Reference is to the bill as introduced.
Amend the bill, as and if amended, by striking all after the enacting words and inserting:
/ SECTION 1. Article 23, Chapter 9, Title 58 of the 1976 Code is retitled "Government-Owned Communications Service Providers".
SECTION 2. Article 23, Chapter 9, Title 58 of the 1976 Code is amended by adding:
"Section 58-9-2660.
(A) A government-owned communications
service provider may petition the commission to designate one or
more areas as an unserved area. The petition must identify with
specificity each 2000 Census block for which this designation is
sought. If an objection is not filed pursuant to subsection
(B), the commission must grant the petition and designate each
2000 Census block identified in the petition as an unserved
area.
(B) A provider of
broadband service or a resident of an area designated in a
petition filed pursuant to subsection (A) may, within thirty
days after the commission posts notice of the filing of the
petition on its website, file with the commission an objection
to this designation on the ground that one or more areas
designated in the petition is not an unserved area. The
commission must not accept this objection for filing unless it
is accompanied by prefiled testimony supporting the
objection.
(C) If an objection is
filed pursuant to subsection (B), the commission must:
(1)
give the petitioner an opportunity to submit prefiled
testimony responding to the objection;
(2)
hold a hearing on the dispute; and
(3)
rule on the petition within forty-five days after the
objection is filed.
(D) Upon a commission
designation that an area is an unserved area, the provisions of
Sections 58-9-2620, 58-9-2630, and 58-9-2650 must not apply to a
broadband service provided by the petitioner in that area until
the later of:
(1)
thirty-six months after the effective date of this act; or
(2)
twelve months after the commission determines pursuant to
subsection (E) that the area is no longer an unserved area.
(E) A provider of
broadband service or a resident of an area designated as an
unserved area may petition the commission to determine that the
area is no longer an unserved area. After notice and an
opportunity for a hearing, the commission must grant the
petition if it determines that broadband service is available to
more than ten percent of the households in the area from one or
more providers that are not a satellite provider or the
government-owned communications service provider that filed the
petition resulting in the designation by the commission of the
area as an unserved area."
SECTION 3. Section 59-9-10(17) of the 1976 Code, as added by Act 6 of 2003, is amended to read:
"(17) The term
'broadband service' means any a service
that is used to deliver video or to provide access to the
Internet or content and services similar to that accessible
through the Internet, and that consists of the offering of:
(a)
a capability to transmit information at a rate that is
generally not less than one hundred ninety kilobits per second
in at least one direction; or
(b)
any service that combines computer processing,
information storage, and protocol conversion to enable users to
access Internet content and services a service that
uses one or more of the following to provide this access:
(i)
computer processing;
(ii)
information storage; and
(iii)
protocol conversion."
SECTION 4. Section 58-9-2600 of the 1976 Code, as added by Act 360 of 2002, is amended to read:
"Section 58-9-2600.
This article regulates the provision of
telecommunications communications
service by an agency or, entity
of the State or, instrumentality, or a
political subdivision of this State, excluding the State Budget
and Control Board, for services provided as of
this article's the effective date of
this article."
SECTION 5. Section 58-9-2610 of the 1976 Code, as added amended by Act 360 of 2002, is amended to read:
"Section 58-9-2610.
As used in this article:
(A) (1)
'Government-owned
telecommunications communications
service provider' means a state or local political subdivision
or, instrumentality of the State,
person, or entity providing
telecommunications a communications
service to the public for hire over a facility, operation, or
system that is directly or indirectly owned by, operated by, or
a financial benefit obtained by or derived from, an agency,
instrumentality, or entity of the State or
any local government. 'Government-owned
telecommunications communications
service provider' does not include the State Budget and Control
Board for services provided as of this
article's the effective date of this
article.
(2)
The term 'government-owned
telecommunications communications
service provider' does not include any a
state or local governmental entity, instrumentality, or
agency that obtains or derives financial benefit solely from
leasing or renting, to any a person or
entity, property that is not, in and of itself, a facility used
to provide telecommunications a
communications service.
(2B)
'Communications service' means a telecommunications
service, a broadband service, or both.
(C)
'Telecommunications service' for the purpose of
this section is means a telecommunications service
as defined in Section 58-9-2200(1).
(D)
'Broadband service' means a broadband service as
defined in Section 58-9-10(17).
(3E)
'Person' as defined in Section 58-9-10(4) includes
a 'government-owned telecommunications
communications service provider'.
(4F)
'Public' means the public generally or
any a limited portion of the public,
including a person or corporation. The term 'public' excludes
governmental agencies or entities when they receive
telecommunications communications
service from the State Budget and Control Board pursuant
to its statutory authority or other legal requirements.
(G) 'Unserved
area' means a 2000 Census block, as designated by the United
States Census Bureau, in which at least ninety percent of
households have either no access to broadband service or access
to broadband service only from a satellite provider. For the
purposes of this subsection, 'household' has the same meaning as
prescribed by the United States Census Bureau.
(H)
'Commission' means the South Carolina Public Service
Commission."
SECTION 6. Section 58-9-2620 of the 1976 Code, as last amended by Act 318 of 2006, is further amended to read:
"Section 58-9-2620.
