HB2561 102ND GENERAL ASSEMBLY

  
  

 


 
102ND GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2021 and 2022
HB2561

 

Introduced 2/19/2021, by Rep. Deanne M. Mazzochi

 

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
 
50 ILCS 840/15  was 50 ILCS 835/15

    Amends the Small Wireless Facilities Deployment Act. In provisions relating to the permit application process for an applicant to collocate a small wireless facility, allows an authority to require an applicant or site developer to provide probative evidence in the form of hard data recorded during a drive test performed by an independent radio-frequency engineer selected by the authority to support gap-in-coverage claims to establish (i) the existence of a real gap in the specific carrier's wireless coverage, (ii) the location of the gap, and (iii) the geographical boundaries of the gap.


LRB102 14490 AWJ 19843 b

 

 

A BILL FOR

 

HB2561LRB102 14490 AWJ 19843 b

1    AN ACT concerning local government.
 
2    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3represented in the General Assembly:
 
4    Section 5. The Small Wireless Facilities Deployment Act is
5amended by changing Section 15 as follows:
 
6    (50 ILCS 840/15)  (was 50 ILCS 835/15)
7    (Section scheduled to be repealed on June 1, 2021)
8    Sec. 15. Regulation of small wireless facilities.
9    (a) This Section applies to activities of a wireless
10provider within or outside rights-of-way.
11    (b) Except as provided in this Section, an authority may
12not prohibit, regulate, or charge for the collocation of small
13wireless facilities.
14    (c) Small wireless facilities shall be classified as
15permitted uses and subject to administrative review in
16conformance with this Act, except as provided in paragraph (5)
17of subsection (d) of this Section regarding height exceptions
18or variances, but not subject to zoning review or approval if
19they are collocated (i) in rights-of-way in any zone, or (ii)
20outside rights-of-way in property zoned exclusively for
21commercial or industrial use.
22    (d) An authority may require an applicant to obtain one or
23more permits to collocate a small wireless facility. An

 

 

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1authority shall receive applications for, process, and issue
2permits subject to the following requirements:
3        (1) An authority may not directly or indirectly
4    require an applicant to perform services unrelated to the
5    collocation for which approval is sought, such as in-kind
6    contributions to the authority, including reserving fiber,
7    conduit, or utility pole space for the authority on the
8    wireless provider's utility pole. An authority may reserve
9    space on authority utility poles for future public safety
10    uses or for the authority's electric utility uses, but a
11    reservation of space may not preclude the collocation of a
12    small wireless facility unless the authority reasonably
13    determines that the authority utility pole cannot
14    accommodate both uses.
15        (2) An applicant shall not be required to provide more
16    information to obtain a permit than the authority requires
17    of a communications service provider that is not a
18    wireless provider that requests to attach facilities to a
19    structure; however, a wireless provider may be required to
20    provide the following information when seeking a permit to
21    collocate small wireless facilities on a utility pole or
22    wireless support structure:
23            (A) site specific structural integrity and, for an
24        authority utility pole, make-ready analysis prepared
25        by a structural engineer, as that term is defined in
26        Section 4 of the Structural Engineering Practice Act

 

 

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1        of 1989;
2            (B) the location where each proposed small
3        wireless facility or utility pole would be installed
4        and photographs of the location and its immediate
5        surroundings depicting the utility poles or structures
6        on which each proposed small wireless facility would
7        be mounted or location where utility poles or
8        structures would be installed;
9            (C) specifications and drawings prepared by a
10        structural engineer, as that term is defined in
11        Section 4 of the Structural Engineering Practice Act
12        of 1989, for each proposed small wireless facility
13        covered by the application as it is proposed to be
14        installed;
15            (D) the equipment type and model numbers for the
16        antennas and all other wireless equipment associated
17        with the small wireless facility;
18            (E) a proposed schedule for the installation and
19        completion of each small wireless facility covered by
20        the application, if approved; and
21            (F) certification that the collocation complies
22        with paragraph (6) to the best of the applicant's
23        knowledge.
24        (3) Subject to paragraph (6), an authority may not
25    require the placement of small wireless facilities on any
26    specific utility pole, or category of utility poles, or

