HomeMy WebLinkAbout19850ORDINANCE NO. 19,850
AN ORDINANCE TO LEVY FRANCHISE FEES TO BE PAID FOR
THE YEAR 2008 BY ALL CARRIERS PROVIDING LOCAL ACCESS
TELEPHONE SERVICE; PROVIDE FOR THE PAYMENT THEREOF;
AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES.
WHEREAS, the Southwestern Bell Telephone Company has for decades
been authorized by ordinance to operate its telephone system and all business
incidental to or connected with the conduct of a telephone business in the City;
and
WHEREAS, pursuant to Little Rock, Ark. Ordinance No. 1 1 ,345 (Dec. 17,
1962), and recognizing an order of the Arkansas Public Service Commission
entered on December 10, 1957 in Docket U -281 relating to the treatment by the
Telephone Company of all City special taxes, the City granted Southwestern Bell
Telephone Company the privilege to continue operation of its telephone system
and related business within the City and first provided for the payment of a
privilege tax by that company of $1.07 multiplied by the number of telephones
in the City as of the end of the preceding year; and
WHEREAS, pursuant to Ordinance No. 14,981 (November 5, 1985), the
City Board of Directors imposed, beginning on January 1, 1986, a change in the
calculation of the privilege fee for Southwestern Bell Telephone Company, to be
in an amount equal to seven and thirty -two hundredths percent (7.32 %) of the
company's access line billing revenues for 1985 or a minimum of One Million
Seven Hundred Seventy -Five Thousand Dollars ($1,775,000), and
WHEREAS, subsequent ordinances thereafter incrementally raised the
amount of the minimum franchise fee until, beginning with Ordinance No.
16,557 (December 21, 1993) it reached the amount $2,000,000, which
minimum has remained in effect until the present time, and
WHEREAS, after a review of the current market situation, the City has
determined that having a minimum franchise fee is no longer appropriate and is
setting the minimum aside, and
WHEREAS, SBC (formerly Southwestern Bell Telephone Company) and
other telephone companies similarly providing a local access telephone system
in the City are now and will be occupying the streets, alleys, airways and other
public rights -of -way of the City for the purpose of operating and maintaining
such local access telephone systems, and
WHEREAS, the City is legally authorized to impose, and all local access
telephone services companies are obligated to pay, a just and reasonable
franchise fee in connection with such company's local access telephone service
operations in the City.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT ORDAINED BY THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS OF THE
CITY OF LITTLE ROCK, ARKANSAS:
Section 1. There is hereby imposed and each and every local access
telephone service carrier ( "Telephone Company ") shall pay to the City a franchise
fee in an amount equal to seven and thirty -two hundredths percent (7.32%) of
the respective Telephone Company's local exchange access line charges
collected within the City's corporate limits during the previous month.
Section 2. Payments to the City by the Telephone Company for the
franchise fee shall be made monthly by the 20th day of each month.
Section 3. On a monthly basis, by the twentieth (20th) day of each month,
the auditor for each Telephone Company shall certify to the City that Telephone
Company's access line revenues collected during the previous month in Little
Rock.
Section 4. The City recognizes and accepts the purposes and results of
an Order of the Arkansas Public Service Commission entered on February 7,
1980, in Docket U -301 32 relating to the treatment by the Telephone Company
of all city special fees.
Section 5. It is acknowledged that Ordinance No. 11,34S (amended by
Ordinance No. 14,981), which set out the terms and conditions of the present
privilege authority, is the controlling document over current local access
telephone service franchises. Ordinance No. 11,345 specifically provided that
nothing contained therein was to be construed as giving Southwestern Bell
Telephone Company any exclusive privileges. Ordinance No. 14,981 amended
Ordinance No. 11,345 to change the method of calculating the fee to that
method presently employed and to add a section detailing the City's utility
relocation policy to be complied with. That utility relocation policy shall remain
in effect under this Ordinance.
Section 6. Nothing herein contained shall be construed as altering or
amending any other rights or obligations of the City or each Telephone
Company as provided for in Ordinance No. 1 1 ,345 except the language of
Section 2 of Ordinance No. 11,345 pertaining to the method of calculating the
Telephone Company's annual franchise fee.
Section 7. Nothing in this Ordinance shall prevent the City from
collecting from Telephone Companies previously due but unpaid franchise fees.
Section 8. This ordinance shall be in effect on and afterjanuary 1, 2008.
PASSED: November 6, 2007
ATTEST:
Nancy Wood, City Clerk
APPROVED AS TO LEGAL FORM:
Thomas M. Carpenter, City torney
APPROVED:
Mark Stodola, Mayor