Chapter 12.25
TELECOMMUNICATIONS
Sections:
12.25.030 Application to existing licenses, franchises or cable franchises.
12.25.040 Application to existing telecommunications carriers and cable operators.
12.25.090 Relationship to other ordinances, policies.
12.25.100 Acts at grantee’s expense.
12.25.010 Purpose.
The purpose of this Chapter and the remainder of the Lewis County Telecommunications Ordinance is to:
(1) Establish a local policy concerning telecommunications carriers and cable operators;
(2) Establish predictable, enforceable, clear and nondiscriminatory local guidelines, standards and time frames for the exercise of local authority with respect to the regulation of telecommunications carriers and cable operators;
(3) Manage the rights-of-way in a manner that provides fair and equitable opportunities for competition in telecommunications;
(4) Minimize unnecessary local regulation of telecommunications providers and services;
(5) Enable the provision of advanced and competitive telecommunications services and cable services on the widest possible basis to the businesses, institutions and residents of the county;
(6) Permit and manage reasonable access to the public rights-of-way of the county for telecommunications purposes on a competitively neutral basis;
(7) Conserve the limited physical capacity of the public rights-of-way held in public trust by the county;
(8) Assure that the county’s actual costs of granting, administering and monitoring private access to and use of the public rights-of-way and/or public property are fully paid by the persons seeking such access and causing such costs;
(9) Secure fair and reasonable compensation to the county and the residents of the county, in a nondiscriminatory manner, for permitting private use of the rights-of-way and/or public property;
(10) Assure that all telecommunications carriers and cable operators providing facilities or services within the county comply with the ordinances, rules and regulations of the county;
(11) Assure that the county can continue to fairly and responsibly protect the health, safety and welfare of the traveling public; and
(12) Enable the county to discharge its public trust consistent with rapidly evolving federal and state regulatory policies, industry competition and technological development. [Ord. 1171, 2000]
12.25.020 Definitions.
Terms used in the ordinance codified in Chs. 12.25 through 12.50 LCC shall have the following meanings:
(1) “Affiliate” means a person that (directly or indirectly) owns or controls, is owned or controlled by, or is under common ownership or control with, another person.
(2) “Board” means the Lewis County board of commissioners.
(3) “Cable Acts” means the federal Cable Communications Policy Act of 1984, as amended by the federal Cable Television Consumer Protection and Competition Act of 1992, as amended by portions of the federal Communications Act of 1996, and as hereafter amended.
(4) “Cable facilities” means the plant, equipment, structures and property within the county used to transmit, receive, distribute, provide or offer cable service.
(5) “Cable operator” shall have the same meaning as defined in the Cable Acts.
(6) “Cable service” shall have the same meaning as defined in the Cable Acts.
(7) “County” means Lewis County.
(8) “Director” means the director of the Lewis County public works department or designee.
(9) “FCC” or “Federal Communications Commission” means the federal administrative agency, or lawful successor, authorized to regulate and oversee telecommunications carriers, services and cable operators on a national level.
(10) “Grantee” means telecommunications carriers and cable operators granted rights and bound by obligations as more fully described in Chs. 12.25 through 12.50 LCC.
(11) “Open video system” means those systems defined and regulated as open video systems by the Federal Communications Commission, pursuant to Section 653 of the federal Communications Act of 1934, as amended, 47 U.S.C. §573.
(12) “Ordinance” means the Lewis County telecommunications ordinance, Chs. 12.25 through 12.50 of the Lewis County Code.
(13) “Overhead facilities” means telecommunications facilities and cable facilities located above the surface of the ground, including the underground supports and foundations for such facilities.
(14) “Person” means corporations, companies, associations, firms, partnerships, limited liability companies, other entities and individuals.
(15) “Rights-of-way” includes the surface of and space above and below any property in the county in which the county has any interest whether in fee, easements or otherwise, or interest as a trustee for the public, as they now or hereafter exist, including, but not limited to, all public streets, highways, avenues, roads, reservoirs, alleys, sidewalks, tunnels, viaducts, bridges, skyways, parks, trails, or any other public place, area or property under the control of the county.
(16) “Service connection” means a connection made to a telecommunications facility or cable facility for the purpose of providing telecommunications services or cable services.
(17) “Service repair” means a repair made to a service connection.
(18) “State” means the state of Washington.
(19) “Surplus space” means that portion of the usable space on a utility pole which has the necessary clearance from other pole users, as required by the orders and regulations of the Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission, to allow its use by a telecommunications carrier for a pole attachment.
(20) “Telecommunications carrier,” for purposes of the ordinance codified in Chs. 12.25 through 12.50 LCC, includes every person that directly or indirectly owns, controls, operates or manages plant, equipment, structures or property within the county, used or to be used for the purpose of offering telecommunications service; provided, however, this does not include lessees that solely lease capacity or bandwidth (and do not own telecommunications facilities within the unincorporated areas of the county).
(21) “Telecommunications facilities” means the plant, equipment, structures and property within the county used to transmit, receive, distribute, provide or offer telecommunications service.
(22) “Telecommunications service” means the providing or offering for rent, sale or lease, or in exchange for other value received, the transmittal of voice, data, image, graphic or video programming information or service(s) between or among points by wire, cable, fiber optics, laser, microwave, radio, satellite or similar facilities, with or without benefit of any closed transmission medium; provided, however, for purposes of the ordinance codified in Chs. 12.25 through 12.50 LCC, cable service regulated under Ch. 5.10 LCC shall not be considered a telecommunications service.