 

 

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1    require multiple antenna systems on a single utility pole;
2    however, with respect to an application for the
3    collocation of a small wireless facility associated with a
4    new utility pole, an authority may propose that the small
5    wireless facility be collocated on an existing utility
6    pole or existing wireless support structure within 100
7    feet of the proposed collocation, which the applicant
8    shall accept if it has the right to use the alternate
9    structure on reasonable terms and conditions and the
10    alternate location and structure does not impose technical
11    limits or additional material costs as determined by the
12    applicant. The authority may require the applicant to
13    provide a written certification describing the property
14    rights, technical limits or material cost reasons the
15    alternate location does not satisfy the criteria in this
16    paragraph (3).
17        (4) Subject to paragraph (6), an authority may not
18    limit the placement of small wireless facilities mounted
19    on a utility pole or a wireless support structure by
20    minimum horizontal separation distances.
21        (5) An authority may limit the maximum height of a
22    small wireless facility to 10 feet above the utility pole
23    or wireless support structure on which the small wireless
24    facility is collocated. Subject to any applicable waiver,
25    zoning, or other process that addresses wireless provider
26    requests for an exception or variance and does not

 

 

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1    prohibit granting of such exceptions or variances, the
2    authority may limit the height of new or replacement
3    utility poles or wireless support structures on which
4    small wireless facilities are collocated to the higher of:
5    (i) 10 feet in height above the tallest existing utility
6    pole, other than a utility pole supporting only wireless
7    facilities, that is in place on the date the application
8    is submitted to the authority, that is located within 300
9    feet of the new or replacement utility pole or wireless
10    support structure and that is in the same right-of-way
11    within the jurisdictional boundary of the authority,
12    provided the authority may designate which intersecting
13    right-of-way within 300 feet of the proposed utility pole
14    or wireless support structures shall control the height
15    limitation for such facility; or (ii) 45 feet above ground
16    level.
17        (6) An authority may require that:
18            (A) the wireless provider's operation of the small
19        wireless facilities does not interfere with the
20        frequencies used by a public safety agency for public
21        safety communications; a wireless provider shall
22        install small wireless facilities of the type and
23        frequency that will not cause unacceptable
24        interference with a public safety agency's
25        communications equipment; unacceptable interference
26        will be determined by and measured in accordance with

 

 

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1        industry standards and the FCC's regulations
2        addressing unacceptable interference to public safety
3        spectrum or any other spectrum licensed by a public
4        safety agency; if a small wireless facility causes
5        such interference, and the wireless provider has been
6        given written notice of the interference by the public
7        safety agency, the wireless provider, at its own
8        expense, shall take all reasonable steps necessary to
9        correct and eliminate the interference, including, but
10        not limited to, powering down the small wireless
11        facility and later powering up the small wireless
12        facility for intermittent testing, if necessary; the
13        authority may terminate a permit for a small wireless
14        facility based on such interference if the wireless
15        provider is not making a good faith effort to remedy
16        the problem in a manner consistent with the abatement
17        and resolution procedures for interference with public
18        safety spectrum established by the FCC including 47
19        CFR 22.970 through 47 CFR 22.973 and 47 CFR 90.672
20        through 47 CFR 90.675;
21            (B) the wireless provider comply with requirements
22        that are imposed by a contract between an authority
23        and a private property owner that concern design or
24        construction standards applicable to utility poles and
25        ground-mounted equipment located in the right-of-way;
26            (C) the wireless provider comply with applicable

 

 

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1        spacing requirements in applicable codes and
2        ordinances concerning the location of ground-mounted
3        equipment located in the right-of-way if the
4        requirements include a waiver, zoning, or other
5        process that addresses wireless provider requests for
6        exception or variance and do not prohibit granting of
7        such exceptions or variances;
8            (D) the wireless provider comply with local code
9        provisions or regulations concerning undergrounding
10        requirements that prohibit the installation of new or
11        the modification of existing utility poles in a
12        right-of-way without prior approval if the
13        requirements include a waiver, zoning, or other
14        process that addresses requests to install such new
15        utility poles or modify such existing utility poles
16        and do not prohibit the replacement of utility poles;
17            (E) the wireless provider comply with generally
18        applicable standards that are consistent with this Act
19        and adopted by an authority for construction and
20        public safety in the rights-of-way, including, but not
21        limited to, reasonable and nondiscriminatory wiring
22        and cabling requirements, grounding requirements,
23        utility pole extension requirements, and signage
24        limitations; and shall comply with reasonable and
25        nondiscriminatory requirements that are consistent
26        with this Act and adopted by an authority regulating

