless Broadband
line 25 Deployment (FCC 18-133, 33 FCC Rcd 9088 (2018)).
line 26 (c) A jointly owned pole is not included within the requirements
line 27 of this section, if a joint owner other than the local publicly owned
line 28 electric utility or local government has control of access to the
line 29 space that would be used by the communications service provider.
line 30 SEC. 8. Section 9513 of the Public Utilities Code is amended
line 31 to read:
line 32 9513. (a) A local publicly owned electric utility or local
line 33 government may require an additional one-time charge equal to
line 34 three years of the annual fee described in Section 9512, for
line 35 attachments reasonably shown to have been made without
line 36 authorization that are discovered on or after January 1, 2012.
line 37 (b) A local publicly owned electric utility or local government
line 38 may remove an attachment made without authorization, if all of
line 39 the following conditions are met:
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— 10 — SB 556 B-10
line 1 (1) The owner of the attachment fails to pay the charge described
line 2 in subdivision (a), if that charge is applicable.
line 3 (2) The owner of the attachment does not seek approval to attach
line 4 pursuant to this part within a reasonable period of time.
line 5 (3) The owner of the attachment does not contest that the
line 6 attachment was made without authorization.
line 7 (c) An attachment of a service drop wire is not made without
line 8 authorization for the purposes of this section, if the owner of the
line 9 attachment seeks approval to attach pursuant to this part within 45
line 10 days of the attachment.
line 11 SEC. 9. Section 9514 of the Public Utilities Code is amended
line 12 to read:
line 13 9514. Nothing in this This part shall not be construed to prohibit
line 14 a local publicly owned electric utility or local government from
line 15 requiring a one-time fee to process a request for attachment, if the
line 16 one-time fee does not exceed the actual cost of processing the
line 17 request.
line 18 SEC. 10. Section 9514.5 is added to the Public Utilities Code,
line 19 to read:
line 20 9514.5. This part does not prohibit a wireless service provider
line 21 and a local government from mutually agreeing to a rate, charge,
line 22 term, or condition that is different from that provided in this part.
line 23 Either party may withdraw from a negotiation for an agreement
line 24 upon written notice to the other party.
line 25 SEC. 11. Section 9515 of the Public Utilities Code is amended
line 26 to read:
line 27 9515. (a) In the event that it becomes necessary for the local
line 28 publicly owned electric utility or local government to use space
line 29 or capacity on or in a support structure occupied by the
line 30 communications service provider’s equipment, the communications
line 31 service provider shall either pay all costs for rearrangements
line 32 necessary to maintain the pole attachment or remove its equipment
line 33 at its own expense.
line 34 (b) (1) If the communications service provider requests a
line 35 rearrangement of the a street light pole, traffic signal pole, utility
line 36 pole pole, or support structure of a local publicly owned electric
line 37 utility, and the local publicly owned electric utility has the authority
line 38 to levy fees as described in Section 9511.5, the local publicly
line 39 owned electric utility may charge a one-time reimbursement fee
line 40 for the actual costs incurred for the rearrangement.
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SB 556 — 11 — B-11
line 1 (2) If the communication service provider requests a
line 2 rearrangement of a street light pole, traffic signal pole, or
line 3 supporting structure of a local government, the local government
line 4 may charge a one-time reimbursement fee for the actual costs
line 5 incurred for the rearrangement.
line 6 SEC. 2.
line 7 SEC. 12. No reimbursement is required by this act pursuant to
line 8 Section 6 of Article XIIIB of the California Constitution because
line 9 a local agency or school district has the authority to levy service
line 10 charges, fees, or assessments sufficient to pay for the program or
line 11 level of service mandated by this act, within the meaning of Section
line 12 17556 of the Government Code.
O
98
— 12 — SB 556 B-12