THE SENATE

S.B. NO.

1201

TWENTY-NINTH LEGISLATURE, 2017

S.D. 2

STATE OF HAWAII

H.D. 3

 

PROPOSED

 

 

 

A BILL FOR AN ACT

 

 

RELATING TO TECHNOLOGY.

 

 

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF HAWAII:


PART I

     SECTION 1.  (a)  There is established a broadband task force to be placed within the department of business, economic development, and tourism, for administrative purposes only, which shall consist of the following members:

     (1)  The director of business, economic development, and tourism, who shall also serve as the chair;

     (2)  The respective director of each county public, educational, or governmental access provider;

     (3)  A mayor of a county, or the mayor's designee, who shall represent the four county mayors;

     (4)  The chief executive officer of the Public Broadcasting Service Hawaii;

     (5)  Two representatives representing wireless providers; provided that one shall be appointed by the speaker of the house and one shall be appointed by the president of the senate;

     (6)  Two representatives representing each of the third-party wireless infrastructure providers; provided that one shall be appointed by the speaker of the house and one shall be appointed by the president of the senate,

     (7)  Two representatives representing wireline, internet, and telecommunications service providers doing business in the State; provided that one shall be appointed by the speaker of the house and one shall be appointed by the president of the senate; provided further that the representatives shall not represent the same corporation or any designee of a representative;

     (8)  The director of an electric utility company, or the director's designee;

     (9)  The director of commerce and consumer affairs, or the director's designee; and

    (10)  The chair of the public utilities commission, or the chair's designee.

     (b)  Any vacancy occurring in the membership of the task force shall be filled in the same manner as the original appointments.

     (c)  The vice chair of the task force shall be selected by the majority of the members of the task force.

     (d)  A simple majority shall constitute a quorum whose affirmative vote shall be necessary for all actions of the task force.

     (e)  Members of the task force shall serve without compensation but shall be reimbursed for necessary expenses, including reasonable travel expenses, incurred in the performance of their duties under this section.    

     (f)  The task force shall develop and provide a statewide broadband plan, which shall include the following:

     (1)  The financial status and revenues of public, educational, or governmental access providers;

     (2)  A description of how present fees collected are used for public, educational, or governmental access provider infrastructure;

     (3)  The potential establishment of a wireless fee to be used for video streaming; and

     (4)  The recommended structure to regulate all broadband services under the department of business, economic development, and tourism, including all rules, regulations, and fees for the implementation of broadband.

     (g)  The statewide broadband plan shall include all possible revenues available for broadband infrastructure and public, educational, or governmental access provided by wireless carriers; provided that any proposed fees shall be fair and reasonable to consumers.

     (h)  The statewide broadband plan shall address technological advancements in broadband and communication delivery systems.

     (i)  The statewide broadband plan shall include recommendations to facilitate the deployment of high-speed broadband infrastructure, including small wireless or wireline facilities.

     (j)  The task force shall submit a report of its findings and recommendations, including any proposed legislation, with regard to the statewide broadband plan to the legislature no later than twenty days prior to the convening of the regular session of 2018.

     (k)  The task force shall cease to exist upon adjournment sine die of the regular session of 2018.

PART II

     SECTION 2.  The Hawaii Revised Statutes is amended by adding a new chapter to title 15 to be appropriately designated and to read as follows:

"Chapter

SMALL WIRELESS FACILITIES AND

SMALL WIRELESS FACILITIES NETWORKS

     §   -1  Applicability.  This chapter:

     (1)  Relates to broadband infrastructure, micro wireless facilities, and the collocation of small wireless facilities and small wireless facilities networks; and

     (2)  Is applicable to state and county agencies.

     §   -2  Definitions.  For the purposes of this chapter:

     "Broadband infrastructure" shall have the same meaning as in section 440J-1.

     "Collocation" means the installation, mounting, maintenance, modification, operation, or replacement of wireless or wireless broadband service equipment on a tower, utility pole, light standard, building, or other existing structure. Collocation and co-location have the same meaning.  Collocating is the act of causing a collocation.

     "General applicability" means laws, rules, regulations, or processes that apply objective requirements to all persons or services in a nondiscriminatory manner.

     "Light standard" means a street light, light pole, lamp post, street lamp, lamp standard, or other raised source of light located inside the right-of-way of a public road or highway, or utility easement.

     "Micro wireless facilities" means small wireless facilities that are no larger in dimension than twenty-four inches long, fifteen inches in width, twelve inches in height, and that has an exterior antenna, if any, no longer than eleven inches.

     "Small wireless facilities" means a wireless facility that meets the following qualifications:

     (1)  Each individual antenna, excluding the associated equipment, is individually no more than three cubic feet in volume, and all antennas on the structure total no more than six cubic feet in volume; and

     (2)  All other wireless equipment associated with the structure, excluding cable runs for the connection of power and other services, do not cumulatively exceed:

         (A)  Twenty-eight cubic feet for collocations on all non-pole structures, including buildings and water tanks, that can support fewer than three providers;

         (B)  Twenty-one cubic feet for collocations on all pole structures, including light poles, traffic signal poles, and utility poles, that can support fewer than three providers;

         (C)  Thirty-five cubic feet for non-pole collocations that can support at least three providers; or

         (D)  Twenty-eight cubic feet for pole collocations that can support at least three providers.

     "Small wireless facilities network" means a group of interrelated small wireless facilities designed to deliver wireless communications service.  "Small wireless facilities network" does not include wires or cables used for wireline backhaul or coaxial or fiber-optic cable between utility poles, or that is otherwise not adjacent to or directly associated with a particular antenna.