 

 

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1        the location, size, surface area and height of small
2        wireless facilities, or the abandonment and removal of
3        small wireless facilities;
4            (F) the wireless provider not collocate small
5        wireless facilities on authority utility poles that
6        are part of an electric distribution or transmission
7        system within the communication worker safety zone of
8        the pole or the electric supply zone of the pole;
9        however, the antenna and support equipment of the
10        small wireless facility may be located in the
11        communications space on the authority utility pole and
12        on the top of the pole, if not otherwise unavailable,
13        if the wireless provider complies with applicable
14        codes for work involving the top of the pole; for
15        purposes of this subparagraph (F), the terms
16        "communications space", "communication worker safety
17        zone", and "electric supply zone" have the meanings
18        given to those terms in the National Electric Safety
19        Code as published by the Institute of Electrical and
20        Electronics Engineers;
21            (G) the wireless provider comply with the
22        applicable codes and local code provisions or
23        regulations that concern public safety;
24            (H) the wireless provider comply with written
25        design standards that are generally applicable for
26        decorative utility poles, or reasonable stealth,

 

 

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1        concealment, and aesthetic requirements that are
2        identified by the authority in an ordinance, written
3        policy adopted by the governing board of the
4        authority, a comprehensive plan, or other written
5        design plan that applies to other occupiers of the
6        rights-of-way, including on a historic landmark or in
7        a historic district; and
8            (I) subject to subsection (c) of this Section, and
9        except for facilities excluded from evaluation for
10        effects on historic properties under 47 CFR
11        1.1307(a)(4), reasonable, technically feasible and
12        non-discriminatory design or concealment measures in a
13        historic district or historic landmark; any such
14        design or concealment measures, including restrictions
15        on a specific category of poles, may not have the
16        effect of prohibiting any provider's technology; such
17        design and concealment measures shall not be
18        considered a part of the small wireless facility for
19        purposes of the size restrictions of a small wireless
20        facility; this paragraph may not be construed to limit
21        an authority's enforcement of historic preservation in
22        conformance with the requirements adopted pursuant to
23        the Illinois State Agency Historic Resources
24        Preservation Act or the National Historic Preservation
25        Act of 1966, 54 U.S.C. Section 300101 et seq., and the
26        regulations adopted to implement those laws.

 

 

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1        (7) Within 30 days after receiving an application, an
2    authority must determine whether the application is
3    complete and notify the applicant. If an application is
4    incomplete, an authority must specifically identify the
5    missing information. An application shall be deemed
6    complete if the authority fails to provide notification to
7    the applicant within 30 days after when all documents,
8    information, and fees specifically enumerated in the
9    authority's permit application form are submitted by the
10    applicant to the authority. Processing deadlines are
11    tolled from the time the authority sends the notice of
12    incompleteness to the time the applicant provides the
13    missing information.
14        (8) An authority shall process applications as
15    follows:
16            (A) an application to collocate a small wireless
17        facility on an existing utility pole or wireless
18        support structure shall be processed on a
19        nondiscriminatory basis and deemed approved if the
20        authority fails to approve or deny the application
21        within 90 days; however, if an applicant intends to
22        proceed with the permitted activity on a deemed
23        approved basis, the applicant must notify the
24        authority in writing of its intention to invoke the
25        deemed approved remedy no sooner than 75 days after
26        the submission of a completed application; the permit

 

 

