| | Bell Atlantic-Maryland Inc. v. Prince George's County, Md. (Site not responding. Last check: 2007-10-21) |
 | | Moreover, where the County deems it necessary, for public purposes, to utilize the public property and/or rights-of-way that are occupied by a franchisee," the ordinance authorizes the County to require the franchisee, at its expense, to "remove any facilities and equipment within sixty (60) days. |
 | | Bell Atlantic claims that the County is therefore preempted under state law from enacting any local regulations that purport to evaluate the technical, financial, or organizational qualifications of telecommunications companies seeking to do business in the county or that otherwise permit the County to deny telecommunications companies access to the County's public rights-of-way. |
 | | For even accepting the County's position that the County possessed the authority under state law to adopt its telecommunications franchise law, the ordinance still must be struck down on the grounds that it fatally conflicts with the terms and goals of the FTA. |
| lw.bna.com /lw/19990615/4187.htm (7624 words) |