Senate Bill No. 655
(By Senator Chafin)
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[Introduced March 20, 2009; referred to the Committee on the
Judiciary.]
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A BILL to amend and reenact §24D-1-9 of the Code of West Virginia,
1931, as amended, relating to
providing jurisdiction for the
Public Service Commission to require the removal of certain
types of television cable by a cable television operator at no
cost to the state, county or municipality.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That §24D-1-9 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended,
be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
ARTICLE 1. CABLE TELEVISION SYSTEMS ACT.
§24D-1-9. Cable system installation, construction, operation,
removal, general provisions.
(a) A cable franchise shall be construed to authorize the
construction or operation of a cable system: (i) Over public
rights-of-way; and (ii) through easements, which are within the area to be served by the cable system and which have been dedicated
for compatible uses.
(b) The technical specifications, general routes of the
distribution system and the schedule for construction of the cable
system are subject to the approval of the franchising authority.
(c) In installing, operating and maintaining facilities, the
cable operator shall avoid all unnecessary damage and injury to any
trees, structures and improvements in and along the routes
authorized by the franchising authority.
Unnecessary damage
includes leaving the end of a cable on a telephone or cable
television pole dangling from the pole or on the ground after the
agent of said operator performed any connection, reconnection, or
disconnection of a cable on a telephone or cable television pole.
Upon a finding by the commission that the operator has caused
unnecessary damage as defined in this subsection, the operator
shall within thirty days, unless an extension is granted by the
commission, remediate said damage at no cost to the state, county,
and municipality.
(d) The cable operator shall indemnify and hold the state,
county and municipality harmless at all times from any and all
claims for injury and damage to persons or property, both real and
personal, caused by the installation, operation or maintenance of
its cable system, notwithstanding any negligence on the part of the
state, county and/or municipality, their employees or agents. Upon receipt of notice in writing from the state, county and/or
municipality, the cable operator shall, at its own expense, defend
any action or proceeding against the state, county and/or
municipality in which it is claimed that personal injury or
property damage was caused by activities of the cable operator in
the installation, operation or maintenance of its cable system.
(e) The cable operator shall provide a cable drop and basic
cable service at no cost to any school or institution of higher
education within its service area if service is actually being
delivered within a reasonable distance from the school or
institution of higher education which may request service.
(f) The cable operator shall be required to designate at least
ten percent but not more than three of all of its channels for
public, educational or governmental use.
(g) Upon termination of the period of the cable permit or of
any renewal thereof, by passage of time or otherwise, the cable
operator shall remove its facilities from the highways and other
public places in, on, over, under or along which they are installed
if so ordered by the franchising authority and shall restore the
areas to their original or other acceptable condition or otherwise
dispose of its facilities. If removal is not completed within six
months of the termination, any property not removed shall be deemed
to have been abandoned and the cable operator shall be liable for
the cost of its removal.
(h) The use of public highways and other public places shall
be subject to:
(l) All applicable state statutes, municipal ordinances and
all applicable rules and orders of the commission governing the
construction, maintenance and removal of overhead and underground
facilities of public utilities;
(2) For county highways, all applicable rules adopted by the
governing body of the county in which the county highways are
situated; and
(3) For state or federal-aid highways, all public welfare
rules adopted by the Secretary of the Department of Transportation.
(i) In the use of easements dedicated for compatible uses, the
cable operator shall ensure:
(1) That the safety, functioning and appearance of the
property and the convenience and safety of other persons is not
adversely affected by the installation or construction of
facilities necessary for a cable system;
(2) That the cost of the installation, construction, operation
or removal of facilities is borne by the cable operator or
subscribers, or a combination of both; and
(3) That the owner of the property is justly compensated by
the cable operator for any damages caused by the installation,
construction, operation or removal of facilities by the cable
operator.
(4) An "easement dedicated for compatible uses" is a public or
private easement for electric, gas, telephone or other utility
transmission.
NOTE: This bill shall provide jurisdiction by the Public
Service Commission to require the removal of certain types of
television cable by a cable television operator at no cost to the
state, county, or municipality.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from
the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would
be added.