(23) “Underground facilities” means telecommunications and cable facilities located under the surface of the ground, alone or in combination, direct buried or in utility tunnels or conduits, excluding the underground foundations or supports for overhead facilities.
(24) “Usable space” means the total distance between the top of a utility pole and the lowest possible attachment point that provides the minimum allowable vertical clearance as specified in the orders and regulations of the Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission.
(25) “Utility ordinance” means the Lewis County utilities installation within road rights-of-way ordinance codified in Chapter 12.20 LCC.
(26) “Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission” or “WUTC” means the state administrative agency, or lawful successor, authorized to regulate and oversee telecommunications carriers and telecommunications services in the state of Washington to the extent prescribed by law. [Ord. 1171, 2000]
12.25.030 Application to existing licenses, franchises or cable franchises.
Except as otherwise provided in the ordinance codified in Chs. 12.25 through 12.50 LCC, and to the extent provided by law, Chs. 12.25 through 12.50 LCC shall have no effect on any license, franchise or cable franchise existing as of the date of adoption of said ordinance until:
(1) The expiration of such license, franchise or cable franchise; or
(2) An amendment to an unexpired license, franchise or cable franchise, unless both parties agree to defer full compliance to a specific date not later than the present date. [Ord. 1171, 2000]
12.25.040 Application to existing telecommunications carriers and cable operators.
(1) Notwithstanding the foregoing, the requirements of Chs. 12.25 through 12.50 LCC shall apply to any telecommunications carrier or cable operator who currently occupies rights-of-way without a license, franchise, cable franchise or other agreement with the county. Any such telecommunications carrier or cable operator shall register or apply for a license, franchise or cable franchise as provided by Chs. 12.25 through 12.50 LCC within one hundred twenty days of the effective date of the ordinance codified in Chs. 12.25 through 12.50 LCC.
(2) Chs. 12.25 through 12.50 LCC shall not apply to lessees that solely lease capacity or bandwidth (and do not own telecommunications facilities within the county) so long as the lessor has complied with the requirements of Chs. 12.25 through 12.50. LCC. [Ord. 1171, 2000]
12.25.050 Penalties.
(1) Any person found violating, disobeying, omitting, neglecting or refusing to comply with any of the provisions of Chapters 12.25 through 12.50 LCC shall be guilty of a gross misdemeanor. Upon conviction any person violating any provision of Chapters 12.25 through 12.50 LCC shall be subject to a fine of up to $5,000 or by imprisonment for a period of up to one year, or both such fine and imprisonment. A separate and distinct violation shall be deemed committed each day on which a violation occurs or continues.
(2) Civil Penalty. The violation of any provision of this chapter shall be subject to civil penalties under LCC 1.20.040. [Ord. 1180 §18, 2002; Ord. 1171, 2000]
12.25.060 Other remedies.
Nothing in Chs. 12.25 through 12.50 LCC shall be construed as limiting any other remedies that the county may have, at law or in equity, for enforcement of Chs. 12.25 through 12.50 LCC. Notwithstanding the existence or use of any other remedy, the prosecuting attorney’s office may seek legal or equitable relief to enjoin any acts or practices and abate any conditions which constitute or will constitute a violation of Chs. 12.25 through 12.50 LCC or other regulations adopted by Chs. 12.25 through 12.50 LCC. [Ord. 1171, 2000]
12.25.070 Administration.
The director is authorized to administer Chs. 12.25 through 12.50 LCC and to establish further rules, regulations and procedures for the implementation of Chs. 12.25 through 12.50 LCC. [Ord. 1171, 2000]
12.25.080 [Reserved.]
[Ord. 1171, 2000]
12.25.090 Relationship to other ordinances, policies.
(1) In addition to the provisions of Chs. 12.25 through 12.50, Ch. 12.20 LCC, shall apply to any telecommunications carrier and cable operator who desires to construct, install, operate, maintain, repair or otherwise locate telecommunications facilities or cable facilities on county rights-of-way. The provisions of Chs. 12.25 through 12.50, and Ch. 12.20 LCC shall apply to LCC 5.10.280 through 5.10.370. In the event of a conflict between Chs. 12.25 through 12.50, and Ch. 12.20 LCC, then Ch. 12.20 LCC shall control. In the event of a conflict between LCC 5.10.280 through 5.10.370, and Chs. 12.20 - 12.50 LCC, then Chs. 12.20 - 12.50 LCC shall control.
(2) In addition to the provisions of Chs. 12.25 through 12.50 LCC, any wireless communication facilities shall be subject to applicable zoning and land use regulations and requirements established under Title 17 LCC, and other pertinent Lewis County Code provisions.
(3) Nothing in Chs. 12.25 through 12.50 LCC shall limit or otherwise affect the authority of the county to require a lease for any use, occupation, construction, installation, maintenance or location upon any property owned in fee by the county. [Ord. 1171, 2000]
12.25.100 Acts at grantee’s expense.
Any act that a grantee is or may be required to perform under Chs. 12.25 through 12.50 LCC, a license, franchise, cable franchise or applicable law shall be performed at the grantee’s expense. [Ord. 1171, 2000]