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EXHIBIT 10.1
CITY OF HOUSTON, TEXAS, ORDINANCE NO. 2005-692
AN ORDINANCE GRANTING TO CENTERPOINT ENERGY
HOUSTON ELECTRIC, LLC THE RIGHT,
PRIVILEGE AND FRANCHISE TO USE THE PUBLIC
RIGHTS-OF-WAY TO USE, LICENSE, OR
EXPLOIT THE COMPANY'S FACILITIES WITHIN THE
PUBLIC RIGHTS-OF-WAY TO CONDUCT AN
ELECTRIC DELIVERY BUSINESS IN THE CITY AND
FOR SUCH OTHER BUSINESS PURPOSES AS
THE COMPANY MAY DESIRE FROM TIME TO TIME,
SPECIFICALLY INCLUDING, BUT NOT
LIMITED TO, THE GRANTING OF ACCESS TO THOSE
FACILITIES FOR THE DELIVERY OF
BROADBAND THROUGH POWER LINES OR SIMILAR
SERVICE WITHIN THE CITY OF HOUSTON,
TEXAS.
* * * * * *
WHEREAS, City of Houston, Texas Ordinance No. 1957-929 (the
"1957
Franchise") granted an electrical lighting
and power franchise to Houston
Lighting & Power Company, for a term
expiring August 21, 2007; and
WHEREAS, Company is the successor to Reliant Energy,
Incorporated.("REI"), which was the
successor to Houston Lighting & Power
Company, by virtue of a corporate
restructuring of REI that occurred in August
2002, in which REI was merged with and into
an indirect wholly owned subsidiary
of CenterPoint Energy, Inc., which was
converted into a limited liability
company and was renamed CenterPoint Energy
Houston Electric, LLC; and
WHEREAS, Company owns and operates a electric delivery business
within
the corporate limits of the City and
Company is willing to continue to provide
electric delivery services within the
corporate limits of the City; and
WHEREAS, Company and the City have reached agreement on the terms
and
conditions of a renewal franchise; and
WHEREAS, it is hereby found and determined by the City Council of
the
City of Houston that it is in the best
interests of the City that a franchise to
use the public rights-of-way to conduct an
electric delivery business in the
city and for such other business purposes
as the company may desire from time to
time be granted to the Company, subject to
the terms and conditions described in
this ordinance; NOW, THEREFORE,
BE IT ORDAINED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE
CITY OF HOUSTON, TEXAS:
SECTION 1. That the facts contained in the preamble to the
Ordinance
are determined to be true and correct and
are hereby adopted.
SECTION 2. Definitions.
Annual Adjustment Factor has the meaning set forth in Section 11
below.
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Annual Franchise Fee has the meaning set forth in Section 11
below.
Base Amount has the meaning set forth in Section 11 below.
Broadband over Power Lines (BPL) or "Access BPL" has the same
meaning
as that used by the Federal Communications
Commission in Section 15.3 of its
Rules as reprinted below:
Access Broadband over Power Line (Access BPL). A carrier
current system installed and operated on an electric utility
service as an unintentional radiator that sends radio
frequency energy on frequencies between 1.705 MHz and 80 MHz
over medium voltage lines or over low voltage lines to provide
broadband communications and Is located on the supply side of
the utility service's points of interconnection with customer
premises. Access BPL does not include power line carrier
systems as defined in Section 15.3(t) of this part or In-House
BPL as defined in Section 15.3(gg) of this part.
City means the City of Houston, Texas, a municipal corporation of
the
State of Texas.
City Council means the governing body of the City, or its
designee.
Company means CenterPoint Energy Houston Electric, LLC, a Texas
limited
liability company.
Effective Date means the date on which this Franchise becomes
effective
pursuant to Section 4 below.
First Rate Case has the meaning set forth in Section 14 below.
