| 1 | The Committee on Business Regulation recommends the following: |
| 2 |
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| 3 | Committee Substitute |
| 4 | Remove the entire bill and insert: |
| 5 | A bill to be entitled |
| 6 | An act relating to taxation and regulation of |
| 7 | governmentally provided communications services; providing |
| 8 | legislative findings; providing notice to local |
| 9 | governments considering providing certain services; |
| 10 | providing definitions; creating a moratorium restricting |
| 11 | local governments from pledging revenues for the issuance |
| 12 | of bonds to finance certain governmentally provided |
| 13 | communications services; creating a legislative study |
| 14 | commission to review regulatory and tax issues related to |
| 15 | governmentally provided communications services; |
| 16 | specifying that local governments providing specified |
| 17 | services are subject to certain state and federal laws and |
| 18 | regulations; prohibiting local governments from requiring |
| 19 | residents to use governmentally provided communications |
| 20 | services; requiring the nondiscriminatory application of |
| 21 | certain policies and provisions of law related to |
| 22 | communications services; subjecting local governments |
| 23 | providing communications services to specified |
| 24 | prohibitions applicable to private providers; providing |
| 25 | severability; providing an effective date. |
| 26 |
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| 27 | Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: |
| 28 |
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| 29 | Section 1. Legislative intent.-- |
| 30 | (1) The Legislature finds that it is the policy of this |
| 31 | state to ensure that local governments operate on a level |
| 32 | playing field with private providers of communications services, |
| 33 | especially that local governments not enjoy any undue advantages |
| 34 | simply due to their status as a local government. |
| 35 | (2) The Legislature hereby provides notice to all local |
| 36 | governments in this state that in the ensuing year the |
| 37 | Legislature will be conducting a study of the appropriate level |
| 38 | of state regulation for local governments wishing to offer |
| 39 | communications services in competition with private providers. |
| 40 | This legislative study will be comprehensive and will be |
| 41 | considered for adoption in the 2005 Regular Session. Any local |
| 42 | government which is providing such services currently or is |
| 43 | considering providing such services in the future is hereby |
| 44 | given notice of these legislative deliberations and should be |
| 45 | prepared to comply with said regulations upon adoption. |
| 46 | Section 2. Definitions.--For purposes of this act: |
| 47 | (1) "Local government" means any political subdivision as |
| 48 | defined in s. 1.01, Florida Statutes, and any utility authority, |
| 49 | other authority, board, branch, department, or unit thereof. |
| 50 | (2) "Advanced service" means high-speed Internet access |
| 51 | service capability in excess of 144 kilobits per second in the |
| 52 | upstream or the downstream direction, including any service |
| 53 | application provided over the high-speed access service or any |
| 54 | information service as defined in 47 U.S.C. s. 153(20). |
| 55 | (3) "Communications services" includes the offering of any |
| 56 | "advanced service," "cable service," or "telecommunications |
| 57 | service" and should be construed in the broadest sense. |
| 58 | (4) "Cable service" has the same meaning as that provided |
| 59 | in 47 U.S.C. s. 522(6). |
| 60 | (5) "Providing," with respect to a named service, means |
| 61 | offering or supplying a service for a fee to a person, including |
| 62 | any portion of the public or a local government or private |
| 63 | provider. |
| 64 | (6) "Subscriber" means a person who receives a named |
| 65 | service. |
| 66 | (7) "Telecommunications services" means the transmission |
| 67 | of signs, signals, writing, images, sounds, messages, data, or |
| 68 | other information of the user's choosing, by wire, radio, light |
| 69 | waves, or other electromagnetic means, without change in the |
| 70 | form or content of the information as sent and received by the |
| 71 | user and regardless of the facilities used. |
| 72 | Section 3. Moratorium.--No local government shall pledge |
| 73 | any revenues in support of the issuance of any bonds to be used |
| 74 | to finance a business venture outside of its home county in |
| 75 | competition with providers for the provision of communications |
| 76 | services until July 1, 2005. |
| 77 | Section 4. Legislative study.-- |
| 78 | (1) The Government-owned Communications Services Study |
| 79 | Commission is created. The commission shall be composed of nine |
| 80 | members, appointed as follows: |
| 81 | (a) Four members appointed by the Speaker of the House of |
| 82 | Representatives, at least two of whom shall be members of the |
| 83 | House of Representatives. |
| 84 | (b) Four members appointed by the President of the Senate, |
| 85 | at least two of whom shall be members of the Senate. |
| 86 | (c) One member appointed by the Attorney General. |
| 87 |
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| 88 | Members of the Legislature shall be ex officio, nonvoting |
| 89 | members of the commission. |
| 90 | (2) The Legislature shall provide staffing for the members |
| 91 | of the study commission, whose meetings shall be noticed and |
| 92 | held with access to the public. |
| 93 | (3) The study commission shall issue a report to the |
| 94 | President of the Senate, the Speaker of the House of |
| 95 | Representatives, and the Governor no later than January 15, |
| 96 | 2005. |
| 97 | (4) The study commission shall review any and all |
| 98 | regulatory and tax issues related to the provision of |
| 99 | communications services by any local government in this state. |
| 100 | Section 5. (1) Any local government that provides a cable |
| 101 | service shall comply with the Cable Communications Policy Act of |
| 102 | 1984, 47 U.S.C. 521, et seq., the regulations issued by the |
| 103 | Federal Communications Commission under the Cable Communications |
| 104 | Policy Act of 1984, 47 U.S.C. 521, et seq., and applicable state |
| 105 | statutes and rules, including s. 166.046, Florida Statutes, and |
| 106 | to the extent applicable, chapter 202, Florida Statutes. |
| 107 | (2) A local government that provides a telecommunications |
| 108 | service or advanced service shall comply with the |
| 109 | Telecommunications Act of 1996, Pub. L. No. 104-104, the |
| 110 | regulations issued by the Federal Communications Commission |
| 111 | under the Telecommunication Act of 1996, Pub. L. No. 104-104, |
| 112 | and applicable state laws and rules, including those of the |
| 113 | Public Service Commission, and, to the extent applicable, |
| 114 | chapter 202, Florida Statutes. |
| 115 | (3) Exercise of a local government's power or authority in |
| 116 | any area, including zoning or land use, to require use by any |
| 117 | person, including residents of a particular development, of any |
| 118 | of the local government's communications services is prohibited. |
| 119 | (4) A local government shall apply the local government's |
| 120 | ordinances, rules, and policies, including those relating to the |
| 121 | following subjects, without discrimination as to itself and any |
| 122 | private provider of communications services: |
| 123 | (a) Access to public rights-of-way. |
| 124 | (b) Permitting, access to, use of, and payment for use of |
| 125 | local government-owned poles, such that the local government |
| 126 | shall be subject to the same terms, conditions, and fees, if |
| 127 | any, for access to government-owned poles that the local |
| 128 | government applies to a private provider for such access. |
| 129 | (5) Notwithstanding s. 542.235, Florida Statutes, or any |
| 130 | other provision of law, a local government that provides |
| 131 | communications services is subject to the same prohibitions |
| 132 | applicable to private providers under ss. 542.18 and 542.19, |
| 133 | Florida Statutes. |
| 134 | Section 6. If any provision of this act or the application |
| 135 | of any provision of this act is found to be invalid, the |
| 136 | remainder of this act shall be given effect without the invalid |
| 137 | provision or application. |
| 138 | Section 7. This act shall take effect upon becoming law. |