Oregon proposes fees of up to nearly $5 million for undersea cables using its coastal seabed, with payments benefiting public schools

After decades of charging only a one-time fee for undersea cables along its coast, the Oregon Department of State Lands have recently begun discussing a new opportunity for tax revenue. Now, the state is set to charge cable operators a one-time fee for cable installations within three miles of its coastline and will be using that money to benefit public schools.The currently existing fee structure dates back to about 25 years ago in 2001, and is a simple $5,000 application fee. While the new pricing is still undergoing discussion, the simplified version is $3 per linear foot of cable laid within the 3 miles of coastal areas under the state's jurisdiction. This is in addition to $7 per section of bore pipe, the protective structure that covers the portion closest to the shore.Oregon's Department of State Lands (DSL) estimates that on a 20-year lease, this would bring in millions per undersea cable over that time span. That could bring in more than $1 million per new cable laid, according to Dana Hicks, a planning and policy manager at the department. The DSL did some rough math with Amazon's Bitfrost cable, and came up with a grand total of $1,450,380 for two decades, paid in one lu...