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1        shall be deemed approved on the latter of the 90th day
2        after submission of the complete application or the
3        10th day after the receipt of the deemed approved
4        notice by the authority; the receipt of the deemed
5        approved notice shall not preclude the authority's
6        denial of the permit request within the time limits as
7        provided under this Act; and
8            (B) an application to collocate a small wireless
9        facility that includes the installation of a new
10        utility pole shall be processed on a nondiscriminatory
11        basis and deemed approved if the authority fails to
12        approve or deny the application within 120 days;
13        however, if an applicant intends to proceed with the
14        permitted activity on a deemed approved basis, the
15        applicant must notify the authority in writing of its
16        intention to invoke the deemed approved remedy no
17        sooner than 105 days after the submission of a
18        completed application; the permit shall be deemed
19        approved on the latter of the 120th day after
20        submission of the complete application or the 10th day
21        after the receipt of the deemed approved notice by the
22        authority; the receipt of the deemed approved notice
23        shall not preclude the authority's denial of the
24        permit request within the time limits as provided
25        under this Act.
26        (9) An authority shall approve an application unless

 

 

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1    the application does not meet the requirements of this
2    Act. If an authority determines that applicable codes,
3    local code provisions or regulations that concern public
4    safety, or the requirements of paragraph (6) require that
5    the utility pole or wireless support structure be replaced
6    before the requested collocation, approval may be
7    conditioned on the replacement of the utility pole or
8    wireless support structure at the cost of the provider.
9    The authority must document the basis for a denial,
10    including the specific code provisions or application
11    conditions on which the denial was based, and send the
12    documentation to the applicant on or before the day the
13    authority denies an application. The applicant may cure
14    the deficiencies identified by the authority and resubmit
15    the revised application once within 30 days after notice
16    of denial is sent to the applicant without paying an
17    additional application fee. The authority shall approve or
18    deny the revised application within 30 days after the
19    applicant resubmits the application or it is deemed
20    approved; however, the applicant must notify the authority
21    in writing of its intention to proceed with the permitted
22    activity on a deemed approved basis, which may be
23    submitted with the resubmitted application. Any subsequent
24    review shall be limited to the deficiencies cited in the
25    denial. However, this revised application cure does not
26    apply if the cure requires the review of a new location,

 

 

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1    new or different structure to be collocated upon, new
2    antennas, or other wireless equipment associated with the
3    small wireless facility.
4        (10) The time period for applications may be further
5    tolled by:
6            (A) the express agreement in writing by both the
7        applicant and the authority; or
8            (B) a local, State, or federal disaster
9        declaration or similar emergency that causes the
10        delay.
11        (11) An applicant seeking to collocate small wireless
12    facilities within the jurisdiction of a single authority
13    shall be allowed, at the applicant's discretion, to file a
14    consolidated application and receive a single permit for
15    the collocation of up to 25 small wireless facilities if
16    the collocations each involve substantially the same type
17    of small wireless facility and substantially the same type
18    of structure. If an application includes multiple small
19    wireless facilities, the authority may remove small
20    wireless facility collocations from the application and
21    treat separately small wireless facility collocations for
22    which incomplete information has been provided or that do
23    not qualify for consolidated treatment or that are denied.
24    The authority may issue separate permits for each
25    collocation that is approved in a consolidated
26    application.

 

 

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1        (12) Collocation for which a permit is granted shall
2    be completed within 180 days after issuance of the permit,
3    unless the authority and the wireless provider agree to
4    extend this period or a delay is caused by make-ready work
5    for an authority utility pole or by the lack of commercial
6    power or backhaul availability at the site, provided the
7    wireless provider has made a timely request within 60 days
8    after the issuance of the permit for commercial power or
9    backhaul services, and the additional time to complete
10    installation does not exceed 360 days after issuance of
11    the permit. Otherwise, the permit shall be void unless the
12    authority grants an extension in writing to the applicant.
13        (13) The duration of a permit shall be for a period of
14    not less than 5 years, and the permit shall be renewed for
15    equivalent durations unless the authority makes a finding
16    that the small wireless facilities or the new or modified
17    utility pole do not comply with the applicable codes or
18    local code provisions or regulations in paragraphs (6) and
19    (9). If this Act is repealed as provided in Section 90,
20    renewals of permits shall be subject to the applicable
21    authority code provisions or regulations in effect at the
22    time of renewal.
23        (14) An authority may not prohibit, either expressly
24    or de facto, the (i) filing, receiving, or processing
25    applications, or (ii) issuing of permits or other
26    approvals, if any, for the collocation of small wireless

