AgdaPkt 2006-05-08 - Laserfiche WebLink

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There may be some situations where a city and a new entrant or and incumbent provider may want to negotiate an issue where it is in the mutual interest of both to do so. We recommend that any law also allow local franchise negotiations, if/when both parties aaree to neaotiations. Franchises/Franchise Fees. The League recommends that a definition of "gross revenues" upon which franchise fees are calculated be written as broadly as possible. Since the start of the Levine working groups, all interested parties have agreed that cities should remain whole financially under any new franchise system. Federal law has enforcement provisions that allow franchising agencies to not renew a franchise if a cable operator is out of compliance with the terms of the franchise. The League requests that AB 2987 be amended to permit this same authority locally. Local franchise law also typically includes provisions to deal with problems of late payments by a provider, induding interest and late payment charges. Provisions should be included in AB 2897 to cover these operational issues. Further, language in AB 2987 implies that the franchise fee is imposed on and paid by the subscriber rather than the company holding the franchise. Under current cable franchises the cable operator pays the franchise fee, this bill should be corrected to ensure that the new entrant is also responsible for paying the franchise fee. Preemption of Local Tax Authority. The language of 53085.4(c) is too broad and preempts local tax and fee authority. In its current version the bill preempts local taxes and fees such as encroachment and fees, and business license taxes. This should be corrected. Right of Way Management. There are two key issues that involve management of the public right of way. The first is the stated intent of at least one "new entrant" to place large boxes (5 feet to 6 feet tall with a 3-foot to 4-foot square base) in the public right of way. There needs to be some authority to deal with the aesthetics of this large "lawn furniture." Second, current right of way management under local franchises contains a set of procedural rules to follow when issues arise during the deployment of communications infrastructure. Procedural rules include who is responsible when a water main is accidentally broken, who is responsible for clean up and removal of graffiti and other safety or repair issues. Local franchises include procedures with several models to use to cover these incidents and therefore appropriate language should be amended into the bill. Consumer Protection/Customer Service. There is considerable interest among cities to continue as the enforcement agency for consumer protection and customer service standards. From the perspective of the consumer it would make more sense to place this authority at the local level than with a state agency or department or certainly the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). Under current law, cities have the option to assume the authority to enforce consumer protection and customer service standards. AB 2987 should be amended to permit those cities with the desire and experience to assume this enforcement authority. Federal law now permits local agencies to enforce the FCC adopted customer service standards and also allows the flexibility to enact local customer service standards in addition to the FCC standards. AB 2987 should be amended to permit this local option and flexibility using FCC standards as a base for customer service and consumer protection. Emergency Notification. Current federal law requires cable operators to cooperate with the federal Emergency Alert System. This requirement does not cover local emergencies. As a result, many local franchises now require the cable operator to provide an emergency notification system. This is the text "crawler" at the bottom of the screen on every channel to warn local residents. AB 2987 should be amended to require the use of this notification system by all video service providers. Outstanding Issues for Franchise Law Reform 3