LANSING – How much telecommunication companies should pay to run fiber optics under state-owned rail trails is a point of contention on a bill the Senate Energy and Technology Committee took up Tuesday.

A substitute for SB 499 would require an application fee up to $350 and companies to pay 5 cents per linear foot for lines installed in the rail trail, but an official from the Department of Natural Resources said the fee should represent the property’s value, which is different across the state.

If the bill were to reflect that, than the price would be about $6 per linear foot in the Upper Peninsula and $15 in parts of southeastern Michigan, said DNR Legislative Liaison Gary Owen.

As proposed, the department would spend more to collect a fee than what it would be worth since it takes between $500 and $2,000 to maintain every mile of rail trail each year. Owen said the department supports the bill in concept, particularly because it does create a fund for trail maintenance.

But the president of the Telecommunications Association of Michigan said it’s excessive fees that have slowed down installation of broadband across the state and the bill is intended to remedy that, particularly in rural communities.

Scott Stevenson said the department does not need as much money to maintain the trails as officials say they do, and besides, the fee is all new money to the DNR anyway.

The committee did not vote on the bill, which also received support from the Michigan Trails and Greenways Alliance, Michigan Cable Telecommunications Association, Michigan United Conservation Clubs.

The panel did vote on HB 4683 , which extends the deadline for owners and operators of multiple-line telephone systems to upgrade their phones so emergency dispatchers can pinpoint where a call is originating. The upgrades were required in the 2007 Emergency 911 Service Enabling Act, but the Public Service Commission didn’t begin the official rule-making process until earlier this year and telephone operators say they need more time to implement the changes.

The bill extends the deadline by five years.

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