Force Majeure means forces or conditions not reasonably within
the
control of a party, including a strike; war
or act of war (whether an actual
declaration of war is made or not);
insurrection; riot; act of public enemy;
accident; fire; flood or other act of God;
sabotage; shortages in materials,
supplies and equipment; governmental
regulations, limitations and restrictions
as to the use and availability of
materials, supplies and equipment and as to
the use of services; unforeseen and unusual
demands for service; or other
events, where the affected party has
exercised all due care in the prevention
thereof and such causes or other events are
without the fault or negligence of
the affected party.
Franchise means this Ordinance and the rights and privileges
granted by
this Ordinance.
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Franchise Area means the area within the boundaries of the City as
of
the Effective Date and as same may change
from time to time during the term of
the Franchise.
Other Services means any service exclusive of the transmission
and
distribution of electricity provided or
allowed to be provided through the use
or license of the System for a fee,
including but not limited to BPL.
Person means any individual, firm, partnership, association,
corporation, company or organization of any
kind.
Public Rights-of-Way means the areas in, under, upon, over, across,
and
along any and all of the present and future
Streets or streams now or hereafter
owned or controlled by City.
PUC means the Public Utility Commission of Texas or its
successor
agency with equivalent jurisdiction.
Retail Customer means any Person taking delivery of electricity
from
Company, at a point of delivery within the
Franchise Area.
Rider HOU Amount has the meaning set forth in Section 11 below.
Street means the surface and the space above and below any
public
street, road, highway, alley, bridge,
sidewalk, or other public place or way.
System means the Company's facilities erected, constructed,
maintained,
operated, used, extended, removed,
replaced, and repaired, as necessary, by
Company pursuant to this Franchise,
including without limitation, all poles,
pole lines, towers, transmission lines,
wires, guys, conduits, cables, and other
desirable instrumentalities and
appurtenances (including telegraph and telephone
poles and wires for use of Company),
necessary and proper for the purpose of
transmitting and distributing electricity
to the City and the inhabitants of
said City or other Persons, for any purpose
for which electricity may be used.
Tracking Rider has the meaning set forth in Section 14 below.
SECTION 3. Subject to the terms, conditions and provisions of
this
Franchise, City hereby grants to Company
the right, privilege and franchise to
use City's Public Rights-of-Way to
construct, maintain, operate and use
Company's System to conduct within the City
an electric delivery business and
the right to use, license, or exploit the
System within the Public Rights-of-Way
for Other Services. This Franchise does not
restrict City's right to impose
reasonable fees upon third parties for the
use of the Public Rights-of-Way to
provide Other Services, including the right
to impose fees upon providers of BPL
service, so long as such fees are assessed
on a non-discriminatory basis with
those charged to other companies providing
services competitive with the Other
Services.
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SECTION 4. Upon the filing with City by Company of the
acceptance
required hereunder, this Franchise shall be
in full force and effect for a term
and period of thirty (30) years from and
after the first day of July, 2005.
SECTION 5. All poles erected by Company pursuant to the
authority
herein granted shall be of sound material
and reasonably straight, and shall be
so set that they shall not interfere with
the flow of water in any gutter or
drain, and so that the same shall interfere
as little as practicable with the
ordinary travel, on the Streets or other
Public Rights-of-Way. Within the
Streets or other Public Rights-of-Way of
City, the location and route of all
poles, stubs, guys, anchors, lines,
conduits and cables placed and constructed
and to be placed and constructed by Company
in the construction and maintenance
of Company's System in the City, shall be
subject to the reasonable and proper
regulation, control and direction of City,
or of any City official to whom such
duties have or may be duly delegated, which
regulation and control shall
include, but not by way of limitation, the
right to require in writing, to the
extent provided in Section 10, the
relocation of Company's System at Company's
cost within the Streets or other Public
Rights-of-Way whenever such shall be
reasonably necessary to accommodate City
Public Works improvement projects
within such Streets or Public
Rights-of-Way.
