Bill Amendment: FL S0896 | 2015 | Regular Session
NOTE: For additional amemendments please see the Bill Drafting List
Bill Title: Location of Utilities
Status: 2015-05-01 - Died in Appropriations [S0896 Detail]
Download: Florida-2015-S0896-Senate_Committee_Amendment_661092.html
Bill Title: Location of Utilities
Status: 2015-05-01 - Died in Appropriations [S0896 Detail]
Download: Florida-2015-S0896-Senate_Committee_Amendment_661092.html
Florida Senate - 2015 COMMITTEE AMENDMENT Bill No. CS for SB 896 Ì661092#Î661092 LEGISLATIVE ACTION Senate . House . . . . . ————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————— ————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————— The Committee on Transportation (Brandes) recommended the following: 1 Senate Amendment (with title amendment) 2 3 Delete everything after the enacting clause 4 and insert: 5 Section 1. Section 125.42, Florida Statutes, is amended to 6 read: 7 125.42 Water, sewage, gas, power, telephone, other utility, 8 and television lines within the right-of-way limits ofalong9 county roads and highways.— 10 (1) The board of county commissioners, with respect to 11 property located without the corporate limits of any 12 municipality, is authorized to grant a license to any person or 13 private corporation to construct, maintain, repair, operate, and 14 remove lines for the transmission of water, sewage, gas, power, 15 telephone, other public utilities,andtelevision, or other 16 communications services as defined in s. 202.11 under, on, over, 17 across, or within the right-of-way limits ofand alongany 18 county highway or any public road or highway acquired by the 19 county or public by purchase, gift, devise, dedication, or 20 prescription. However, the board of county commissioners shall 21 include in any instrument granting such license adequate 22 provisions: 23 (a) To prevent the creation of any obstructions or 24 conditions which are or may become dangerous to the traveling 25 public; 26 (b) To require the licensee to repair any damage or injury 27 to the road or highway by reason of the exercise of the 28 privileges granted in any instrument creating such license and 29 to repair the road or highway promptly, restoring it to a 30 condition at least equal to that which existed immediately prior 31 to the infliction of such damage or injury; 32 (c) Whereby the licensee shall hold the board of county 33 commissioners and members thereof harmless from the payment of 34 any compensation or damages resulting from the exercise of the 35 privileges granted in any instrument creating the license; and 36 (d) As may be reasonably necessary, for the protection of 37 the county and the public. 38 (2) A license may be granted in perpetuity or for a term of 39 years, subject, however, to termination by the licensor, in the 40 event the road or highway is closed, abandoned, vacated, 41 discontinued, or reconstructed. 42 (3) The board of county commissioners is authorized to 43 grant exclusive or nonexclusive licenses for the purposes stated 44 herein for television. 45 (4) This law is intended to provide an additional method 46 for the granting of licenses and shall not be construed to 47 repeal any law now in effect relating to the same subject. 48 (5) In the event of widening, repair, or reconstruction of 49 any such road, the licensee shall move or remove such water, 50 sewage, gas, power, telephone, and other utility lines and 51 television lines at no cost to the county should they be found 52 by the county to be unreasonably interfering, except as provided 53 in s. 337.403(1)(d)-(j)s. 337.403(1)(d)-(i). 54 Section 2. Paragraph (a) of subsection (1), subsection (2), 55 and paragraph (b) of subsection (3) of section 337.401, Florida 56 Statutes, are amended to read: 57 337.401 Use of right-of-way for utilities subject to 58 regulation; permit; fees.— 59 (1)(a) The department and local governmental entities, 60 referred to in this section and in ss. 337.402, 337.403, and 61 337.404ss. 337.401-337.404as the “authority,” that have 62 jurisdiction and control of public roads or publicly owned rail 63 corridors are authorized to prescribe and enforce reasonable 64 rules or regulations with reference to the placing and 65 maintainingalong,across,oron, or within the right-of-way 66 limits of any road or publicly owned rail corridors under their 67 respective jurisdictions any electric transmission, telephone, 68 telegraph, or other communications services lines; pole lines; 69 poles; railways; ditches; sewers; water, heat, or gas mains; 70 pipelines; fences; gasoline tanks and pumps; or other structures 71 referred to in this section and in ss. 337.402, 337.403, and 72 337.404this sectionas the “utility.” The department may enter 73 into a permit-delegation agreement with a governmental entity if 74 issuance of a permit is based on requirements that the 75 department finds will ensure the safety and integrity of 76 facilities of the Department of Transportation; however, the 77 permit-delegation agreement does not apply to facilities of 78 electric utilities as defined in s. 366.02(2). 79 (2) The authority may grant to any person who is a resident 80 of this state, or to any corporation which is organized under 81 the laws of this state or licensed to do business within this 82 state, the use of a right-of-way for the utility in accordance 83 with such rules or regulations as the authority may adopt. No 84 utility shall be installed, located, or relocated unless 85 authorized by a written permit issued by the authority. However, 86 for public roads or publicly owned rail corridors under the 87 jurisdiction of the department, a utility relocation schedule 88 and relocation agreement may be executed in lieu of a written 89 permit. The permit shall require the permitholder to be 90 responsible for any damage resulting from the issuance of such 91 permit. In exercising its authority over a utility under this 92 section, a municipality or county may not require a utility to 93 provide proprietary maps of facilities where such facilities 94 have been previously subject to a permit from the authority. The 95 authority may initiate injunctive proceedings as provided in s. 96 120.69 to enforce provisions of this subsection or any rule or 97 order issued or entered into pursuant thereto. 