HB 0022 |
Support | Authorization for Telephone Coops to Provide Broadband Service |
Penny Houston |
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|
4/2/2019 |
House Withdrawn, Recommitted |
Economic Development and Tourism |
- | - |
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| Mirroring SB 17, this legislation authorizes Georgia's Telephone Cooperatives to provide broadband services, either directly or indirectly through a contractual arrangement or through an affiliate. Coops will also be eligible to apply for federal or state loans and grants to provide this service. This proposal is part of the House Rural Development Council's recommendations to facilitate broadband deployment to rural areas of the state. |
HB 0023 |
Support | Authorization for EMCs to Provide Broadband Service |
Penny Houston |
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|
1/13/2020 |
Senate Recommitted |
Economic Development and Tourism |
Regulated Industries and Utilities |
- |
|
|
| Mirroring SB 2, this legislation authorizes Georgia's Electric Membership Corporations (EMCs) to provide broadband services, either directly or indirectly through a contractual arrangement or through an affiliate. EMCs are prohibited from cross-subsidizing broadband services through funds from their electric or gas accounts, and an annual audit will be conducted to ensure this prohibition. Furthermore, EMC members in good standing can sue (in the superior court of the county where the EMC is headquartered) to also ensure no cross-subsidization. EMCs will not be able to disconnect, or threaten to disconnect, a customer from their electric or gas services for failure to pay their broadband bill. EMCs will be eligible to apply for federal or state loans and grants to provide broadband service. This proposal is part of the House Rural Development Council's recommendations to facilitate broadband deployment to rural areas of the state. |
SB 0017 |
Support | Authorization for Telephone Coops to Provide Broadband Service |
Steve Gooch |
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|
4/26/2019 |
Effective Date |
Energy, Utilities and Telecommunications |
Regulated Industries and Utilities |
- |
|
|
| Mirroring HB 22, this legislation authorizes Georgia's Telephone Cooperatives to provide broadband services, either directly or indirectly through a contractual arrangement or through an affiliate. Coops will also be eligible to apply for federal or state loans and grants to provide this service. |
SB 0066 |
Support | Small Cell (5G) Legislation - ACCG Compromise Language |
Steve Gooch |
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|
10/1/2019 |
Effective Date |
Energy, Utilities and Telecommunications |
Regulated Industries and Utilities |
- |
|
|
| Mirroring HB 184, this is the compromise Small Cell (5G) legislation. By way of background, over the past two years, ACCG has opposed legislation which would have greatly preempted local government management of the public's rights of way for the placement of small cell (5G) poles, antennas and equipment. At the urging of the General Assembly, ACCG, GMA, Verizon and AT&T negotiated this reasonable compromise over the 2018 interim that has incorporated many safeguards which ACCG had called for in previous legislation.
Key points of this ACCG compromise include: incentives for collocation in order to limit new poles; protections for historic districts and residential areas; the requirement that telecoms share build-out plans prior to deploying new facilities; a safe-harbor in case the current FCC order preempting state and local regulation of 5G deployment is overturned; the prohibition of speculative permit requests by third parties; and safeguards for local aesthetic and decorative pole conditions, among many others. For a summary of the bill's key provisions, please click here. For a detailed, section-by-section summary of the bill, please click
here. |
SB 0370 |
Neutral | Broadband Infrastructure - Railroads Determine Usage of Easements |
Steve Gooch |
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|
1/1/2021 |
Effective Date |
Transportation |
Transportation |
- |
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| State law was recently changed to authorize owners of electric easements to allow for certain broadband infrastructure to be installed in the easement. This bill clarifies that, if the easement is located on railroad-owned property, that the railroad determines whether the easement can be used for broadband infrastructure and under what conditions. |
SB 0411 |
Support | Rural Broadband - Cap Rate which EMCs may Charge for Equipment Collocated on their Poles |
John Kennedy |
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|
3/12/2020 |
Senate Tabled |
- | Regulated Industries and Utilities |
- |
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| In an effort to facilitate the deployment of rural broadband, this bill caps the rates that EMCs may charge for the collocation of broadband equipment on their poles at the Federal rate (47 U.S.C. Section 224(d)), which currently applies to Georgia Power and all other investor-owned electric utilities. |
SB 0459 |
Evaluating | Broadband - Authorize Funding Under State Universal Access Fund |
Steve Gooch |
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|
2/28/2020 |
Senate Read and Referred |
- | Regulated Industries and Utilities |
- |
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| This legislation rewrites the role of the Georgia Public Service Commission in administering the broadband Universal Access Fund by striking out a lot of language in code and adding back a new arrangement that includes the Department of Community Affairs (DCA). DCA will recommend disbursements for the Rural Broadband Portion of said fund, capped at $10 million annually. The bill creates a larger pot of money for some projects, possibly at the expense of others. The "Rural Local Exchange Portion" of the fund is capped at $30 million annually; requires an increase in rates to fund these expenditures. |