FCC Record, Volume 26, No. 7, Pages 4843 to 5761, March 28 - April 08, 2011 Page: 5,291

overwhelms any deterrent effect.354 That said, we take seriously the arguments by attachers that utilities
may deem attachments to be unauthorized because of poor record keeping or changes in pole ownership,
rather than because of the attacher's failure to follow proper protocol. 5 Consequently, the policy we
enunciate today applies on a prospective basis only - i.e., to new agreements, or amendments to existing
agreements, executed after the effective date of this Order.
115. To address the concerns implicated by unauthorized attachments, we explicitly abandon
the Mile Hi limitation on penalties and instead create a safe harbor for more substantial penalties.
Specifically, going forward, we will consider contract-based penalties for unauthorized attachments to be
presumptively reasonable if they do not exceed those implemented by the Oregon PUC.356 Oregon has
established a multifaceted system that contains, among others, the following provisions:
* An unauthorized attachment fee of $500 per pole for pole occupants without a contract
(i.e., when there is no pole attachment agreement between the parties);357
* An unauthorized attachment fee of five times the current annual rental fee per pole if the
pole occupant does not have a permit and the violation is self-reported or discovered
through a joint inspection, with an additional sanction of $100 per pole if the violation is
found by thepole owner in an inspection in which the pole occupant has declined to
participate.3
* A requirement that the pole owner provide specific notice of a violation (including pole
number and location) before seeking relief against a pole occupant.359
* An opportunity for attachers to avoid sanctions by submitting plans of correction within
60 calendar days of receipt of notification of a violation or by correcting the violation and
providing notice of the correction to the owner within 180 calendar days of receipt of
notification of the violation.360
* A mutual obligation of pole owners and pole occupants to correct immediately violations
that pose imminent danger to life or property. If a party corrects another party's
violation, the party responsible for the violation must reimburse the correcting party for
the actual cost of corrections.361
34 Alliant Comments at 7; ITTA Comments at 10; Idaho Power Comments at 15; Florida IOUs Comments at 49-
52; Verizon Comments at 45-46; Alliance Comments at 72-75; APPA Comments at 30-31; Oncor Comments at
51-52; Verizon Reply at 43-44.
355 Florida IOUs Reply at 15; APPA Reply at 36.
356 See Oregon Administrative Rules, Division 28, Pole and Conduit Attachments, 860-028-0130 - 0220;
http:!//arcweb.,os.state.or.us/rules/OARS 800/OAR 860/860 028.html.
357 Oregon Administrative Rules, Division 28, Pole and Conduit Attachments, 860-028-0130. "To facilitate the joint
use of poles," the Oregon regulations provide that "entities must execute contracts establishing the rates, terms, and
conditions of pole use." Id. 860-028-0060(2).
3ss" Oregon Administrative Rules, Division 28, Pole and Conduit Attachments, 860-028-0140.
3$9 Oregon Administrative Rules, Division 28, Pole and Conduit Attachments, 860-028-0190.
3 Oregon Administrative Rules, Division 28, Pole and Conduit Attachments, 860-028-0150.
361 Oregon Administrative Rules, Division 28, Pole and Conduit Attachments, 860-028-0115, 860-028-0120.
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Federal Communications Commission

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