Sec. 283.056. MUNICIPAL AUTHORIZATIONS; PROHIBITION ON OTHER FEES AND CHARGES

(a) A municipality may not require a certificated telecommunications provider to:

(1) pay any compensation other than the fee authorized by Section 283.055, including an application, permit, excavation, or inspection fee, for the right to use a public right-of-way to provide telecommunications services in the municipality; or

(2) provide any services or facilities for the right to use a public right-of-way or to provide telecommunications services in the municipality.

(b) Notwithstanding any other law or any other provision of this chapter, a municipality may require the issuance of a construction permit without cost to a certificated telecommunications provider locating facilities in or on public rights-of-way within the municipality. The terms of the permit shall be consistent with construction permits issued to other persons excavating in a public right-of-way.

(c) A municipality may exercise those police power-based regulations in the management of a public right-of-way that apply to all persons within the municipality. A municipality may exercise police power-based regulations in the management of the activities of certificated telecommunications providers within a public right-of-way only to the extent that they are reasonably necessary to protect the health, safety, and welfare of the public. Police power-based regulation of certificated telecommunications providers may not include activities that are governed by this chapter or are within the sole business discretion of the certificated telecommunications provider. In addition, any police power-based regulation must be competitively neutral and may not be unreasonable or discriminatory. A municipality specifically may not impose regulations on certificated telecommunications providers that are not authorized by this chapter, including:

(1) requirements that particular business offices be located in the municipality;

(2) requirements for filing reports and documents with the municipality that are not required by state law to be filed with the municipality and that are not related to the use of a public right-of-way;

(3) inspection of a provider's business records except to the extent necessary to conduct an authorized review of the provider to ensure compliance with the access line reporting requirements of this chapter if commenced within 90 days after the filing of a certificated telecommunications provider's report of access lines; and

(4) approval of transfers of ownership or control of a provider's business, except that a municipality may require that a provider maintain current point of contact information and provide notice of a transfer within a reasonable time.

(d) In the exercise of its lawful regulatory authority, a municipality shall promptly process each valid and administratively complete application of a certificated telecommunications provider for any permit, license, or consent to excavate, set poles, locate lines, construct facilities, make repairs, affect traffic flow, obtain zoning or subdivision regulation approvals, or for other similar approvals, and shall make every reasonable effort to not delay or unduly burden that provider in the timely conduct of its business.

(e) If there is an emergency necessitating response work or repair, a certificated telecommunications provider may begin that repair or emergency response work or take any action required under the circumstances, provided that the certificated telecommunications provider notifies the affected municipality as promptly as possible after beginning the work and later acquires any approval required by a municipal ordinance applicable to emergency response work.

(f) The compensation paid under this chapter is in lieu of any permit, license, approval, inspection, or other similar fee or charge, including all general business license fees customarily assessed by a municipality for the use of a public right-of-way against persons operating telecommunications-related businesses. The compensation paid under this chapter constitutes full compensation to a municipality for all of a certificated telecommunications provider's facilities located within a public right-of-way, including interoffice transport and other transmission media that do not terminate at an end-use customer's premises, even though those types of lines are not used in the calculation of the compensation. This chapter may not be construed to affect the ad valorem taxation of a certificated telecommunications provider's facilities or to permit the ad valorem taxation of a certificated telecommunication provider's occupancy of a public right-of-way.

Added by Acts 1999, 76th Leg., ch. 840, Sec. 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1999.