                                 CODE OF VIRGINIA

ORGANIZATION OF LOCAL GOVERNMENT (§ 15.2-1500)

A. Every locality shall provide for all the governmental functions of the
locality, including, without limitation, the organization of all departments,
offices, boards, commissions and agencies of government, and the organizational
structure thereof, which are necessary and the employment of the officers and
other employees needed to carry out the functions of government.

B. Except as provided in &#xA7; 15.2-2160 or Article 5.1 (&#xA7; 56-484.7:1 et
seq.) of Chapter 15 of Title 56, no locality shall establish any department,
office, board, commission, agency or other governmental division or entity which
has authority to offer telecommunications equipment, infrastructure, other than
pole or tower attachments including antennas or conduit occupancy, or services,
other than intragovernmental radio dispatch or paging systems shared by
adjoining localities, for sale or lease to any person or entity other than (i)
such locality&#8217;s departments, offices, boards, commissions, agencies or
other governmental divisions or entities or (ii) an adjoining locality&#8217;s
departments, offices, boards, commissions, agencies or other governmental
divisions or entities, so long as any charges for such telecommunications
equipment, infrastructure and services do not exceed the cost to the providing
locality of providing such equipment, infrastructure or services. However, any
town which is located adjacent to Exit 17 on Interstate 81 and which offered
telecommunications services to the public on January 1, 1998, is hereby
authorized to continue to offer such telecommunications services, but shall not
acquire by eminent domain the facilities or other property of any telephone
company or cable operator. Any locality may sell any telecommunications
infrastructure, including related equipment, which such locality has
constructed, and such locality may receive from the purchaser or purchasers, as
full or partial consideration for the sale of such infrastructure,
communications services to be used solely for internal use of the locality. The
locality shall not be involved in any way in the promotion or marketing of
services provided by any purchaser.

C. A locality, electric commission or board, industrial development authority,
or economic development authority, may lease dark fiber. For purposes of this
section, &#8220;dark fiber&#8221; means fiber optic cable that is not lighted by
lasers or other electronic equipment. The locality, electric commission or
board, industrial development authority, or economic development authority,
shall not be involved in the promotion or marketing of the lessee as the
provider of the services.

HISTORY: 1997, c. 587; 1998, c. 906; 1999, c. 916; 2002, cc. 479, 489.