An Act To Provide Municipalities with Reciprocal Rights To Rent Space for Street Lights on Utility Poles in Municipal Rights-of-way
Maine Legislature, Session 125, LD 0493
Committee: Energy, Utilities and Technology
Sponsors: HARVELL
Amends: 35-A MRSA §2518

Legislative Document 
No. 493 
H.P. 386 
House of Representatives, February 10, 2011 
An Act To Provide Municipalities with Reciprocal Rights To Rent 
Space for Street Lights on Utility Poles in Municipal Rights-of-way 
Reference to the Committee on Energy, Utilities and Technology suggested and ordered 
printed. 
HEATHER J.R. PRIEST 
Clerk 
Presented by Representative HARVELL of Farmington.  (BY REQUEST) 
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows: 
Sec. 1.  35-A MRSA §2518, sub-§6 is enacted to read: 
6.  Municipal joint use of poles.  On or after July 1, 2012, unless other contractual 
arrangements are made between a transmission and distribution utility and a municipality, 
the municipal officers may order a transmission and distribution utility that owns a pole 
located in a public way or street for which that municipality is the licensing authority to 
provide space on the pole to the municipality for the installation of a municipally owned 
street light, subject to the following conditions. 
A.  The transmission and distribution utility may assess the municipality a reasonable 
rental charge for the use of the pole space.  The commission shall by rule or order 
establish a maximum rental charge that may be assessed by a transmission and 
distribution utility.  The aggregate rental charge assessed to a municipality may not 
exceed the aggregate fees the municipality receives from the transmission and 
distribution utility for occupying space in the public way or street. 
B.  The transmission and distribution utility shall either allow the municipality to 
install the street light or install the street light for the municipality for a fee that 
reimburses the utility for its costs, as established by the commission by rule or order.  
If the municipality is allowed to install the street light, the work must be done by a 
licensed electrician credentialed to perform the installation.  The transmission and 
distribution utility may not require that the street light conform to any standard or 
code more stringent than those established by applicable state law or rule. 
C.  The transmission and distribution utility may appeal the order of the municipal 
officers to the commission if the transmission and distribution utility believes the 
installation would pose an unreasonable safety hazard or would unreasonably 
interfere with the business of any person with an interest in the wires, cables or 
appurtenances attached to or located on the pole.  Upon receiving the appeal, the 
commission shall open an appropriate proceeding and if it determines from the 
evidence presented that the installation would pose an unreasonable safety hazard or 
would unreasonably interfere with the business of any person with an interest in the 
wires, cables or appurtenances attached to or located on the pole, the commission 
may prohibit the municipality from attaching any street light to the pole; otherwise, 
the commission shall permit the municipality to proceed with its order. 
The commission may adopt rules to implement this subsection.  Rules adopted by the 
commission under this subsection are routine technical rules as defined in Title 5, chapter 
375, subchapter 2-A. 
Sec. 2.  Report.  The Public Utilities Commission shall examine whether persons 
other than transmission and distribution utilities should be allowed to install and maintain 
municipally owned street lights and, if so, what training, licensing or credentialing, if any, 
those persons should be required to possess in order to be able to undertake that work.  
The commission shall report its findings and recommendations to the Joint Standing 
Committee on Energy, Utilities and Technology no later than January 2, 2012. 
SUMMARY 
This bill authorizes municipal officers to order a transmission and distribution utility 
that owns poles in the municipality's public streets or ways to rent space on those poles 
for municipal street lights subject to certain conditions. 
The transmission and distribution utility may assess the municipality a reasonable 
rental charge for the use of the pole space.  The Public Utilities Commission is required 
to establish by rule or order a maximum rental charge that may be assessed and the 
aggregate rental charge may not exceed the aggregate fees the municipality receives from 
the transmission and distribution utility for occupying space in the public way or street. 
The transmission and distribution utility is required to allow the municipality to 
install the street lights or to install the street lights for the municipality for a fee 
established by the commission by rule or order.  If the municipality is allowed to install 
the street lights, the work must be done by a qualified person.  The transmission and 
distribution utility may not require the street lights to conform to any standard or code 
more stringent than those established by applicable state law or rule. 
The transmission and distribution utility may appeal the order of the municipal 
officers to the commission, and if the commission determines that the installation would 
pose an unreasonable safety hazard or would unreasonably interfere with the business of 
any person with an interest in the wires, cables or appurtenances attached to or located on 
the poles, the commission may prohibit the municipality from attaching any street lights 
to the poles; otherwise, the commission is required to permit the municipality to proceed 
with its order. 
The commission is required to examine whether persons other than transmission and 
distribution utilities should be allowed to install and maintain municipally owned street 
lights and, if so, what particular training, licensing or credentialing, if any, those persons 
should be required to possess in order to be able to undertake that work.  The commission 
is required to report its findings and recommendations to the Joint Standing Committee 
on Energy, Utilities and Technology no later than January 2, 2012.