HomeMy WebLinkAboutUntitled (2) -- CITY OF
OAK PARK HEIGHTS
14168 Oak Park Boulevard No • P.0—Boox20a7ry'Gal(Li, MN 55082-2007 • Phone:651/439-4439 • Fax 651/439-0574
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Senator Kathy Saltzman
75 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.
Capitol Building,Room 306
St. Paul, MN 55155-1606
Re: FCC Action Threatens Local Budgets And Offers No Guarantee of Consumer
Benefit in Return
Dear Senator Saltzman:
As you know, the Federal Communications Commission will be submitting the National
Broadband Plan("NBP") on March 17, 2010.
Recently, we've become aware that some communications companies are urging the FCC, as
part of the NBP or in parallel proceedings, to adopt a federal standard for compensation for use
of public property, and a federal standard for permitting pursuant to Section 253 of the
Telecommunications Act of 1996. Instead of allowing localities to collect a fair market rent
based on a percentage of gross revenues, the FCC is being urged to declare fees for use of
municipal and state property unlawful unless they are related to costs. The effect would be to
render unlawful fees established by state statute, established by negotiation, or established using
methods commonly used in private markets, thus immediately eliminating hundreds of millions,
if not billions, from state and local budgets, while burdening states and localities with the cost of
complying with a new federal program.
I write to ask your leadership in communicating to the Federal Communications Commission
that the NBP must not be used as a vehicle to take revenue from local government budgets,
especially when there is no reason to expect that this action will result in additional broadband
deployment, or benefit consumers in any way. States and localities play an important role in
ensuring that high-speed broadband is available to police and firefighters for public safety
purposes, and is also available to the most vulnerable sectors of the community through libraries
and community centers. The likely effect of the action the Commission is being urged to take
will reduce funding available for these services, negatively impacting public safety and resulting
in a reduction in broadband availability.
Like other local government leaders, I appreciate the invaluable role that broadband can play in
enhancing educational opportunities, promoting business and community economic
development, improving health care delivery, assisting in achieving energy efficiency goals, and
generally contributing to improving the quality of community life.
But what is required is a model that respects our federal system, not an ill-conceived, centrally
managed, federal transfer of police power authority from local and state governments to the
FCC. When Congress adopted Section 253 in 1996, it made it very clear that the FCC was not to
Tree City U.S.A.
.. ._...._...
set the rents that could be charged for use of public property, nor was it to supplant traditional
state and local police powers by setting up national permitting standards. That wise choice has
been honored by Democratic and Republican administrations. Any departure from this
arrangement would be troubling in and of itself. But for the FCC to take an action that would
endanger local and state budgets in these economic times could very well result in cutbacks of
critical municipal services and jobs is the exact opposite of what is required now. Such cuts, at
this time could result in police officers, firefighters, and teachers losing their jobs — and our
communities losing their essential services.
My fellow local government officials and I look forward to working with Congress and the FCC
to develop means to ensure that this nation is served by a broadband infrastructure that is second
to none. However, hurting already distressed state and local budgets is not the way to achieve
leadership to ensure that the FCC does not take any action
that goal. We need your immediate p y
that would cause further harm in these difficult economic times.
Sincerely,
EPS4Or-
David Beaudet
Mayor
CITY OF
OAK PARK HEIGHTS
w * 14168 Oak Park Boulevard No • P.O.pg_ yc'PLr� ishts,MN 55082-2007 • Phone:651/439-4439 • Fax 651/439-0574
Representative Julie Bunn
521 State Office Building
100 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.
St. Paul,MN 55155
Re: FCC Action Threatens Local Budgets And Offers No Guarantee of Consumer
Benefit in Return
Dear Representative Bunn:
As you know, the Federal Communications Commission will be submitting the National
Broadband Plan("NBP") on March 17, 2010.
