The so-called “One Touch Make Ready” legislation – a bill that Google says will ease and quicken the roll out of its fiber network in the Music City – and the bill which would drastically reduce the penalty for possession of small amounts of marijuana were both met with lengthy debate and ultimately both passed overwhelmingly on second reading.
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Tuesday night was a good one for Google Fiber in Nashville, but not so much for Comcast and AT&T. If just one council member had flipped positions to support the deferral, the bill would have stalled for three months.
AT&T has already said it would likely sue the city if it implements the new rule. The vote to defeat the deferral occurred after an effort by Councilman Jeremy Elrod to table Mendes’ motion failed by a 20-19 vote.
One Touch Make Ready comes with an amendment, though, that will hold contractors accountable if private or public property is damaged during work on utility poles.
Motion to table the deferral of the One Touch Made Ready bill, which would have blocked a vote on the bill’s deferral. The proposal is set for a second vote on Tuesday night.
“The second-reading vote does not guarantee the policy will pass on its third and final reading, but the second vote is generally considered the most critical in front of Nashville Metro Council”, the Nashville Business Journal wrote. State Sen. Brain Kelsey, the chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, was spotted at Council watching the discussion and vote on the ordinance, leading to speculation on Twitter as to what the Legislature may have planned if the measures pass in both cities.
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In other council action, a proposal by the mayor’s office to spend $1 million on protective ballistic vests for Metro Nashville Police officers was approved unanimously. A lawsuit was filed in Louisville, Ky., by AT&T in opposition to a similar ordinance.
