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FEDERAL UPDATE from page 4 . . . . . . . . position in the 110th Congress, and Congressman John Doolittle (Granite Bay) is expected to remain on the Committee. Several Californians have also been selected to serve on the Democratic Steering Committee, including Representatives George Miller, who will serve as the committee's policy co-chair, Hilda Solis (EI Monte), who will serve as the committee's vice chair, Loretta Sanchez (Garden Grove), Mike Thompson (Napa), Dennis Cardoza (Merced) and Doris Matsui (Sacramento). Incom- ing Majority Whip James Clyburn (D-SC) has also selected California Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-Los Angeles) to join his Whip opera- tion. Other Californians with new committee as- signments include Representatives Jane Harman (D-EI Segundo) and Grace NapoUtano {D-Santa Fe Springs}. Congresswoman Harman will leave her post as the ranking member on the House Permanent Select Committee on I ntelligence to join the Energy and Commerce Committee, and Congresswoman Napolitano will become the chair of the Resources Committee's Water and Power Subcommittee and gain a seat on the Transporta- tion and Infrastructure Committee. Current House Administration Committee Ranking Member Juanita Millender-McDonald (D- Torrance) is expected to become the chair of the committee when Congress reconvenes in January. ........................ FCC from page 1 FCC Commission Chairman Kevin J. Martin has scheduled a vote at or before the FCC's December 20 meeting to adopt new rules governing local cable franchising. The League submitted comments to the notice this past February, as did several national local government organizations and various municipali- ties nationwide. The FCC sought information about whether the current local cable franchising process .unreasonably impedes' the cable competition and broadband deployment goals of the FCC, and if so, what it should do to address the problem. 8A A letter to the FCC from the U.S. Conference ~age 27 Mayors, National Association of Counties, National league of Cities, and National Association of Telecommunications Officers and Advisors chal- lenging the FCC's authority to pre-empt local video (cable) franchising authority is available at www.cacities erg/telecom. The letter highlights the following key points: · Title VI of the Communications Act does not provide sufficient, if any, legal authority for the commission to take action in changing the way cable franchises are granted without explicit con- gressional approval. The commission does not have the authority to dictate the terms and condi- tions of franchises given by local franchising authorities. · Title VI does not permit a fixed deadline on local franchise authority action. A fixed deadline would provide no incentive for new providers to work toward a local franchise agreement because they would have access to the public right of way without local oversight If they simply wait out the timeframes. · The order would require the cost of any in- kind benefits, such as I-Nets, as well as any mon- etary payments other than the franchise fee, to be offset against the 5 percent franchise fee. This would be a significant net fiscal loss to the local franchising authority. The "franchise fee" definition in the Cable Act does not include in-kind services or facilities, and it also does not include monetary payments for PEG capital facilities and equipment (including I-Net facilities} or monetary payments incidental to the award or enforcement of the franchise. The "build-out" requirements in the draft order do not protect the interests of all customers in a local franchising area. Competition is good when everyone can benefit, not just a privileged few. Local franchising authorities have effectively managed build-out in their respective jurisdictions without hindering the deployment of broadband services. The League will continue to monitor the situa- tion in Washington D.C. and will provide more information as soon as it is available. Visit the League's Official Webslte-..www.caclties.org PRIORITY FOCUS. PAGE 5 December 15, 2006 . Issue #48