§ 7-16. Compensation for use of rights-of-way.

(a)

This section and any License fee provision in a License, shall not apply during such time as Florida Law prohibits the Village from collecting the License fees or similar compensation. During the period Florida Law prohibits the Village from collecting License fees, a Grantee shall pay the local communications services tax required by Florida Law, Section 202.19, Florida Statutes, to the State of Florida. If the Village is legally entitled to charge License fees or similar fees, a Grantee will pay the highest fee legally authorized.

(b)

License fees for operators of Cable Systems. A Grantee, as compensation for the privilege granted under a License for the use of the Public Rights-of-Way to construct and operate a Cable System, shall pay to the Village a License fee:

(1)

In an amount up to a maximum of either five percent of the Grantee's Gross Revenues during the term of its License; or,

(2)

In the event the Cable Act or other applicable Law is amended to permit the Village to assess a fee of a greater amount or on a broader revenue basis than that specified in (1) above, the Grantee agrees to pay to the Village the new amount after a public hearing in which the public and Grantee are given an opportunity to comment on the impact of the higher fee.

(c)

General rules for payment of fees.

(1)

A Grantee shall pay fees due to the Village on a calendar year, quarterly basis. Payment for each quarter shall be made to the Village not later than 30 calendar days after the end of each calendar quarter.

(2)

A Grantee shall file with the Village, on a quarterly basis with the payment of the License fee, a financial statement setting forth the computation of Gross Revenues used to calculate the fee for the preceding quarter and a detailed explanation of the method of computation.

(3)

The statement shall be certified by a certified public accountant or the Grantee's chief financial or other duly authorized officer. The Grantee will bear the cost of the preparation of such financial statements.

(4)

Subject to applicable Law, no acceptance by the Village of any fee or payment shall be construed as an accord that the amount paid is in fact the correct amount, nor shall such acceptance of payment be construed as a release of any claim the Village may have for additional sums payable.

(5)

The License fee of other fee payment is not a payment in lieu of any other tax. fee, or assessment, except as specifically provided in this section. By way of example and not limitation, the Village does not waive and may still require permit fees and business license taxes that may be established from time to time by the Village. Nothing in this section shall alter the effect of any election the Village has made with respect to permit fees and taxes pursuant to Florida Law.

(6)

Within 90 calendar days following the end of the calendar year, a Grantee shall submit a statement, attested to by a certified public accountant or chief financial officer, setting forth the Gross Revenues of the Cable System for the previous calendar year and describing what revenues were included and what revenues, if any, derived from the operation of the system, were excluded in the fee calculation, and any adjustments made to Gross Revenues.

(d)

Audit. To the extent not prohibited by applicable Law, the Village may, from time to time, but not more frequently than annually, upon reasonable notice, inspect and audit any and all books and records of a Grantee relevant to the determination of Gross Revenues and the computation of License fees due, and may recompute any amounts determined to be payable under the License, subject to the applicable statute of limitations. The cost of the audit will be borne by the Grantee if, as a result of the audit, the Village determines that the Grantee has underpaid the License fees owed in an amount equal to or exceeding five percent of the License fees actually paid. A Grantee shall make all books and records necessary to satisfactorily perform the audit readily available to the auditors in Miami-Dade County, for inspection and copying or in the alternative, the Grantee shall pay all costs necessary for the Village to perform the audit at a location outside of Miami-Dade County.

(e)

In the event that a License fee or other payment required by this section is not received by the Village on or before the due date set forth herein, or is underpaid, the Grantee will pay a late charge of 18 percent per annum of the amount of the unpaid or underpaid payment, provided, however, that such rate does not exceed the maximum amount allowed under state Law. Any interest and/or late charges paid by the Grantee is intended to be a charge incidental to the enforcing of a License within the meaning of §622 (g)(2)(D) of the Cable Act. 47 U.S.C. §542(g)(2)(D), and may not be deducted from the License fee imposed by this article or any License.

(f)

When a License terminates for any reason, the Grantee shall file with the Village, within 90 calendar days of the date on which its operations in the Village cease, a financial statement, certified by a certified public accountant or the Grantee's chief financial officer, showing the Gross Revenues received by the Grantee since the end of the previous fiscal year. Adjustments will be made at that time for License fees due to the date that the Grantee's operations ceased.

(g)

The payment of a fee pursuant to this section on Cable Service provided over a Cable System does not excuse an operator from any requirements that may exist to pay fees or other payments on services other than Cable Services provided over the facilities. As an example and not as a limitation of the foregoing, a cable operator that pays a License fee on revenues derived from the provision of Cable Services must pay the fees imposed upon providers of telecommunications services to the extent that it provides such services.

(Ord. No. 482, § 2, 3-18-03)