[Congressional Bills 106th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2891 Introduced in House (IH)]







106th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 2891

To provide reasonable and non-discriminatory access to buildings owned 
  or used by the Federal Government for the provision of competitive 
      telecommunications services by telecommunications carriers.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           September 21, 1999

     Mr. Davis of Virginia (for himself and Mr. Moran of Virginia) 
 introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on 
   Commerce, and in addition to the Committee on Transportation and 
   Infrastructure, for a period to be subsequently determined by the 
  Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall 
           within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To provide reasonable and non-discriminatory access to buildings owned 
  or used by the Federal Government for the provision of competitive 
      telecommunications services by telecommunications carriers.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Competitive Access to Federal 
Buildings Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    The Congress finds that--
            (1) non-discriminatory access to, and use of, the rooftops, 
        risers, telephone cabinets, conduits, points of entry or 
        demarcation for internal wiring, and all utility spaces in or 
        on federal buildings and commercial property is essential to 
        the competitive provision of telecommunications services and 
        information services;
            (2) incumbent telecommunications carriers often enjoy 
        access to such buildings and property through historic rights 
        of way that were developed before the advent of new means of 
        providing such services, in particular the provision of such 
        services using terrestrial fixed wireless or satellite services 
        that enter a building through equipment located on rooftops;
            (3) the National Telecommunications and Information 
        Administration is the Federal agency tasked with developing 
        policies for the efficient and competitive use of emerging 
        technologies that combine spectrum use with the convergence of 
        communications and computer technologies for the utilization of 
        telecommunications services and information services by Federal 
        agencies;
            (4) that several States, for example Connecticut and Texas, 
        have already enacted measures to promote non-discriminatory 
        access by telecommunications carriers to rooftops, risers, 
        conduits, utility spaces, and points of entry and demarcation 
        in order to promote the competitive provision of 
        telecommunications services and information services; and
            (5) that the Federal Government should encourage States to 
        develop similar policies by establishing as Federal policy 
        requirements to promote non-discriminatory access to Federal 
        buildings and commercial property used by agencies of the 
        Federal Government so that taxpayers receive the benefits and 
        cost savings from the competitive provision of 
        telecommunications services and information services by 
        telecommunications carriers.

SEC. 3. ACCESS TO BUILDINGS FOR COMPETITIVE TELECOMMUNICATIONS 
              SERVICES.