Notwithstanding any other provision of law, a
government-owned telecommunications
communications service provider shall
must:
(1) be subject to the
same local, state, and federal regulatory, statutory, and other
legal requirements that to which
nongovernment-owned telecommunications
communications service providers are subject
to, including regulation and other legal
requirements by the Public Service commission
and the Office of Regulatory Staff;
(2) not be the
recipient of any receive a financial
benefits of any type that benefit for which
a nongovernment-owned telecommunications
communications service providers are
provider is not recipients of a
recipient including, but not limited to, tax exemptions and
governmental subsidies of any type. Tax exempt capital
financing may be used consistent with Sections 58-9-2620(4)(a)
and 58-9-2630(C);
(3) not be permitted to
subsidize the cost of providing
telecommunications a communications
service with funds from any other
nontelecommunications noncommunications
service, operation, or other revenue source. If a determination
is made that a direct or indirect subsidy has occurred, the
government-owned telecommunications
communications service provider immediately
shall must increase prices for
telecommunications communications
service in a manner that ensures that the subsidy
shall will not continue, and any amounts
used directly or indirectly to subsidize the past operations
shall will be reimbursed to the general
treasury of the appropriate state or local government;
(4) impute, in
calculating the cost incurred and in the rates to be charged for
the provision of telecommunications services
a communications service, the following:
(a)
cost of capital component that is the equivalent to the
cost of capital available to nongovernment-owned
telecommunications communications
service providers in the same state or locality; and
(b)
an amount equal to all taxes, licenses, fees, and other
assessments applicable to a nongovernment-owned
telecommunications communications
provider including, but not limited to, federal, state, and
local taxes, rights-of-way franchise consent, or administrative
fees, and pole attachment fees;
(5) keep separate books
and separately account for the revenues, expenses, property, and
source of investment dollars associated with the provision of
telecommunications communications
service; and
(6) be required to
prepare and publish an independent annual audit in accordance
with generally accepted accounting principles that reflects the
full cost of providing the service, including all direct and
indirect costs. The indirect costs shall
must include, but are not limited to, amounts for
rights-of-way franchise, consent, or administrative fees,
regulatory fees, occupation taxes, pole attachment fees, and ad
valorem taxes. The annual accounting must reflect any direct or
indirect subsidies received by the government-owned
telecommunications communications
provider.
(7)
Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the Office
of Regulatory Staff has jurisdiction to investigate and the
commission has authority to enforce a government-owned
communications service provider to comply with the provisions of
this section.
Records demonstrating compliance with the provisions of this
section shall must be filed with the
Public Service commission
and, provided to the Office of
Regulatory Staff and be made available for
public inspection and copying. The compliance shall be
overseen by the Office of Regulatory Staff pursuant to and not
inconsistent with its power and jurisdiction set forth by
law. Nothing in this article expands or restricts
the existing jurisdiction of the commission or the Office of
Regulatory Staff regarding a service or provider other than a
government-owned communications service provider."
SECTION 7. Section 58-9-2630 of the 1976 Code, as added by Act 360 of 2002, is amended to read:
"Section 58-9-2630.
(A) A government-owned
telecommunications communications
service provider shall pay or collect taxes each
year annually in a manner equivalent to taxes
paid by a nongovernment-owned
telecommunications communications
service providers provider through
payment of the following:
(1)
all state taxes, including corporate income
taxes, under Section 12-6-530, and
utility license taxes under Section 12-20-100;
(2)
all local taxes, including local business license taxes,
under Section 58-9-2230, together with any franchise fees and
other local taxes and fees, including impact, user, service, or
permit fees, pole rental fees, and rights-of-way, franchise,
consent, or administrative fees; and
(3)
all property taxes on otherwise exempt real and personal
property that are directly used in the provision of
telecommunication services a communications
service.
(B) A government-owned
telecommunications communications
service provider shall be required to compute,
collect, and remit taxes in the same manner as a
nongovernment-owned telecommunications
communications service provider and
shall must be entitled to the same
deductions.
(C) A government-owned
telecommunications communications
service provider shall annually remit to the general fund of the
government entity owning the telecommunications
communications service provider an amount
equivalent equal to any
and all taxes or fees a private sector
telecommunications communications
provider would be required to must pay.
(D) The taxpayer
confidentiality provisions contained in Title 12
shall do not apply to the
filings filing of a
government-owned telecommunications
communications service providers
provider. Provided, However, the
Department of Revenue shall require an annual report of all
telecommunications communications
providers. The report shall must
require any telecommunications a
communications company licensed in this State to report the
total gross of retail telecommunications,
communications to which the business license tax is
applicable, pursuant to Section 58-9-2220.
This information shall must be available
to any entity authorized to collect a tax on retail
telecommunications communications or
their its agent. Information provided
to an entity or agent authorized to collect a tax
may must not be disclosed or provided
in any manner to any other
another person. Such This
information may only may be used by an
entity or agent of an entity authorized to collect a tax for
purposes of determining the accuracy of tax returns, filings,
and payment of taxes."
SECTION 8. Section 58-9-2650 of the 1976 Code, as added by Act 360 of 2002, is amended to read:
"Section 58-9-2650.
The Department of Insurance must determine the South
Carolina average market rate for private sector liability
insurance for telecommunications
communications operations. In order To
have government-owned and nongovernment-owned
telecommunications communications
service providers in the same competitive position, to the
extent possible, the rate paid for liability insurance for
government-owned telecommunications
communications operations must be equal to or greater
than the average market rate for private sector liability
insurance in South Carolina as determined by the Department of
Insurance. To the extent that any
government-owned telecommunications
communications service provider pays less than the
average market rate for this insurance established by the
Department of Insurance, the difference shall
must be remitted by the government-owned
telecommunications communications
service provider to the general fund of the government owning
the telecommunications that
communications provider. Provided,
However, nothing in this section shall
may be construed to mean that a
government-owned telecommunication providers
are communications provider is not covered by
the South Carolina Tort Claims Act."
SECTION 9. This act takes effect upon approval by the Governor. /
Renumber sections to conform.
Amend title to conform.