Topeka — Telephone company franchise fees are worth nearly a quarter-million dollars a year to Lawrence. Officials want to keep the money coming.
But telephone companies say Kansas cities have hurt their business by making exorbitant fee demands. They want the Kansas Legislature to limit city franchise authority.
"The public is so tired of waiting for cities to get out of the way," said Nelson Krueger, lobbyist for Everest Connections, a Johnson County broadband company.
A compromise reluctantly backed by both sides landed Tuesday before the Senate Commerce Committee.
"Given a choice," Lawrence Assistant City Manager Dave Corliss told the committee, "the city of Lawrence prefers and accepts the compromise bill."
Corliss helped fashion the compromise. The bill caps franchise fees at $2 per month per customer but allows for 25-cent increases every three years. An earlier version had a lower cap, with no provision for increases. The new bill also retains some city authority over rights of way used by phone companies.
Both sides asked the committee not to amend the bill, saying the compromise is tenuous.
"If there are any changes," Krueger said, "I think either side could fold."
The committee will continue hearings on Senate Bill 397 today and Thursday.
Staff writer Joel Mathis can be reached at 832-7126.
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