The company shall, upon payment to the company of the charges
provided in its tariffs or their equivalent, place all newly constructed
electrical distribution lines in newly developed areas of the City
underground in accordance with applicable laws, regulations and orders.
(a)
Underground
Fund.
The company shall budget and allocate an annual
amount, equivalent to one percent of the preceding year’s electric
gross revenues (the “fund”), for the purpose of undergrounding
existing overhead distribution facilities in the City, as may be requested
by the City designee.
(b)
Unexpended
Portion and Advances.
Any unexpended portion of the fund
shall be carried over to succeeding years and, in addition, upon request
by the City, the company agrees to advance and expend amounts anticipated
to be available under the preceding paragraph for up to three years
in advance. Any amounts so advanced shall be credited against amounts
to be expended in succeeding years. Any funds left accumulated under
any prior franchise shall be carried over to this franchise. The City
shall have no vested interest in monies allocated to the fund and
any monies in the fund not expended at the expiration or termination
of this franchise shall remain the property of the company. At the
expiration or termination of this franchise, the company shall not
be required to underground any existing overhead facilities under
this article, but may do so in its sole discretion.
(c)
System-wide
Undergrounding.
If, during the term of this franchise,
the company should receive authority from the PUC to undertake a system-wide
program or programs of undergrounding its electric distribution facilities,
the company will budget and allocate to the program of undergrounding
in the City such amount as may be determined and approved by the PUC,
but in no case shall such amount be less than the one percent of annual
electric gross revenues provided above.
(d)
City
Requirement To Underground.
In addition to the provisions
of this article, the City may require any above ground company facilities
to be moved underground at the City’s expense.
Upon receipt of a written request from the City, the company
shall, to the extent of monies available in the fund, and as otherwise
provided herein, underground company facilities pursuant to the provisions
of this article, in accordance with the procedures set forth in this
section.
(a)
Estimates.
Promptly upon receipt of an undergrounding request from the
City and the supporting documentation necessary for the company to
design the undergrounding project, the company shall prepare a detailed,
good faith cost estimate of the anticipated actual cost of the requested
project for the City to review and, if acceptable to the City, the
City will issue a project authorization. At the City’s request,
the company will provide all documentation which forms the basis of
the estimate. The company will not proceed with any requested project
until the City has provided a written acceptance of the company estimate.
(b)
Performance.
The company shall complete each undergrounding project requested
by the City within a reasonable time, not to exceed 240 days from
the later of the date upon which the City designee makes a written
request or the date the City provides to the company all supporting
documentation. The company shall have 120 days after receiving the
City’s written request to design project plans, prepare the
good faith estimate, and transmit same to the City designee for review.
If City approval of the plans and estimate has not been granted, the
company’s good faith estimate will be void 60 days after delivery
of the plans and estimate to the City designee. If the plans and estimate
are approved by the City, the company shall have 120 days from the
date of the City designee’s authorization of the underground
project, plus any of the 120 unused days in preparing the good faith
estimate to complete the project. At the company’s sole discretion,
if the good faith estimate has expired because the City designee has
not approved the same within 60 days, the company may extend the good
faith estimate or prepare a new estimate using current prices. The
company shall be entitled to an extension of time to complete each
undergrounding project where the company’s performance was delayed
due to a force majeure condition. Upon written request of the company,
the City may also grant the company reasonable extensions of time
for good cause shown and the City shall not unreasonably withhold
any such extension.
(c)
City
Revision of Supporting Documentation.
Any revision by
the City of supporting documentation provided to the company that
causes the company to substantially redesign and/or change its plans
regarding an undergrounding project shall be deemed good cause for
a reasonable extension of time to complete the undergrounding project
under the franchise.
(d)
Completion/Restoration.
Each such undergrounding project shall be complete only when
the company actually undergrounds the designated company facilities,
restores the undergrounding site in accordance with Section 6.7 of
this franchise, or as otherwise agreed with the City, and removes
from the site or properly abandons on site any unused facilities,
equipment, material and other impediments.
(e)
Report
of Actual Costs.
Upon completion of each undergrounding
project, the company shall submit to the City a detailed report of
the company’s actual cost to complete the project and the company
shall reconcile this total actual cost with the accepted cost estimate.
The report shall be provided within 120 days after completion of the
project and written request from the City.
(f)
Audit
of Underground Projects.
The City may require that the
company undertake an independent audit of up to two undergrounding
projects in any calendar year. The cost of any such independent audit
shall reduce the amount of the fund. The company shall cooperate fully
with any audit and the independent auditor shall prepare and provide
to the City and the company a final audit report showing the actual
costs associated with completion of the project. If a project audit
is required by the City, only those actual project costs confirmed
and verified by the independent auditor as reasonable and necessary
to complete the project shall be charged against the fund balance.
Upon written request, every three years commencing at the end
of the third year of this franchise, the company shall cause an independent
auditor to investigate and determine the correctness of the charges
to the underground fund. Such audits shall be limited to the previous
three calendar years. The independent auditor shall provide a written
report containing its findings to the City and the company. The company
shall reconcile the fund consistent with the findings contained in
the independent auditor’s written report. The company shall
pay the costs of the audit and investigation.
When undertaking an undergrounding project the City and the
company shall coordinate with other utilities or companies that have
their facilities above ground to attempt to have all facilities undergrounded
as part of the same project. When other utilities or companies are
placing their facilities underground, to the extent the company has
received prior written notification, the company shall cooperate with
these utilities and companies and undertake to underground company
facilities as part of the same project where financially, technically
and operationally feasible. The company shall not be required to pay
for the cost of undergrounding the facilities of other companies or
the City.
The City and the company shall mutually plan in advance the
scheduling of undergrounding projects to be undertaken according to
this article as a part of the review and planning for other City and
company construction projects. The City and the company agree to meet,
as required, to review the progress of the current undergrounding
projects and to review planned future undergrounding projects. The
purpose of such meetings shall be to further cooperation between the
City and the company in order to achieve the orderly undergrounding
of company facilities. Representatives of both the City and the company
shall meet periodically to review the company’s undergrounding
of company facilities and at such meetings shall review:
