BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 1131
Page 1
Date of Hearing: May 4, 2011
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON UTILITIES AND COMMERCE
Steven Bradford, Chair
AB 1131 (Lara) - As Amended: April 26, 2011
SUBJECT : Telecommunications: location of mobile telephone
service facilities on state-owned real property: reporting
requirements.
SUMMARY : Requires the Director of the Department of General
Services (DGS) to report on the status of leasing state owned
lands to wireless telecommunications providers and
recommendations for improvement. Specifically, this bill :
1)Requires the Director of DGS to submit to the Legislature, by
January 31, 2012, a report on actions taken by the Director to
further leases with wireless telecommunication providers. The
report shall include the number of wireless facility lease
agreements for, and the revenue generated from, state-owned
real property that have been entered into with providers of
wireless communications services and all moneys deposited into
the Digital Divide Account.
2)The reporting requirement shall sunset March 31, 2017.
EXISTING LAW :
1)Requires the Director of DGS to compile and maintain an
inventory of state-owned real property, excluding certain
property that may be available for lease to providers of
wireless telecommunications services for location of wireless
telecommunications facilities.
2)Requires the Director of DGS to provide a requesting party,
upon payment of any applicable fee, with a copy of the
inventory.
3)Authorizes the Director of DGS to negotiate and enter into an
agreement on behalf of the state to lease DGS managed and
state-owned real property to a provider of wireless
telecommunications services for location of its facilities.
4)Requires the lease to: provide for fair market value to be
paid by the leasee; limits the duration of the initial lease
term to no more than 10 years with negotiated renewal terms
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not to exceed five years for each term; provide for the use of
the leasee's facilities by any appropriate state agency if
technically, legally, aesthetically, and economically
feasible; and facilitate, to the greatest extent possible,
colocation agreements among providers.
FISCAL EFFECT : Unknown.
COMMENTS : According to the author, this bill is intended to
improve and streamline DGS' state-owned property leasing
processes created in 2003 through AB 855 (Firebaugh, Chapter
820, Statutes of 2003). Furthermore, the author notes that
"during times of mounting economic uncertainty, it is imperative
that we take full advantage of opportunities that will help
generate new revenues for our state to pay for our priorities.
If current law practices are not working effectively to generate
the revenues envisioned and progress is stalled in an effort to
bridge the digital divide, other strategies need to be
employed."
The author's office has reached out to AT&T, who was the sponsor
of AB 855, and T-Mobile for feedback about the challenges they
have experienced in securing lease agreements with state
agencies on state-owned property, and input regarding
opportunities for improving and/or streamlining existing
processes.
1)Background : Assemblymember Firebaugh introduced AB 468 in
2002 to address the
problem of installing wireless antennas. One of the barriers to
higher quality cellular telecommunications services then and now
is the difficulty in installing antennas. Local opposition and
NIMBYism make antenna siting a long and costly process. AB 468
was vetoed by the Governor due to concerns about the usurpation
of local control and the diversion of monies from the General
Fund.
In 2003, Assemblymember Firebaugh introduced a modified version
of AB 468 in AB 855 to facilitate the placement of wireless
telecommunication towers and facilities on state-owned property
and to use a portion of new lease revenues from these facilities
to address the state's
"digital divide".
According to DGS, it implemented the Digital Divide Program in
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2004 in response to this legislation. The database is in place
and DGS staff continually improves and streamlines the
telecommunication site leasing process to optimize State assets.
However, the database and improved processes have not removed
the obstacles to generating revenue for the program. SB 855
narrowly defines qualifying revenue and limits it to "new leases
on non-special fund sites." Non-special fund sites are in short
supply and demand.
The majority of State telecommunication facilities as well as
land and space for the development of new facilities are owned
by "special fund" entities such as the Department of the
Military, CAL FIRE, Highway Patrol and California District
Agricultural Associations. DGS managed telecommunications
leases currently generate about $2 million a year, but the
majority of these sites are owned by special fund entities and
the majority is not "new" leases.
The issue : Since the enactment of AB 855, two important issues
have been identified: 1) at a broad level, this legislation may
be too narrow in scope since it authorizes a limited inventory
of state-owned property for prospective leases and applies only
to new lease agreements, and 2) the process for leasing the
eligible state-owned property is lengthy and burdensome and may
have the unintended consequence of discouraging
telecommunication companies from leasing property from the
state.
This bill would require the DGS director to report to the
Legislature on the status of implementing AB 855, including the
number of wireless facility lease agreements for, and the
revenue generated from, state-owned real property that have been
entered into with providers of wireless telecommunications
services pursuant to the moneys deposited into the Digital
Divide Account.
Funds to battle the "digital divide" : AB 855 also required that
15% of the revenues from fees collected from the lease of
state-owned real property to the providers of wireless
telecommunications services be deposited in the newly formed
Digital Divide Account in the California Teleconnect Fund.
These funds were to be used only for digital divide pilot
projects. The Digital Divide Grant Program was established by
AB 468 subject to the availability of funding. The CPUC was
prohibited from implementing the grant program until it
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projected that at least five hundred thousand dollars ($500,000)
was available in the Digital Divide Account during the calendar
year following implementation
PUC and DGS communicate annually regarding the program and each
year it is determined that the revenue falls significantly short
of the $500,000 threshold for minimum deposit. Consequently, no
revenue has been generated for the program to date.
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION :
Support
California Broadband Policy Network (CBPN)
Opposition
None on file.
Analysis Prepared by : DaVina Flemings / U. & C. / (916)
319-2083