SB 1620

House Engrossed
  Senate Bill
Arizona
  space commission; board; membership
(now: utility
  relocation notification)
State of Arizona
Senate
Fifty-seventh Legislature
Second Regular Session
2026
CHAPTER 235
SENATE BILL 1620
AN
ACT
Amending section 9-461.17, Arizona
Revised Statutes; relating to telecommunicati0n utilities.
(TEXT OF BILL BEGINS ON NEXT PAGE)
Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Arizona:
Section 1. Section 9-461.17, Arizona Revised
Statutes, is amended to read:
START_STATUTE9-461.17. Telecommunications
utility relocation; cost reimbursement; definitions
A. To the
fullest extent allowed by law, If any construction project in any
municipality that is undertaken individually or jointly by an intergovernmental
contract and that is funded in whole or in part by voter-approved
municipal bond proceeds requires that a telecommunications utility adjust or
otherwise relocate the telecommunications utility's facilities, the
municipality shall reimburse the telecommunications utility, or cause the
telecommunications utility to be reimbursed, for the telecommunications
utility's relocation costs incurred on facilities located within the municipal
boundaries.
B. If the telecommunications utility has existing
land rights, the municipality shall provide at the municipality's expense the
telecommunications utility with equal land rights in the new location of the
relocated facilities. If the telecommunications utility's existing
facilities are located in the right-of-way under a permit, the
municipality shall provide at the municipality's expense the telecommunications
utility with rights in the new location of the relocated facilities equivalent
to the telecommunications utility's existing rights under the permit.
C. A telecommunications utility shall submit a
verified itemized claim to the municipality for reimbursement of relocation
costs within one hundred eighty days after each calendar quarter in which a
telecommunications utility incurs relocation costs.
D. The municipality shall:
1. Review each verified itemized claim submitted
pursuant to subsection C of this section. The review may include an
audit conducted pursuant to standard industry accounting principles.
2. Reimburse the telecommunications utility for the
relocation costs within ninety days after receipt of the verified itemized
claim.
3. Reimburse verified itemized claims from all
affected telecommunications utilities in the order of receipt.
4. At least thirty days before a
request to relocate a telecommunications utility's facility, Provide the
telecommunications utility with public notice of any voter-approved municipal
bond project.
5. Develop a reimbursement process
for a telecommunications utility to apply for REIMBURSEMENT of the RELOCATION
costs of the telecommunications utility's facilities.
E. The reimbursement
limitation for paid claims of relocation costs for telecommunications utility
facilities for which there are no existing land rights is not more than two
percent of the total project monies. The total of the project monies
is the total dollar amount of all voter-approved municipal bond proceeds
that fund a construction project from time to time.
F. The total amount of reimbursement paid for claims
of relocation costs of all telecommunications utility facilities for which
there are no existing land rights may not exceed the reimbursement limitation.
G. If a verified itemized claim causes the total
amount of all claims for telecommunications utility relocation costs to exceed
the reimbursement limitation, that claim shall be reduced so that the total
amount of reimbursement paid for all claims for which there are no existing
land rights equals the reimbursement limitation.
H. If the dollar amount of the reimbursement
limitation increases as a result of an increase in total project funds after
the previous reimbursement limitation is exhausted, within thirty days after
the reimbursement limitation is increased the municipality shall resume
processing previously submitted and new verified itemized claims under this
section.
I. The reimbursement limitation does not apply to
any claims for reimbursement of relocation costs for telecommunications utility
facilities with existing land rights or any amounts paid by the municipality to
provide equivalent land or permit rights. These claims and amounts are excluded
from the reimbursement limitation.
J. This section does not:
1. Apply to a construction project funded in whole
or in part with voter-approved municipal bond proceeds if approval of the
bonds was referred to the voters, or the initiative petition for the bonds was
applied for, before January 1, 2017.
2. Prohibit a municipality from complying with other
applicable law, or with an agreement, that requires the municipality to
reimburse a telecommunications utility for more relocation costs than this
section provides.
K. For the purposes of this section:
1. "Intergovernmental contract" means the
joint exercise of powers authorized by title 11, chapter 7, article 3.
2. "Municipality" includes a charter city.
3. "Relocation costs" means all costs of
relocating a telecommunications utility's facilities that the
telecommunications utility incurs as a direct result of the construction and
operation of a construction project. Relocation costs do not include profit but
may include a reasonable allocation of general overhead expenses.
4. "Telecommunications utility" means any
public service corporation, licensed cable television operator, video service
provider, telephone line or telegraph line corporation, agricultural
improvement district or other person engaged in the transmission, sale or
delivery of telecommunications, telephone, cable television, video, internet or
telegraph service directly to the public or to other users as to be effectively
available directly to the public. END_STATUTE
APPROVED BY THE GOVERNOR JUNE 22, 2026.
FILED IN THE OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY OF STATE JUNE 22, 2026.