    The National Telecommunications and Information Administration 
Organization Act (Title I of Public Law 102-538; 47 U.S.C. 901 et seq.) 
is amended--
            (1) in section 103(b)(2) (47 U.S.C. 902(b)(2)) by adding at 
        the end the following new subparagraph:
                    ``(U) The authority to implement policies for 
                buildings and other structures owned or used by 
                agencies of the Federal Government in order to provide 
                for non-discriminatory access to such buildings and 
                structures for the provision of telecommunications 
                services or information services by telecommunications 
                carriers, and to advise the Commission on the 
                development of policies for non-discriminatory access 
                by such carriers to commercial property in general for 
                the provision of such services.''; and
            (2) in section 105 (47 U.S.C. 904) by adding at the end the 
        following new subsection:
    ``(f) Prohibition on Discriminatory Access.--
            ``(1) In general.--No Federal agency shall enter into a 
        contract with the owner or operator of any commercial property 
        for the rental or lease of all or some portion of such property 
        unless the owner or operator permits non-discriminatory access 
        to, and use of, the rooftops, risers, telephone cabinets, 
        conduits, points of entry or demarcation for internal wiring, 
        easements, rights of way, and all utility spaces in or on such 
        commercial property, for the provision of telecommunications 
        services or information services by any telecommunications 
        carrier that has obtained, where required, a Federal or State 
certificate of public convenience and necessity for the provision of 
such services, and which seeks to provide or provides such services to 
tenants (including, but not limited to, the Federal agency for which 
such rental or lease is made) of such property. Such owner or operator 
may--
                    ``(A) charge a reasonable and non-discriminatory 
                fee (which shall be based on the commercial rental 
                value of the space actually used by the 
                telecommunications carrier) for such access and use;
                    ``(B) impose reasonable and non-
discriminatory requirements necessary to protect the safety and 
condition of the property, and the safety and convenience of tenants 
and other persons (including hours when entry and work may be conducted 
on the property);
                    ``(C) require the telecommunications carrier to 
                indemnify the owner or operator for damage caused by 
                the installation, maintenance, or removal of any 
                facilities of such carrier; and
                    ``(D) require the telecommunications carrier to 
                bear the entire cost of installing, operating, 
                maintaining, and removing any facilities of such 
                carrier.
            ``(2) State law or contractual obligation required.--No 
        Federal agency shall enter into a contract with the owner or 
        operator of any commercial property for the rental or lease of 
        all or some portion of such property unless the owner or 
        operator submits to such agency a notarized statement that such 
        owner or operator is obligated under State law, or is obligated 
        or will undertake an obligation through a contractual 
        commitment with each telecommunication carrier providing or 
        seeking to provide service, to resolve any disputes between 
        such telecommunication carriers and such owner or operator that 
        may arise regarding access to the commercial property or the 
        provision of competitive telecommunications services or 
        information services to tenants of such property. To meet the 
        requirements of this paragraph such State process or 
        contractual commitment must--
                    ``(A) provide an effective means for resolution of 
                disputes within 30 days (unless otherwise required by 
                State law or agreed by the parties involved), either 
                through arbitration or order of a State agency or 
                through binding arbitration;
                    ``(B) permit the telecommunications carrier to 
                initiate service or continue service while any dispute 
                is pending;
                    ``(C) provide that any fee charged for access to, 
                or use of, building space (including conduits, risers, 
                and utility closets), easements or rights of way, or 
                rooftops to provide telecommunications service or 
                information service be reasonable and applied in a non-
                discriminatory manner to all providers of such service, 
                including the incumbent local exchange carrier; and
                    ``(D) provide that requirements with respect to the 
                condition of the property are limited to those 
                necessary to ensure that the value of the property is 
                not diminished by the installation, maintenance, or 
                removal of the facilities of the telecommunications 
                carrier, and do not require the telecommunications 
                carrier to improve the condition of the property in 
                order to obtain access or use.
            ``(3) Effective date.--Paragraphs (1) and (2) shall take 
        effect six months after the date of enactment of this 
        subsection for all lease or rental agreements entered into or 
        renewed by any Federal agency after such date.
            ``(4) Waiver permitted.--The requirements of paragraphs (1) 
        or (2) may be waived on a case by case basis--
                    ``(A) by the head of the agency seeking space in a 
                commercial property upon a determination, which shall 
                be made in writing and be available to the public upon 
                request, that such requirements would result in the 
                affected agency being unable, in that particular case, 
                to obtain any space suitable for the needs of that 
                agency in that general geographic area; or
                    ``(B) by the President upon a finding that waiver 
                of such requirements is necessary to obtain space for 
                the affected agency in that particular case, and that 
                enforcement of such requirements in that particular 
                case would be contrary to the interests of national 
                security.
        Any determination under subparagraph (A) may be appealed by any 
        affected telecommunications carrier to the Assistant Secretary, 
        who shall review the agency determination and issue a decision 
        upholding or revoking the agency determination within 30 
days of an appeal being filed. The burden shall be on the agency head 
to demonstrate through the written determination that all reasonable 
efforts had been made to find suitable alternative space for the 
agency's needs before the waiver determination was made. The Assistant 
Secretary shall revoke any agency determination made without all 
reasonable efforts being made. The decision of the Assistant Secretary 
shall be binding on the agency whose waiver determination was appealed.
            ``(5) Limitations.--
                    ``(A) Nothing in this subsection shall waive or 
                modify any requirements or restrictions imposed by any 
                Federal, State, or local agency with authority under 
other law to impose such restrictions or requirements on the provision 
of telecommunications services or the facilities used to provide such 
services.
                    ``(B) Refusal by an owner to provide access to a 
                telecommunications carrier seeking to provide 
                telecommunications services or information services to 
                a commercial property due to a demonstrated lack of 
                available space at a commercial property on a rooftop 
                or in a riser, telephone cabinet, conduit, point of 
                entry or demarcation for internal wiring, or utility 
                space due to existing occupation of such space by two 
                or more telecommunications carriers providing service 
                to that commercial property shall not be a violation of 
                paragraphs (1)(B) or (2)(D) if the owner has made 
                reasonable efforts to permit access by such 
                telecommunications carrier to any space that is 
                available.
            ``(6) Definitions.--For the purposes of this subsection the 
        term--
                    ``(A) `Federal agency' shall mean any executive 
                agency or any establishment in the legislative or 
                judicial branch of the Government;
                    ``(B) `commercial property' shall include any 
                buildings or other structures offered, in whole or in 
                part, for rent or lease to any Federal agency;
                    ``(C) `incumbent local exchange carrier' shall have 
                the same meaning given such term in section 251(h) of 
                the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 251(h)); and
                    ``(D) `information service', `telecommunications 
                carrier', and `telecommunications service' shall have 
                the same meaning given such terms, respectively, in 
                section 3 of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 
                153).''.

SEC. 4. APPLICATION TO PUBLIC BUILDINGS.

    (a) Rules Required to Apply Requirements.--
            (1) In general.--Within six months after the date of 
        enactment of this Act the Secretary of Commerce, acting through 
        the Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Telecommunications and 
        Information, shall promulgate final rules, after notice and 
        opportunity for public comment, to apply the requirements of 
        section 105(f) of the National Telecommunications and 
        Information Administration Organization Act, as added by this 
        Act, to all buildings and other structures owned or operated by 
        any Federal agency.
            (2) Exemptions.--In promulgating such rules the Assistant 
        Secretary may, at the direction of the President, exempt any 
        buildings or structures owned or operated by a Federal agency 
        if the application of such requirements would be contrary to 
        the interests of national security.
            (3) Coordination.--The Assistant Secretary shall coordinate 
        the promulgation of the rules required by this section with the 
        Administrator of the General Services Administration and the 
        heads of any establishments in the legislative and judicial 
        branches of government which are responsible for buildings and 
        other structures owned or operated by such establishments.
            (4) Safety and security.--Such rules may include any 
        requirements for identification, background checks, or other 
        matters necessary to ensure access by telecommunications 
        carriers under this section does not compromise the safety and 
        security of agency operations in government owned or operated 
        buildings or structures.
    (b) Definition.--For the purposes of this section, the term 
``Federal agency'' shall have the same meaning given such term in 
section 105(f)(6) of the National Telecommunications and Information 
Administration Organization Act, as added by this Act.
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