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ORDINANCE NO. 15,706
AN ORDINANCE TO AMEND LITTLE ROCK,
ARKANSAS ORDINANCE NO. 11,345, BY
GRANTING A FRANCHISE TO ALL COMPANIES
THAT PROVIDE INTERSTATE OR INTRASTATE
TOLL TELEPHONE SERVICE, AND ALL
BUSINESS INCIDENTAL TO OR CONNECTED
WITH THE CONDUCTING OF SUCH TELEPHONE
BUSINESS IN THE CITY OF LITTLE ROCK,
ARKANSAS; A FRANCHISE TO ERECT,
MAINTAIN AND PLAN CONSTRUCTION AND
APPURTENANCES ALONG, ACROSS, ON, OVER,
THROUGH, ABOVE, AND UNDER ALL PUBLIC
STREETS, AVENUES, ALLEYS, PUBLIC
GROUNDS AND AIRWAYS, AND PLACES IN THE
CITY; PROVIDING FOR THE PAYMENT OF A
FRANCHISE FEE BY THESE COMPANIES;
REPEALING ORDINANCES AND AGREEMENTS IN
CONFLICT HEREWITH; AND FOR OTHER
PURPOSES.
WHEREAS, the City entered into a franchise agreement with
Southwestern Bell Telephone, a Missouri Corporation, pursuant to
Ordinance No. 11,345, as amended, on December 17, 1962; and
WHEREAS, the City has had the authority to require such
franchises for public utilities utilizing the City rights -of -way
since 1935 by virtue of Act 324 of 1935 [codified as Ark. Code
Ann. §§ 14- 200 -101 et seq (1987); and,
WHEREAS, the transmission of communications by telephone
or telegraph meets the definition of public utilitiy under
Arkansas law by virtue of Act 324 of 1935 [codified as Ark. Code
Ann. § 23 -1 -101 (4)(A)(iv)(1987); and,
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WHEREAS, since the passage and approval of the original
ordinance, and its subsequent amendments, establishing a
franchise fee for telecommunications services within the City
there have been monumental changes in what is meant by the
transmission of communications by telephone or telegraph by the
telecommunications industry; and,
WHEREAS, there has been a divestiture of the monopoly on
telephone service once enjoyed by Southwestern Bell Telephone
and American Telephone and Telegraph Companies so that numerous
companies compete to provide customers with telecommunication
services wi.thi.n the City of Tittle Rnr_.k; and
WHEREAS, it is the intention of the City to more fairly
impose a franchise tax for these services, particularly as they
relate to intrastate and interstate toll services; and
WHEREAS, this ordinance will assess a fee for the use of
the public rights -of -way including those public areas along,
across, on, over, through, above, and under all public streets,
avenues, alleys, public grounds and airways, and places in the
city;
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT ORDAINED BY THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS
OF THE CITY OF LITTLE ROCK, ARKANSAS:
SECTION 1: Ordinance No. 11,345, as amended, is hereby
amended to also provide as follows for a franchise fee on toll
services.
SECTION 2: Definitions -
(a) "Service address" means the address where telephone
equipment from which a call is made, or a call is received, is
located and to which the telephone number is assigned.
(b) "Long Distance Telecommunications Service" means the
furnishing of facilities in different local exchanges as
determined by the appropriate government agency excluding
services furnished by a local exchange company out of the local
exchange tariff.
(c) "Toll Call" means a communication between two service
points in different local exchanges transmitted by any physical
units utilized in providing the communication excluding services
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furnished by a local exchange company out of the local exchange
tariff.
SECTION 3: There is hereby levied, and there shall be
collected and paid to the City, a fee in the amount of $.004 per
minute for toll calls charged to a service address within the
corporate limits of the City of Little Rock, Arkansas. This fee
is levied as a franchise tax. This fee may be passed to the end
user by the provider of long distance telecommunications
services as long as such pass through is permitted by Arkansas
law.
SECTION 4; Any person that can nrnva that a portion of
the franchise tax charged to their service address, and
collected by the City, has been assessed on calls not
originating from a service address within the City of Little
Rock shall be entitled to a credit for such charges. The
procedure for obtaining that credit shall be as follows:
(a) Any party claiming a refund will contact the
Office of the City Collector of the City of Little
Rock and will receive an appropriate form upon which
to request a refund;
(b) The party claiming the refund will list the call
and the total duration of the call during any
particular billing period together with copies of
supporting bills from the long distance service
provider in accordance with procedures established by
the City;
(c) The total time for properly challenged calls will
then be multiplied by $.004, which represents the
amount of the franchise fee assessed, and this sum
will be forwarded to the claimant within thirty (30)
days of the City's certification of the accuracy of
the documentation.
(d) Any party claiming a refund must submit that claim
within six (6) months of the date of billing as shown
by the records provided the claimant by the company
providing the claimant the services being contested.
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(e) Notwithstanding any provisions set forth within
this Section, the City shall not be required to make
any refunds until a reasonable time after it has
received the first installment provided for in this
ordinance.
SECTION 5: Any company providing long distance
telecommunications services that is required to pay a franchise
fee pursuant to this ordinance shall make monthly payments of
the sums collected pursuant to this ordinance. These payments
will be made within thirty (30) days of the last day of each
month commencing January 1. 1990.
SECTION 6: Each company required to pay a franchise tax
under the provisions of this ordinance shall provide a statement
from their auditor no later than March 31 of each year that the
amount of tax paid for the previous year pursuant to this
ordinance, accurately reflects the number of minutes billed for
toll calls by the company during the previous year.
SECTION 7: The provisions of this ordinance shall not be
applied to private line calls, or to money paid coin calls from
pay phones. Based upon information supplied by the industry the
City finds that private line calls are not treated as toll calls
by the Public Service Commission, hence they are not subject to
a franchise tax on toll calls. Further, based upon information
supplied by the industry, the City finds that there is no
effective way to distinguish money paid long distance calls from
charged long distance calls made from pay phones. It is clear
that charged toll calls made from pay phones and billed to a
service address within the City will be taxed, while charged
toll calls billed to a service address outside the City will not
be taxed. The City finds that the amount of tax lost by this
exemption is not so great as to require the industry to tax
money paid coin calls from pay phones.
SECTION 8: If any portion of this ordinance is deemed
illegal or unconstitutional it shall be severable from the other
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portions and the ordinance shall remain in full force and effect
from and after its passage.
ADOPTED: July 5, 1969
AT
CITY CLERK JAN'. CZECH
APPROVED,AS TO F RM:
MARK STODOLA, CITY ATTORNEY
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APPROVED'
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MAYOR LOYD G. VILLINES, III