SENATE BILL No. 399

 

 

June 16, 2015, Introduced by Senators SCHMIDT, ZORN and HORN and referred to the Committee on Local Government.

 

 

 

     A bill to amend 1909 PA 283, entitled

 

"An act to revise, consolidate, and add to the laws relating to the

establishment, opening, discontinuing, vacating, closing, altering,

improvement, maintenance, and use of the public highways and

private roads; the condemnation of property and gravel therefor;

the building, repairing and preservation of bridges; maintaining

public access to waterways under certain conditions; setting and

protecting shade trees, drainage, and cutting weeds and brush

within this state; providing for the election or appointment and

defining the powers, duties, and compensation of state, county,

township, and district highway officials; and to prescribe

penalties and provide remedies,"

 

by amending section 19b of chapter IV (MCL 224.19b), as added by

 

1980 PA 212.

 

THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN ENACT:

 

CHAPTER IV

 

     Sec. 19b. (1) A person, partnership, association, corporation,

 

or governmental entity shall not construct, operate, maintain, or

 


remove a facility or perform any other work within the right of way

 

right-of-way of a county road, except sidewalk installation and

 

repair, without first obtaining a permit from the county road

 

commission having jurisdiction over the road and from the township,

 

city, or village in which the county road is located when a permit

 

is required by ordinance of the township, city, or village,

 

pursuant to authority conferred by article VII, section 29 of

 

article VII of the Michigan state constitution of 1963. The

 

adjacent property owner shall is not be required to obtain a permit

 

for work incidental to the maintenance of the right of way right-

 

of-way lying outside of the shoulder and roadway.

 

     (2) A county road commission and a local unit of government

 

may adopt, after a public hearing of which notice has been given by

 

publication at least twice in a newspaper circulated in the county

 

not more than 30 days nor less than 7 days prior to before the

 

hearing, reasonable permit requirements and, subject to subsection

 

(5), a schedule of fees to be charged sufficient to cover only the

 

necessary and actual costs applied in a reasonable manner for the

 

issuance of issuing the permit and for review of the proposed

 

activity, inspection, and related expenses. After the work

 

authorized in the permit has been completed, itemization of all

 

costs shall be supplied upon request of the permit holder.

 

     (3) When a road commission adopts procedures for the issuance

 

of issuing permits or adopts a schedule of fees in accordance with

 

the provisions of this section, separate procedures and fee

 

schedules shall be adopted for the issuance of issuing annual and

 

emergency permits which that reflect the minimal administrative


burden of issuing an annual permit for frequent but routine and

 

unobtrusive work such as surveying and the extraordinary emergency

 

repairs to municipal or public utilities.

 

     (4) A county road commission may not refuse a permit requested

 

by a government entity for the installation of a facility or

 

utility owned by that government entity if security is given by the

 

permittee or its contractor to the county road commission

 

sufficient to insure restoration of the road and appurtenances

 

thereto and adjacent right of way right-of-way to a condition

 

reasonably equal to or better than that existing prior to before

 

such installation. nor may a

 

     (5) A county road commission shall not charge a government

 

entity or a telecommunication provider a permit fee exceeding

 

$300.00 per permit or $1,000.00 total for all permits per project.

 

     (6) A county road commission shall not require a

 

telecommunication provider to have more than 1 security bond to

 

secure the performance of the conditions of all permits issued that

 

authorize the telecommunication provider to construct, operate,

 

maintain, or remove a telecommunication facility or perform any

 

other work anywhere within the right-of-way of any road under the

 

jurisdiction of the county road commission. The telecommunication

 

provider shall determine whether the security bond described in

 

this subsection is an insurance bond or a cash bond, and a county

 

road commission shall not require that the security bond be a cash

 

bond. The amount of a security bond described in this subsection

 

shall not exceed $10,000.00. Upon the request of a

 

telecommunication provider, the county road commission shall return


the security bond to the telecommunication provider within 60 days

 

after the telecommunication provider completes all work in the

 

right-of-way.

 

     (7) If a telecommunication provider maintains general

 

liability insurance with minimum policy limits of $1,000,000.00 per

 

occurrence for property damage and $1,000,000.00 per occurrence for

 

bodily injury that apply to all claims, demands, suits, or causes

 

of action arising in connection with or as a direct result of the

 

telecommunication provider's use and occupancy of a right-of-way

 

under the jurisdiction of a county road commission, that county

 

road commission shall not require the telecommunication provider to

 

furnish a policy of general liability insurance naming the county,

 

the county road commission, its officers, employees, and others as

 

additional insureds.

 

     (8) As used in this section:

 

     (a) "Broadband Internet access transport services" means the

 

broadband transmission of data between an end-user and the end-

 

user's Internet service provider's point of interconnection at a

 

speed of 200 or more kilobits per second to the end-user's

 

premises.

 

     (b) "Telecommunication facilities" means the equipment or

 

personal property, such as copper and fiber cables, lines, wires,

 

switches, conduits, pipes, and sheaths, which are used to or can

 

generate, receive, transmit, carry, amplify, or provide

 

telecommunication services or signals. Telecommunication facilities

 

do not include antennas, supporting structures for antennas,

 

equipment shelters or houses, and any ancillary equipment and


miscellaneous hardware used to provide federally licensed

 

commercial mobile service as defined in 47 USC 332, and further

 

defined as commercial mobile radio service in 47 CFR 20.3, or

 

service provided by any wireless, 2-way communications device.

 

     (c) "Telecommunication provider" and "telecommunication

 

services" mean those terms as defined in section 102 of the

 

Michigan telecommunications act, 1991 PA 179, MCL 484.2102.

 

Telecommunication provider does not include a person or an

 

affiliate of that person when providing a federally licensed

 

commercial mobile service as defined in 47 USC 332, and further

 

defined as commercial mobile radio service in 47 CFR 20.3, or

 

service provided by any wireless, 2-way communication device. For

 

purposes of this section only, a telecommunication provider

 

includes all of the following:

 

     (i) A cable television operator that provides a

 

telecommunication service.

 

     (ii) A person who owns telecommunication facilities located

 

within a public right-of-way.

 

     (iii) A person providing broadband Internet transport access

 

service.

 

     (iv) An Internet service provider that provides a

 

telecommunication service.

 

     Enacting section 1. This amendatory act takes effect 90 days

 

after the date it is enacted into law.