SECTION 6. In consideration for the compensation set forth in
Sections
11 and 15, City agrees that if City sells,
convoys, or surrenders possession of
any portion of the Public Right-of-Way that
is being used by Company pursuant to
this Franchise, City, to the maximum extent
of its right to do so, shall first
grant Company an easement for such use; and
the sale, conveyance, or surrender
of possession of the Public Right-of-Way
shall be subject to the right and
continued use of Company.
SECTION 7. Company and its contractors shall give City
reasonable
notice of the dates, location, and nature
of the work to be performed on the
System within the Public Rights-of-Way.
Following completion of work in Public
Rights-of-Way, Company shall repair the
affected Public Rights-of-Way as soon as
possible, but in all cases shall comply
with all City ordinances governing time
periods and standards relating to
excavating in the Public Rights-of-Way. No
Street or other Public Right-of-Way shall
be encumbered by construction,
maintenance or removal work by Company for
a longer period than shall be
necessary to execute such work.
SECTION 8. The service furnished hereunder to City and its
inhabitants
shall be first-class in all respects,
considering all circumstances, and Company
shall furnish the grade of service to
Retail Customers as provided by its rate
schedules and shall maintain its System in
reasonable operating condition during
the continuance of this Franchise.
Company's tariffs shall govern the rates,
access to service, terms and quality of
electric delivery services provided by
Company. An exception to this requirement
is automatically in effect when due to
Force Majeure. In any Force Majeure event,
Company shall do all things
reasonably within its power to restore
normal service.
SECTION 9. Company, on the written request of any person, shall
remove
or raise or lower its wires temporarily to
permit construction work in the
vicinity thereof or
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to permit the moving of houses or other
bulky structures. The expense of such
temporary removal, raising or lowering of
wires shall be paid by the benefited
party or parties, and Company may require
such payment in advance, being without
obligation to remove, raise, or lower its
wires until such payment has been
made. Company shall be given not less than
forty-eight (48) hours advance notice
to arrange for such temporary wire
changes.
SECTION 10. Company shall construct, operate, and maintain its
transmission and distribution facilities in
substantial accordance with
Company's own Service Standards and the
National Electrical Safety Code
("NESC"). Company shall determine the
specific location and the method of
construction and types of materials used in
building, maintaining, and operating
Company's transmission and distribution
facilities. City shall require its
employees and contractors performing work
for the benefit of City to comply with
all applicable laws, statutes codes and
standards (including, without
limitation, Section 752 of the Texas Health
and Safety Code, as the same may be
amended or replaced, and the NESC) when
working near Company's System and to
report as soon as practicable any damage
done to Company's System. Company also
agrees to require its employees and
contractors performing work for the benefit
of City to comply with all applicable laws,
statutes codes and standards
(including, without limitation, Section 752
of the Texas Health and Safety Code,
as the same may be amended or replaced, and
the NESC) when working near City's
facilities and to report as soon as
practicable any damage done to City's
facilities. Company shall relocate
facilities within Public Rights-of-Way at
Company's own expense, exclusive of street
lighting and facilities installed for
service directly to City, to accommodate
City Public Works improvement projects,
including but not limited to street
widening, change of grade, water, sewer, or
drainage upgrades, construction or
reconstruction projects and minor relocation
of traffic lanes. City shall bear the costs
of all relocations of street
lighting and facilities installed for
service directly to City and of any
relocation of other facilities requested by
City for reasons other than City
Public Works improvement projects. Except
in the event of an emergency, City
shall give Company at least seventy-two
(72) hours notice when requesting the
bracing of Company's poles. Company shall
pay for the bracing to accommodate
City Public Works improvement projects,
including but not limited to street
widening, change of grade, water, sewer, or
drainage upgrades, construction or
reconstruction projects and minor
relocation of traffic lanes.
SECTION 11. In consideration for the rights and privileges
herein
granted, Company agrees to pay to City
during the term of this Franchise an
annual franchise fee (referred to herein as
"Annual Franchise Fee"), subject to
an Annual Adjustme