Recently, we've become aware that some communications companies are urging the FCC, as
part of the NBP or in parallel proceedings, to adopt a federal standard for compensation for use
of public property, and a federal standard for permitting pursuant to Section 253 of the
Telecommunications Act of 1996. Instead of allowing localities to collect a fair market rent
based on a percentage of gross revenues, the FCC is being urged to declare fees for use of
municipal and state property unlawful unless they are related to costs. The effect would be to
render unlawful fees established by state statute, established by negotiation, or established using
methods commonly used in private markets, thus immediately eliminating hundreds of millions,
if not billions, from state and local budgets, while burdening states and localities with the cost of
complying with a new federal program.
I write to ask your leadership in communicating to the Federal Communications Commission
that the NBP must not be used as a vehicle to take revenue from local government budgets,
especially when there is no reason to expect that this action will result in additional broadband
deployment, or benefit consumers in any way. States and localities play an important role in
ensuring that high-speed broadband is available to police and firefighters for public safety
purposes, and is also available to the most vulnerable sectors of the community through libraries
and community centers. The likely effect of the action the Commission is being urged to take
will reduce funding available for these services, negatively impacting public safety and resulting
in a reduction in broadband availability.
Like other local government leaders, I appreciate the invaluable role that broadband can play in
enhancing educational opportunities, promoting business and community economic
development, improving health care delivery, assisting in achieving energy efficiency goals, and
generally contributing to improving the quality of community life.
But what is required is a model that respects our federal system, not an ill-conceived, centrally
managed, federal transfer of police power authority from local and state governments to the
FCC. When Congress adopted Section 253 in 1996, it made it very clear that the FCC was not to
Tree City U.S.A.
set the rents that could be charged for use of public property, nor was it to supplant traditional
state and local police powers by setting up national permitting standards. That wise choice has
been honored by Democratic and Republican administrations. Any departure from this
arrangement would be troubling in and of itself. But for the FCC to take an action that would
endanger local and state budgets in these economic times could very well result in cutbacks of
critical municipal services and jobs is the exact opposite of what is required now. Such cuts, at
this time could result in police officers, firefighters, and teachers losing their jobs — and our
communities losing their essential services.
My fellow local government officials and I look forward to working with Congress and the FCC
to develop means to ensure that this nation is served by a broadband infrastructure that is second
to none. However, hurting already distressed state and local budgets is not the way to achieve
that goal. We need your immediate leadership to ensure that the FCC does not take any action
that would cause further harm in these difficult economic times.
Sincerely, e~-•
David Beaudet
Mayor
CITY OF
OAK PARK I I G IITS
++ ^w - 14168 Oak Park Boulevard No • P.O.Box 2007 • Oak Park Heights,MN 55082-2007 • Phone:651/439-4439 • Fax:651/439-0574
sident Joe Biden
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW
Washington, DC 20501
Re: FCC Action Threatens Local Budgets And Offers No Guarantee of Consumer Benefit
in Return
Dear Mr. Vice President:
h leadership let me thank you for the great leade p ou and President Obama have demonstrated in you
the nation out of the economic abyss in which we found ourselves in the recent past. As the
President explained in his State of the Union address, with one in ten Americans out of work, the
nation is not yet where we want it to be,but your leadership is making a difference.
I write to ask your leadership in communicating to the Federal Communications Commission that it
should not be taking actions now that endanger local government budgets. The FCC is being asked
by some companies to establish federal standards that limit compensation for use of any public
property by communications companies, and to invalidate any fee—even fees based on state statute,
negotiation or the fair market value of the property — inconsistent with the new standard. The
immediate effect of any such action (which is being considered as part of the National Broadband
Plan and in a parallel proceeding involving Level 3) could force many local governments to make
additional cuts in budgets that have already been slashed,resulting in further employee layoffs.
Like other local government leaders, I appreciate the invaluable role that broadband can play in
enhancing educational opportunities, promoting business and community economic development,
improving health care delivery, assisting in achieving energy efficiency goals, and generally
contributing to improving the quality of community life. We understand that some at the FCC
believe that by reducing costs, companies will be encouraged to deploy more broadband, but in fact,
there is no guarantee that subsidizing providers will result in any significant benefits to subscribers,
especially because the FCC is not proposing to tie the subsidies to any public obligations (indeed
the cutbacks would undoubtedly reduce funds available that local governments currently use to
provide broadband services to schools, to libraries and to other institutions).
