Rule 110-36-1-.04 - Broadband Ready Community Decertification(1) Designated Broadband Ready Communities may be decertified by the Department if: (a) The community imposes an unreasonable or non-cost based fee to review an application or issue a permit for a broadband network project. An application fee in excess of $100.00 shall be considered unreasonable unless such political subdivision can provide documentation justifying such fee based on a specific cost. The Department shall be final arbiter in determining the reasonableness of cost for the purposes of decertification;(b) The community imposes a moratorium of any kind on the approval of applications or issuance of permits for broadband network projects or on construction related to broadband network projects;(c) The community discriminates among broadband service providers with respect to any action described in O.C.G.A. § 50-40-42 or otherwise related to a broadband network project, including granting access to public rights of way, infrastructure and poles, river and bridge crossings, or any other physical asset owned or controlled by such political subdivision; or(d) As a condition for approving an application or issuing a permit for a broadband network project, requires the applicant to:(i) Provide any service or make available any part of the broadband network project to such political subdivision; or(ii) Except for reasonable and cost based fees allowed, make any payment to or on behalf of such subdivision.(e) A broadband services provider requests that the Department decertify a political subdivision for failure to act in accordance with the ordinance required for certification under O.C.G.A. § 50-40-41, modifies such ordinance so that such ordinance no longer complies with subsection (a) of O.C.G.A. § 50-40-41, or violates any provision of O.C.G.A. § 50-40-42. Such request may be made at any time.(f) A broadband services provider alleges that an application fee under an ordinance for certification under O.C.G.A. § 50-40-41 is unreasonable, the Department shall determine whether or not the fee charged by the political subdivision is reasonable.(g) In the proceeding for making such determination, the political subdivision shall have the burden of proving the reasonableness of any action undertaken by such political subdivision as part of the application process and the reasonableness of the costs of such actions.(h) Upon receipt of any request for decertification, the following steps shall apply: (i) After obtaining necessary information to evaluate claims that application fees are unreasonable, the Department shall conduct said proceeding within 60 days of the claim being filed with the Department. The Department shall investigate the validity of the complaint, require documentation from the broadband services provider and the political subdivision, as well as make a determination as to whether the political subdivision has failed to comply with the ordinance. The Department shall be the final arbiter for this determination.(ii) Upon receipt of a complaint from a broadband services provider, the Department shall have 60 days to render a judgment through a proceeding for such purpose.(iii) Decertified political subdivisions shall immediately cease using all forms of marketing and/or promotion, whether digitally, in print, or otherwise, upon receipt of decertification notice by the Department.(iv) Decertified political subdivisions shall not be eligible to apply for reinstatement for twelve months following the decertification action.Ga. Comp. R. & Regs. R. 110-36-1-.04
O.C.G.A. §§ 50-40-42, 50-40-43.
Original Rule entitled "Broadband Ready Community Decertification" adopted. F. Dec. 14, 2018; eff. Jan. 3, 2019.