     "Telecommunications service" or "telecommunications" shall have the same meaning as in section 269-1.

     "Utility pole" means a pole or similar structure that is used in whole or in part for communications service, electric service, lighting, traffic control, signage, or similar functions.

     "Wireless facility":

     (1)  Means equipment at a fixed location that enables wireless communications between user equipment and a communications network, including:

         (A)  Equipment associated with wireless communications; and

         (B)  Radio transceivers, antennas, coaxial or fiber-optic cable, regular and backup power supplies, and comparable equipment, regardless of technological configuration; and

     (2)  Does not include:

         (A)  The structure or improvements on, under, or within which the equipment is collocated;

         (B)  Wireline backhaul facilities; or

         (C)  Coaxial or fiber-optic cable between utility poles or that is otherwise not adjacent to or directly associated with a particular antenna.

     "Wireless provider" means a person or entity that is:

     (1)  A provider as defined in section 440J-1;

     (2)  A provider of wireless telecommunications service; or

     (3)  Authorized in accordance with chapter 269 to provide facilities-based telecommunications services in the State and builds, installs, operates, or maintains facilities and equipment used to provide fixed or mobile services through small wireless facilities.

     "Wireline backhaul" means the transport of communications or information by wire from small wireless facilities to a network.

     §   -3  Collocation permits; application; review; approval.  (a)  A wireless provider proposing to install broadband infrastructure, small wireless facilities, or small wireless facilities networks on a state-owned or county-owned utility pole, light standard, building, or structure shall submit an application for a permitted use permit to a state or county agency with jurisdiction over utility poles, light standards, buildings, or structures.  The application shall include:

     (1)  A geographic description of the project area;

     (2)  A listing and description of the utility pole, light standard, building, or structure included in the project for the installation, mounting, operation, and placement of broadband infrastructure, including an assessment of the identifying information, location, and ownership of the listed utility pole, light standard, building, or structure and information about any ground disturbance; and

     (3)  A description of the equipment associated with the facilities to be installed in the project area, including radio transceivers, antennas, coaxial or fiber-optic cables, power supplies, and related equipment, and the size and weight of the equipment to be installed on each utility pole, light standard, building, or structure.

     (b)  The appropriate state or county agency shall evaluate the impact of collocating the broadband infrastructure, small wireless facilities, or small wireless facilities networks described in the application to ensure that:

     (1)  The equipment installation on the utility pole, light standard, building, or structure is done in a manner to protect public health, public safety, and safe travel in the public rights-of-way and does not result in any violation of applicable federal requirements;

     (2)  The utility pole or light standard is able to bear the additional weight of the equipment and the equipment is not a hazard or obstruction to the public's use of the right-of-way; and

     (3)  Consistent with Federal Communications Commission regulations, the project equipment, broadband infrastructure, small wireless facilities, or small wireless facilities networks do not interfere with the operability of public safety communications or traffic signals.

     (c)  A state or county agency may adopt rules that concern objective design standards for decorative poles or reasonable, feasible, and objective aesthetic requirements; provided that the standards and requirements do not prevent the collocation of small wireless facilities.

     (d)  No provider may exclude other providers from utilizing state- or county-owned utility poles, light standards, buildings or structures.

     (e)  Providers shall avoid obtaining approvals to attach to utility poles, light standards, buildings, or structures they cannot or will not use within twenty-four months.  Once a provider has obtained necessary approvals, if construction is not commenced within twenty-four months, attachment approvals may be rescinded.  Nothing in this section restricts a provider from re-applying for approvals.

     (f)  Pursuant to section 27-45(a) for a state agency and section 46-89(a) for a county agency, the appropriate agency shall notify the applicant that:

     (1)  The permit is approved;

     (2)  The permit is approved with specified modifications;

     (3)  The application is returned with a list of specific questions seeking answers, clarification, or additional detailed information and resubmission of the application with answers to the questions is required; or

     (4)  The application is denied and the basis for the denial.

     (g)  The State or county may require by rule or within a building or other safety code that if, after proper engineering analysis and supporting field tests, it is determined that project equipment and broadband infrastructure are connected to the cause of inoperability of public safety communications or traffic signals, the provider shall work with the State or county to determine a solution to the cause of the inoperability; provided that the solution is consistent with Federal Communications Commission rules.

     (h)  A provider of telecommunications or internet service that enters into a franchise agreement, right-of-way agreement, or other contract with the State or county, or that uses facilities that are subject to such an agreement, even if the provider is a beneficiary but not a signatory to the agreement or contract, shall not collect personal information from a customer resulting from the customer's use of the provider's telecommunications or internet services without express written approval from the customer.  No provider of telecommunications or internet service provider shall refuse to provide its services to a customer because the customer has not given written authorization to the provider to collect the customer's personal information."


PART III

     SECTION 3.  This Act shall take effect on July 1, 2059.



 

Report Title:

Technology; Broadband; Counties; State Functions and Responsibilities

 

Description:

Establishes a broadband task force to create a statewide broadband plan.  Establishes a permit application, review, and approval process for the installation of broadband infrastructure, small wireless facilities, and small wireless facilities networks on state- and county-owned property.  Requires written authorization from customer for the provider to collect the customer's personal information.  (SB1201 HD3 PROPOSED)

 

 

 

The summary description of legislation appearing on this page is for informational purposes only and is not legislation or evidence of legislative intent.