NY State Senate Bill 2019-S7520

Senate Bill S7520

2019-2020 Legislative Session

Relates to exempting municipalities from fees for attachments to utility poles that promote public safety

download bill text pdf

Archive: Last Bill Status - In Senate Committee Energy And Telecommunications Committee

Introduced
- In Committee Assembly
- In Committee Senate
- On Floor Calendar Assembly
- On Floor Calendar Senate
- Passed Assembly
- Passed Senate
Delivered to Governor
Signed By Governor

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Actions

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	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
Jan 23, 2020	referred to energy and telecommunications

2019-S7520 (ACTIVE) - Details

Current Committee:: Senate Energy And Telecommunications
Law Section:: Public Service Law
Laws Affected:: Amd §119-a, Pub Serv L

2019-S7520 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Exempts municipalities from fees for attachments to utility poles that promote public safety pursuant to article twenty-four of the vehicle and traffic law.

2019-S7520 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                
 
BILL NUMBER: S7520

SPONSOR: CARLUCCI
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act to amend the public service law, in relation to exempting munici-
palities from fees for attachments to utility poles that promote public
safety

 
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF THE BILL:

To exempt municipalities from fees for attachments to utility poles
which promote public safety

 
SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:

Section one of the bill amends Section 119-a of the public service law
as it relates to exempting municipalities from fees for attachments to
utility poles that promote public safety, including but not limited to,
cameras and license plate readers.

Section two of the bill sets the effective date.

 
JUSTIFICATION:

Utility poles are the most logical and accessible sites for the instal-
lation of traffic cameras, license plate readers, and other public safe-
ty devices. However, when a municipality seeks to use utility poles for
these purposes, they are often met with onerous and recurrent pole-at-
tachment fees levied by utility companies. These fees are often charged
per attachment, per pole, effectively pricing-out municipalities seeking
to deploy multiple, multi-attachment devices such as traffic cameras.

In Ramapo, NY, where state funds have been awarded for license plate
readers, the municipality is faced with hundreds of thousands of dollars
of fees in addition to the costs of equipment and utilization. As a
result, these fees have diminished the purchasing power of both state
aid and municipal dollars in the promotion of public safety.

This bill would exempt municipalities from pole-attachment fees for
attachments that promote public safety. Doing so will enable munici-
palities to deploy public safety devices and ensure that taxpayer
dollars are used efficiently in doing so.

 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

New Legislation

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS FOR STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTS:

None.

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately.

2019-S7520 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                            
 
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   7520
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                             January 23, 2020
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by Sen. CARLUCCI -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
   printed to be committed to the Committee on  Energy  and  Telecommuni-
   cations
 
 AN ACT to amend the public service law, in relation to exempting munici-
   palities  from  fees  for  attachments  to  utility poles that promote
   public safety
 
   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section  1. Section 119-a of the public service law, as added by chap-
 ter 703 of the laws of 1978, is amended to read as follows:
   § 119-a. Attachments to utility poles; use of utility ducts,  trenches
 and  conduits.  1.  The  commission  shall prescribe just and reasonable
 rates, terms and conditions for attachments to utility poles and the use
 of utility ducts, trenches and conduits.  A  just  and  reasonable  rate
 shall assure the utility of the recovery of not less than the additional
 cost  of  providing  a  pole  attachment  or  of using a trench, duct or
 conduit nor more than the actual operating expenses and return on  capi-
 tal  of the utility attributed to that portion of the pole, duct, trench
 or conduit used.  With respect to cable television attachments and  use,
 such  portion shall be the percentage of total usable space on a pole or
 the total capacity of the duct or conduit that is occupied by the facil-
 ities of the user. Usable space shall be the space  on  a  utility  pole
 above  the  minimum  grade level which can be used for the attachment of
 wires and cables.
   2. SUCH RATES SHALL NOT APPLY OR  BE  CHARGED  TO  MUNICIPALITIES  FOR
 ATTACHMENTS  TO  UTILITY POLES THAT PROMOTE PUBLIC SAFETY, INCLUDING BUT
 NOT LIMITED TO, CAMERAS AND LICENSE PLATE READERS, PURSUANT  TO  ARTICLE
 TWENTY-FOUR OF THE VEHICLE AND TRAFFIC LAW.
   § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.
 
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD14897-01-0

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