REPORT TO COUNCIL
SUBJECT
Title
Public Hearing: Consideration of a Proposed Resolution Amending the Rates for Attachments to City Owned Utility Poles by Third Party Communications Providers [Council Pillar: Deliver and Enhance High Quality Efficient Services and Infrastructure]
Report
BACKGROUND
On October 8, 2011, the governor signed Assembly Bill 1027 (AB 1027), which requires that publicly owned utilities make "appropriate" space available for use by cable television corporations, video service providers, and telephone corporations. AB 1027 also imposes conditions on the manner in which usage fees and conditions of access are determined. Contracts executed before January 1, 2012 were allowed to continue in effect. Subsequent agreements are required to meet AB 1027 requirements.
Through its Electric Utility, Silicon Valley Power (SVP), the City of Santa Clara owns approximately 11,000 power poles that are used to support SVP's overhead electric transmission and distribution equipment. A portion of the space on these poles is leased on a non-discriminatory basis under long-term agreements to third parties, typically telecommunications and cable television providers. These agreements provide for payment of pole attachment rates for various types of pole attachments. All of these agreements are subject to approval by the City Council.
In compliance with AB 1027, SVP conducted a cost of ownership study in 2015 to develop various pole attachment rates for third party communications attachments to City owned utility poles. Consequently, City Council adopted Resolution 16-8285 on January 12, 2016 to amend the rates for third party communications attachments to City owned poles, and further adopted Resolution 18-8594 on August 21, 2018 to include small cell attachment rate to City owned utility poles. Pursuant to Resolution 16-8285 and Resolution 18-8594, the cost of ownership study should be updated in 2020 for the pole attachment rates to be effective in...
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