Amends TCA Title 4; Title 6; Title 7; Title 10; Title 65; Title 67 and Title 68.

This bill authorizes municipal electrics and electrical cooperatives to provide telecommunication service, including fiber-to-the-premises.<br /> <br /> Under present law, the Municipal Electric Plant Law of 1935 authorizes a municipality that operates an electric plant to establish a joint venture or other business relationship with one or more third parties to provide:<br /> <br /> (1) Cable service, two-way video transmission, video programming, and internet services within its service area; and<br /> <br /> (2) Telephone, telegraph, and telecommunications services.<br /> <br /> This bill rewrites the above provision to authorize such a municipality to provide telecommunication service, including fiber-to-the-premises, either on its own or by joint venture or other business relationship with one or more third parties and in geographical areas that are inside and outside the electric plant's service area.<br /> <br /> Present law authorizes a county or municipality, or any entity authorized to act on a county or municipality's behalf, or a cooperative to participate in a telecommunications joint venture that is created to provide broadband services to areas within the jurisdiction of the municipality, county, or cooperative that has been determined to be a historically unserved area. <br /> <br /> This bill rewrites the above provision to remove the limitation of providing services in the jurisdiction specified above.<br /> <br /> This bill authorizes a rural electric or community services cooperative to provide telecommunication service, including fiber-to-the-premises, either on its own or by joint venture or other business relationship with one or more third parties and in geographical areas that are inside and outside the electric plant's service area.<br /> <br /> Present law authorizes a rural electric and community services cooperative to acquire, construct, own, improve, operate, lease, maintain, sell, mortgage, pledge, or otherwise dispose of any system, plant, or equipment for the provision of telephone, telegraph, telecommunications services, or any other like system, plant, or equipment within and/or without the service area of such cooperative in compliance with all applicable state and federal laws, rules, and regulations. Present law also prohibits a cooperative that provides such services from providing subsidies for such services. This bill expands this authority to include broadband internet access service. This bill requires a cooperative to comply with any applicable provisions of contracts with suppliers of electricity prohibiting or otherwise limiting cross-subsidies of services with electricity revenues. This bill removes the present law requirement that the cooperative administer and operate such services as a separate subsidiary.<br /> <br /> Under present law, a telephone cooperative has certain powers, such as the power to connect and interconnect its telephone lines, facilities, or system with other telephone lines or systems, and make its facilities available to persons furnishing telephone service within or without this state. This bill additionally authorizes a telephone cooperative to supply or furnish fiber-to-premises, or construct and maintain infrastructure and equipment necessary for supplying or furnishing such service within or outside of its historic service area.<br />