Moreover, you, better than anyone in your role as point for the Administration's stimulus efforts,
understand that any local government revenue loss in these economic times will likely result in
cutbacks of critical municipal services and jobs—the exact jobs your stimulus efforts have sought to
save. Any action that would limit local authority to manage local rights-of-way and/or negatively
impact local budgets must be avoided in these tough economic times.
My fellow local government officials and I look forward to working with you and the FCC on these
vitally important issues. Still, we need your leadership to protect our jobs in these difficult
economic times.
Sincerely
dVl • d, L
Tree City U.S.A.
A CERTIFICATE OF LIABILITY INSURANCE 2/1/2010YY)-
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Keister and Keister Agency ONLY AND CONFERS NO RIGHTS UPON THE CERTIFICATE
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LTR INSRDI POLICY NUMBER �'! POLICY EFFECTIVE POLICY EXPIRATION
INSR ADO'L LIMITS
TYPE OF INSURANCE I DATE(MM/DD/YYYY) DATE(MM/DD/YYYY)
I
GENERAL LIABILITY ! EACH OCCURRENCE ! $ 1,000,000
DAMAGE TO RENTED
PREMISES(Ea occurrence( $ 100,000
A X
X COMCLAMSMADEERX 11IOCCUR,,L18161 2/18/2010 2/18/2011 MEDEXP(Anyoneperson) i $ 5,000
I PERSONAL&ADV INJURY 1 $ 1,000,000
GENERAL AGGREGATE 1 $ 2,000,000
GEN'L AGGREGATE LIMIT APPLIES PER ', '. PRODUCTS-COMP/OP AGG
$ 2,000,000
X POLICY PRO- ! i'i, LOC IF - -
JECT
AUTOMOBILE LIABILITY
COMBINED SINGLE LIMIT
ANY AUTO I( Ea accident) $ 1,000,000
ALL OWNED AUTOS
A ii X : XI L18161 2/18/2010 2/18/2011 I
BODILY INJURY $
SCHEDULED AUTOS (Per person)
HIRED AUTOS ''.
BODILY INJURY
' NON-OWNED AUTOS , (Per accident) $
19
X - -- -- PROPERTY DAMAGE $
!. �'.! (Per accident)
GARAGE LIABILITY ! '' AUTO ONLY-EA ACCIDENT 1 $
ANY AUTO EA ACC $
OTHER THAN
AUTO ONLY: AGG I $
ABILITY EACH OCCURRENCE $ 1,000,000
EXCESS I OCCUR UMBRELLA LIABILITY
MADE , � AGGREGATE }$ 1,000,000
i $
A DEDUCTIBLE 1.18161 2/18/2010 2/18/2011 $
Ili RETENTION $ $
A WORKERS COMPENSATION
WC STATU- IOTH
AND EMPLOYERS'LIABILITY _ !TORY LIMITS i i ER
Y/N
ANY PROPRIETOR/PARTNER/EXECUTIVE I E.L.EACH ACCIDENT $ 500,000
OFFICER/MEMBER EXCLUDED?
(Mandatory in NH) '1.18161 2/18/2010 2/18/2011 E.L.DISEASE-EA EMPLOYEE $ 500,000
If yes,describe under
SPECIAL PROVISIONS below i E.L.DISEASE-POLICY LIMIT $ 500,000
OTHER
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City of Oak Park Heights as additional insured
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CITY OF OAK PARK HEIGHTS
14168 NORTH 57TH STREET IMPOSE NO OBLIGATION OR LIABILITY OF ANY KIND UPON THE INSURER,ITS AGENTS OR
OAK PARK HEIGHTS, MN 55082 REPRESENTATIVES.,
AUTHORIZED E- NTATIVE
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INS025(200901)01