The purpose of this subchapter is to regulate the access to and ongoing use of public utility easements and rights-of-way by telecommunications providers to ensure and protect the public health, safety and welfare and to exercise reasonable control of the public utility easements and rights-of-way pursuant to the Metropolitan Extension Telecommunications Rights-of-Ways Oversight Act (METROA), (Public Act 48 of 2002, being M.C.L.A. §§ 484.3101 et seq.), the Michigan Telecommunications Act (Public Act 216 of 1995, as amended, being M.C.L.A. §§ 484.2101 et seq.), other state statutes (including, without limitation, M.C.L.A. § 247.183) and Article VII, § 29 of the 1963 Michigan Constitution by minimizing disruption of the public utility easements and rights-of-way by regulating the access to and ongoing use of the public utility easements and rights-of-way by telecommunications providers and the construction, installation, operation and use of facilities in the public utility easements and rights-of-way to provide telecommunication services; ensuring that the township and the public are protected from liability for use of the public utility easements and rights-of-way by telecommunications providers; providing for the payment of nondiscriminatory permit fees which do not exceed the fixed and variable costs of granting permits and maintaining the public utility easements and rights-of-way used by telecommunications providers; and assisting telecommunications providers in understanding the township’s requirements for use of the public utility easements and rights-of-way and providing a fair and nondiscriminatory policy for permitting the use of the public utility easements and rights-of-way by such providers.
(Prior Code, § V-2.00)