 

 

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1    facilities unless there has been a local, State, or
2    federal disaster declaration or similar emergency that
3    causes the delay.
4        (15) Applicants shall submit applications, supporting
5    information, and notices by personal delivery or as
6    otherwise required by the authority. An authority may
7    require that permits, supporting information, and notices
8    be submitted by personal delivery at the authority's
9    designated place of business, by regular mail postmarked
10    on the date due, or by any other commonly used means,
11    including electronic mail, as required by the authority.
12        (16) An authority may require an applicant or site
13    developer to provide probative evidence in the form of
14    hard data recorded during a drive test performed by an
15    independent radio-frequency engineer selected by the
16    authority to support gap-in-coverage claims to establish
17    (i) the existence of a real gap in the specific carrier's
18    wireless coverage, (ii) the location of the gap, and (iii)
19    the geographical boundaries of the gap.
20    (e) Application fees are subject to the following
21requirements:
22        (1) An authority may charge an application fee of up
23    to $650 for an application to collocate a single small
24    wireless facility on an existing utility pole or wireless
25    support structure and up to $350 for each small wireless
26    facility addressed in an application to collocate more

 

 

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1    than one small wireless facility on existing utility poles
2    or wireless support structures.
3        (2) An authority may charge an application fee of
4    $1,000 for each small wireless facility addressed in an
5    application that includes the installation of a new
6    utility for such collocation.
7        (3) Notwithstanding any contrary provision of State
8    law or local ordinance, applications pursuant to this
9    Section must be accompanied by the required application
10    fee.
11        (4) Within 2 months after the effective date of this
12    Act, an authority shall make available application fees
13    consistent with this subsection, through ordinance, or in
14    a written schedule of permit fees adopted by the
15    authority.
16    (f) An authority shall not require an application,
17approval, or permit, or require any fees or other charges,
18from a communications service provider authorized to occupy
19the rights-of-way, for: (i) routine maintenance; (ii) the
20replacement of wireless facilities with wireless facilities
21that are substantially similar, the same size, or smaller if
22the wireless provider notifies the authority at least 10 days
23prior to the planned replacement and includes equipment
24specifications for the replacement of equipment consistent
25with the requirements of subparagraph (D) of paragraph (2) of
26subsection (d) of this Section; or (iii) the installation,

 

 

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1placement, maintenance, operation, or replacement of micro
2wireless facilities that are suspended on cables that are
3strung between existing utility poles in compliance with
4applicable safety codes. However, an authority may require a
5permit to work within rights-of-way for activities that affect
6traffic patterns or require lane closures.
7    (g) Nothing in this Act authorizes a person to collocate
8small wireless facilities on: (1) property owned by a private
9party or property owned or controlled by a unit of local
10government that is not located within rights-of-way, subject
11to subsection (j) of this Section, or a privately owned
12utility pole or wireless support structure without the consent
13of the property owner; (2) property owned, leased, or
14controlled by a park district, forest preserve district, or
15conservation district for public park, recreation, or
16conservation purposes without the consent of the affected
17district, excluding the placement of facilities on
18rights-of-way located in an affected district that are under
19the jurisdiction and control of a different unit of local
20government as provided by the Illinois Highway Code; or (3)
21property owned by a rail carrier registered under Section
2218c-7201 of the Illinois Vehicle Code, Metra Commuter Rail or
23any other public commuter rail service, or an electric utility
24as defined in Section 16-102 of the Public Utilities Act,
25without the consent of the rail carrier, public commuter rail
26service, or electric utility. The provisions of this Act do

 

 