98 (3) 99 (b) Registration described in paragraph (a) does not 100 establish a right to place or maintain, or priority for the 101 placement or maintenance of, a communications facility in roads 102 or rights-of-way of a municipality or county. Each municipality 103 and county retains the authority to regulate and manage 104 municipal and county roads or rights-of-way in exercising its 105 police power. Any rules or regulations adopted by a municipality 106 or county which govern the occupation of its roads or rights-of 107 way by providers of communications services must be related to 108 the placement or maintenance of facilities in such roads or 109 rights-of-way, must be reasonable and nondiscriminatory, and may 110 include only those matters necessary to manage the roads or 111 rights-of-way of the municipality or county. In exercising its 112 authority over providers of communications services under this 113 section, a municipality or county may not require a provider of 114 communications services to provide proprietary maps of 115 facilities where such facilities have been previously subject to 116 a permit from the authority. 117 Section 3. Subsection (1) of section 337.403, Florida 118 Statutes, is amended to read: 119 337.403 Interference caused by utility; expenses.— 120 (1) If a utility that is placed upon, under, over, or 121 within the right-of-way limits ofalongany public road or 122 publicly owned rail corridor is found by the authority to be 123 unreasonably interfering in any way with the convenient, safe, 124 or continuous use, or the maintenance, improvement, extension, 125 or expansion, of such public road, including directly associated 126 drainage, or publicly owned rail corridor, the utility owner 127 shall, upon 30 days’ written notice to the utility or its agent 128 by the authority, initiate the work necessary to alleviate the 129 interference at its own expense except as provided in paragraphs 130 (a)-(j)(a)-(i). The work must be completed within such 131 reasonable time as stated in the notice or such time as agreed 132 to by the authority and the utility owner. If an authority 133 requires the relocation of a utility for purposes not described 134 in this subsection, the authority shall bear the cost of 135 relocating the utility. If the relocation is required as a 136 condition or result of a project by an entity other than an 137 authority, the entity other than the authority shall bear the 138 costs of relocating the utility. However, nothing in this 139 subsection shall impair any rights of the holder of any private 140 railroad right-of-way, including any rights in any agreement 141 between the holder of the private railroad right-of-way and a 142 utility that otherwise allocates such relocation cost. 143 (a) If the relocation of utility facilities, as referred to 144 in s. 111 of the Federal-Aid Highway Act of 1956, Pub. L. No. 145 84-627, is necessitated by the construction of a project on the 146 federal-aid interstate system, including extensions thereof 147 within urban areas, and the cost of the project is eligible and 148 approved for reimbursement by the Federal Government to the 149 extent of 90 percent or more under the Federal Aid Highway Act, 150 or any amendment thereof,then in that eventthe utility owning 151 or operating such facilities shall perform any necessary work 152 upon notice from the department, and the state shall pay the 153 entire expense properly attributable to such work after 154 deducting therefrom any increase in the value of a new facility 155 and any salvage value derived from an old facility. 156 (b) When a joint agreement between the department and the 157 utility is executed for utility work to be accomplished as part 158 of a contract for construction of a transportation facility, the 159 department may participate in those utility work costs that 160 exceed the department’s official estimate of the cost of the 161 work by more than 10 percent. The amount of such participation 162 is limited to the difference between the official estimate of 163 all the work in the joint agreement plus 10 percent and the 164 amount awarded for this work in the construction contract for 165 such work. The department may not participate in any utility 166 work costs that occur as a result of changes or additions during 167 the course of the contract. 168 (c) When an agreement between the department and utility is 169 executed for utility work to be accomplished in advance of a 170 contract for construction of a transportation facility, the 171 department may participate in the cost of clearing and grubbing 172 necessary to perform such work. 173 (d) If the utility facility was initially installed to 174 exclusively serve the authority or its tenants, or both, the 175 authority shall bear the costs of the utility work. However, the 176 authority is not responsible for the cost of utility work 177 related to any subsequent additions to that facility for the 178 purpose of serving others. For a county or municipality, if such 179 utility facility was installed in the right-of-way as a means to 180 serve a county or municipal facility on a parcel of property 181 adjacent to the right-of-way and if the intended use of the 182 county or municipal facility is for a use other than 183 transportation purposes, the obligation of the county or 184 municipality to bear the costs of the utility work shall extend 185 only to utility work on the parcel of property on which the 186 facility of the county or municipality originally served by the 187 utility facility is located. 