Oroville Municipal Code Art. XXIX The Charter

Sec. 1. Franchises.

Every franchise or privilege to construct, maintain or operate any railroad, or other means of transportation in or over any street or highway, or to lay pipes or conduits, or erect poles or wires or other structures in or across any street or highway for the transmission of gas, electricity, or other commodity, or for the use of public property or places now or hereafter belonging to the city, shall be granted under and in pursuance of the provision of the general laws of the state relating to the granting of franchises; provided no new franchise or the renewal of an existing franchise shall be granted except upon condition that at least two percent of the gross annual receipts derived from the use of such franchise shall be paid to the city. In all cases the applicant for a franchise shall advance the cost of advertising the same.

Every such franchise shall require the grantee thereof to agree to a joint use of its property to others, wherever practicable, and nothing herein shall be construed as prohibiting the council from requiring other conditions not inconsistent with the constitution or general laws.

No franchise or privilege so granted shall be sold, leased, assigned or otherwise alienated without the express consent of the council given by ordinance and subject to the referendum.

Within six months after this Charter takes effect, every public utility and every owner of a public utility franchise, shall file with the city clerk, certified copies of all the franchises owned or claimed, or under which any such utility is operated.

The city shall compile and maintain a public record of all public utility franchises and of all public utility fixtures in the streets of the City of Oroville.