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1not apply to an electric or gas public utility or such
2utility's wireless facilities if the facilities are being
3used, developed, and maintained consistent with the provisions
4of subsection (i) of Section 16-108.5 of the Public Utilities
5Act.
6    For the purposes of this subsection, "public utility" has
7the meaning given to that term in Section 3-105 of the Public
8Utilities Act. Nothing in this Act shall be construed to
9relieve any person from any requirement (1) to obtain a
10franchise or a State-issued authorization to offer cable
11service or video service or (2) to obtain any required
12permission to install, place, maintain, or operate
13communications facilities, other than small wireless
14facilities subject to this Act.
15    (h) Agreements between authorities and wireless providers
16that relate to the collocation of small wireless facilities in
17the right-of-way, including the collocation of small wireless
18facilities on authority utility poles, that are in effect on
19the effective date of this Act remain in effect for all small
20wireless facilities collocated on the authority's utility
21poles pursuant to applications submitted to the authority
22before the effective date of this Act, subject to applicable
23termination provisions. Such agreements entered into after the
24effective date of the Act shall comply with the Act.
25    (i) An authority shall allow the collocation of small
26wireless facilities on authority utility poles subject to the

 

 

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1following:
2        (1) An authority may not enter into an exclusive
3    arrangement with any person for the right to attach small
4    wireless facilities to authority utility poles.
5        (2) The rates and fees for collocations on authority
6    utility poles shall be nondiscriminatory regardless of the
7    services provided by the collocating person.
8        (3) An authority may charge an annual recurring rate
9    to collocate a small wireless facility on an authority
10    utility pole located in a right-of-way that equals (i)
11    $200 per year or (ii) the actual, direct, and reasonable
12    costs related to the wireless provider's use of space on
13    the authority utility pole. Rates for collocation on
14    authority utility poles located outside of a right-of-way
15    are not subject to these limitations. In any controversy
16    concerning the appropriateness of a cost-based rate for an
17    authority utility pole located within a right-of-way, the
18    authority shall have the burden of proving that the rate
19    does not exceed the actual, direct, and reasonable costs
20    for the applicant's proposed use of the authority utility
21    pole. Nothing in this paragraph (3) prohibits a wireless
22    provider and an authority from mutually agreeing to an
23    annual recurring rate of less than $200 to collocate a
24    small wireless facility on an authority utility pole.
25        (4) Authorities or other persons owning or controlling
26    authority utility poles within the right-of-way shall

 

 

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1    offer rates, fees, and other terms that comply with
2    subparagraphs (A) through (E) of this paragraph (4).
3    Within 2 months after the effective date of this Act, an
4    authority or a person owning or controlling authority
5    utility poles shall make available, through ordinance or
6    an authority utility pole attachment agreement, license or
7    other agreement that makes available to wireless
8    providers, the rates, fees, and terms for the collocation
9    of small wireless facilities on authority utility poles
10    that comply with this Act and with subparagraphs (A)
11    through (E) of this paragraph (4). In the absence of such
12    an ordinance or agreement that complies with this Act, and
13    until such a compliant ordinance or agreement is adopted,
14    wireless providers may collocate small wireless facilities
15    and install utility poles under the requirements of this
16    Act.
17            (A) The rates, fees, and terms must be
18        nondiscriminatory, competitively neutral, and
19        commercially reasonable, and may address, among other
20        requirements, the requirements in subparagraphs (A)
21        through (I) of paragraph (6) of subsection (d) of this
22        Section; subsections (e), (i), and (k) of this
23        Section; Section 30; and Section 35, and must comply
24        with this Act.
25            (B) For authority utility poles that support
26        aerial facilities used to provide communications

 

 

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1        services or electric service, wireless providers shall
2        comply with the process for make-ready work under 47
3        U.S.C. 224 and its implementing regulations, and the
4        authority shall follow a substantially similar process
5        for make-ready work except to the extent that the
6        timing requirements are otherwise addressed in this
7        Act. The good-faith estimate of the person owning or
8        controlling the authority utility pole for any
9        make-ready work necessary to enable the pole to
10        support the requested collocation shall include
11        authority utility pole replacement, if necessary.
12            (C) For authority utility poles that do not
13        support aerial facilities used to provide
14        communications services or electric service, the
15        authority shall provide a good-faith estimate for any
16        make-ready work necessary to enable the authority
17        utility pole to support the requested collocation,
18        including pole replacement, if necessary, within 90
19        days after receipt of a complete application.
20        Make-ready work, including any authority utility pole
21        replacement, shall be completed within 60 days of
22        written acceptance of the good-faith estimate by the
23        applicant at the wireless provider's sole cost and
24        expense. Alternatively, if the authority determines
25        that applicable codes or public safety regulations
26        require the authority utility pole to be replaced to