188 (e) If, under an agreement between a utility and the 189 authority entered into after July 1, 2009, the utility conveys, 190 subordinates, or relinquishes a compensable property right to 191 the authority for the purpose of accommodating the acquisition 192 or use of the right-of-way by the authority, without the 193 agreement expressly addressing future responsibility for the 194 cost of necessary utility work, the authority shall bear the 195 cost of removal or relocation. This paragraph does not impair or 196 restrict, and may not be used to interpret, the terms of any 197 such agreement entered into before July 1, 2009. 198 (f) If the utility is an electric facility being relocated 199 underground in order to enhance vehicular, bicycle, and 200 pedestrian safety and in which ownership of the electric 201 facility to be placed underground has been transferred from a 202 private to a public utility within the past 5 years, the 203 department shall incur all costs of the necessary utility work. 204 (g) An authority may bear the costs of utility work 205 required to eliminate an unreasonable interference when the 206 utility is not able to establish that it has a compensable 207 property right in the particular property where the utility is 208 located if: 209 1. The utility was physically located on the particular 210 property before the authority acquired rights in the property; 211 2. The utility demonstrates that it has a compensable 212 property right in adjacent properties along the alignment of the 213 utility or, after due diligence, certifies that the utility does 214 not have evidence to prove or disprove that it has a compensable 215 property right in the particular property where the utility is 216 located; and 217 3. The information available to the authority does not 218 establish the relative priorities of the authority’s and the 219 utility’s interests in the particular property. 220 (h) If a municipally owned utility or county-owned utility 221 is located in a rural area of critical economic concern, as 222 defined in s. 288.0656(2), and the department determines that 223 the utility is unable, and will not be able within the next 10 224 years, to pay for the cost of utility work necessitated by a 225 department project on the State Highway System, the department 226 may pay, in whole or in part, the cost of such utility work 227 performed by the department or its contractor. 228 (i) If the relocation of utility facilities is necessitated 229 by the construction of a commuter rail service project or an 230 intercity passenger rail service project and the cost of the 231 project is eligible and approved for reimbursement by the 232 Federal Government, then in that event the utility owning or 233 operating such facilities located by permit on a department 234 owned rail corridor shall perform any necessary utility 235 relocation work upon notice from the department, and the 236 department shall pay the expense properly attributable to such 237 utility relocation work in the same proportion as federal funds 238 are expended on the commuter rail service project or an 239 intercity passenger rail service project after deducting 240 therefrom any increase in the value of a new facility and any 241 salvage value derived from an old facility. In no event shall 242 the state be required to use state dollars for such utility 243 relocation work. This paragraph does not apply to any phase of 244 the Central Florida Commuter Rail project, known as SunRail. 245 (j) If a utility is lawfully located within an existing and 246 valid utility easement granted by recorded plat, regardless of 247 whether such land was subsequently acquired by the authority by 248 dedication, transfer of fee, or otherwise, the authority shall 249 bear the cost of the utility work required to eliminate an 250 unreasonable interference. 251 Section 4. The Legislature finds that a proper and 252 legitimate state purpose is served by clarifying a utility’s 253 responsibility for relocating its facilities within the right 254 of-way or within a utility easement granted by recorded plat. 255 Therefore, the Legislature determines and declares that this act 256 fulfills an important state interest. 257 Section 5. This act shall take effect upon becoming a law. 258 259 260 ================= T I T L E A M E N D M E N T ================ 261 And the title is amended as follows: 262 Delete everything before the enacting clause 263 and insert: 264 A bill to be entitled 265 An act relating to the location of utilities; amending 266 s. 125.42, F.S.; authorizing the board of county 267 commissioners to grant a license to work on or operate 268 specified communications services within the right-of 269 way limits of certain county or public highways or 270 roads; conforming a cross-reference; amending s. 271 337.401, F.S.; authorizing the Department of 272 Transportation and certain local governmental entities 273 to prescribe and enforce rules or regulations 274 regarding placing and maintaining specified structures 275 within the right-of-way limits of roads or publicly 276 owned rail corridors under their respective 277 jurisdictions; prohibiting a municipality or county 278 from requiring a utility to provide proprietary maps 279 of facilities under certain circumstances; prohibiting 280 a municipality or county from requiring a provider of 281 communications services to provide proprietary maps of 282 facilities under certain circumstances; amending s. 283 337.403, F.S.; requiring a utility owner, under 284 certain circumstances, to initiate at its own expense 285 the work necessary to alleviate an interference to a 286 public road, including directly associated drainage, 287 or publicly owned rail corridor which is caused by the 288 utility if the utility is placed within the right-of 289 way limits of the public road or publicly owned rail 290 corridor; conforming a cross-reference; requiring an 291 authority or an entity other than the authority to 292 bear the costs of relocating a utility in certain 293 circumstances; providing applicability; requiring the 294 authority to bear the cost of the utility work 295 necessary to eliminate an unreasonable interference if 296 the utility is lawfully located within a certain 297 utility easement; providing legislative findings; 298 providing an effective date.