Bridal Delabrio, rail bureau director, told the Senate Transportation committee on Jan. 7 that a previously posted broadband revenue number in the bureau's annual report was incorrect and that she provided an updated spreadsheet to the committee.

"The $148,003.11 is incorrect," Delabrio said, apologizing for a mapping and summation error in the original file. She said the spreadsheet contains additional broadband revenue that was not included in the earlier total; the corrected aggregate was not specified verbatim in the transcript provided to the committee.

The committee used the hearing to press the bureau on how it classifies and charges for uses of rail right-of-way. Delabrio said the agency separates revenue into categories — wired telephone, broadband and 'other' — and that many providers who historically appeared under telephone now appear under broadband because companies offer bundled services.

"If they do both, they're in the broadband column," Delabrio said, describing how the shift changed category totals.

Delabrio told members that fees assessed to utilities such as electrical and telephone companies have not been updated in roughly two decades; she said that utility rates date to about 2004. By contrast, she said the agency's appraisal section reviewed and updated per‑square‑foot land‑lease fees in 2024.

Committee members asked for documentary background about the 2004 rate authority and any administrative directives that have guided the agency’s long practice of keeping some fees low to encourage broadband expansion. "Any information about the history of this that you can get the committee would be good," one committee member said.

Delabrio said she has not been directed by agency leadership to increase utility rates and that state policy in recent years has emphasized expanding broadband rather than raising fees that might create barriers for providers. She agreed to provide the committee with the agency rate sheet (posted on the rail property management page), any available history of the 2004 rates, and comparative data showing what private railroads and other states charge.

The committee also confirmed that the same rate sheet applies to both active railroad corridors and rail‑trail properties.

Next steps: Delabrio will provide the link to the rate sheet, search for documentation on the 2004 rate authority or directives, and gather benchmark comparisons with private carriers and other states to inform whether a formal review of utility lease rates is warranted.