 

 

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1        support the requested collocation, the authority may
2        require the wireless provider to replace the authority
3        utility pole at the wireless provider's sole cost and
4        expense.
5            (D) The authority shall not require more
6        make-ready work than required to meet applicable codes
7        or industry standards. Make-ready work may include
8        work needed to accommodate additional public safety
9        communications needs that are identified in a
10        documented and approved plan for the deployment of
11        public safety equipment as specified in paragraph (1)
12        of subsection (d) of this Section and included in an
13        existing or preliminary authority or public service
14        agency budget for attachment within one year of the
15        application. Fees for make-ready work, including any
16        authority utility pole replacement, shall not exceed
17        actual costs or the amount charged to communications
18        service providers for similar work and shall not
19        include any consultants' fees or expenses for
20        authority utility poles that do not support aerial
21        facilities used to provide communications services or
22        electric service. Make-ready work, including any pole
23        replacement, shall be completed within 60 days of
24        written acceptance of the good-faith estimate by the
25        wireless provider, at its sole cost and expense.
26            (E) A wireless provider that has an existing

 

 

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1        agreement with the authority on the effective date of
2        the Act may accept the rates, fees, and terms that an
3        authority makes available under this Act for the
4        collocation of small wireless facilities or the
5        installation of new utility poles for the collocation
6        of small wireless facilities that are the subject of
7        an application submitted 2 or more years after the
8        effective date of the Act as provided in this
9        paragraph (4) by notifying the authority that it opts
10        to accept such rates, fees, and terms. The existing
11        agreement remains in effect, subject to applicable
12        termination provisions, for the small wireless
13        facilities the wireless provider has collocated on the
14        authority's utility poles pursuant to applications
15        submitted to the authority before the wireless
16        provider provides such notice and exercises its option
17        under this subparagraph.
18    (j) An authority shall authorize the collocation of small
19wireless facilities on utility poles owned or controlled by
20the authority that are not located within rights-of-way to the
21same extent the authority currently permits access to utility
22poles for other commercial projects or uses. The collocations
23shall be subject to reasonable and nondiscriminatory rates,
24fees, and terms as provided in an agreement between the
25authority and the wireless provider.
26    (k) Nothing in this Section precludes an authority from

 

 

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1adopting reasonable rules with respect to the removal of
2abandoned small wireless facilities. A small wireless facility
3that is not operated for a continuous period of 12 months shall
4be considered abandoned and the owner of the facility must
5remove the small wireless facility within 90 days after
6receipt of written notice from the authority notifying the
7owner of the abandonment. The notice shall be sent by
8certified or registered mail, return receipt requested, by the
9authority to the owner at the last known address of the owner.
10If the small wireless facility is not removed within 90 days of
11such notice, the authority may remove or cause the removal of
12the such facility pursuant to the terms of its pole attachment
13agreement for authority utility poles or through whatever
14actions are provided for abatement of nuisances or by other
15law for removal and cost recovery. An authority may require a
16wireless provider to provide written notice to the authority
17if it sells or transfers small wireless facilities subject to
18this Act within the jurisdictional boundary of the authority.
19Such notice shall include the name and contact information of
20the new wireless provider.
21    (l) Nothing in this Section requires an authority to
22install or maintain any specific utility pole or to continue
23to install or maintain utility poles in any location if the
24authority makes a non-discriminatory decision to eliminate
25above-ground utility poles of a particular type generally,
26such as electric utility poles, in all or a significant

 

 

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1portion of its geographic jurisdiction. For authority utility
2poles with collocated small wireless facilities in place when
3an authority makes a decision to eliminate above-ground
4utility poles of a particular type generally, the authority
5shall either (i) continue to maintain the authority utility
6pole or install and maintain a reasonable alternative utility
7pole or wireless support structure for the collocation of the
8small wireless facility, or (ii) offer to sell the utility
9pole to the wireless provider at a reasonable cost or allow the
10wireless provider to install its own utility pole so it can
11maintain service from that location.
12(Source: P.A. 100-585, eff. 6-1-18.)