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HomeMy WebLinkAbout12365RESOLUTION NO. 12365 A RESOLUTION COMMENCING THE ASCERTAINMENT PHASE CONCERNING RENEWAL OF THE CABLE TELE- VISION FRANCHISE BEING OPERATED BY COMCAST OF COLORADO IV, LLC, SOLICITING PUBLIC COMMENT, AND SCHEDULING AN INITIAL PUBLIC HEARING FOR THE PURPOSES OF IDENTIFYING THE CITY OF PUEBLO'S FUTURE CABLE-RELATED COMMUNITY NEEDS AND INTERESTS AND REVIEWING THE CABLE OPERATOR'S PAST PERFORMANCE UNDER THE FRANCHISE WHEREAS, Comcast of Colorado IV, LLC (hereinafter referred to as "Comcast") is the franchisee under that certain cable television franchise granted by the City Council of Pueblo on November 23, 2009 by Ordinance No. 8109, and Comcast is the current operator of that franchise; and WHEREAS, the cable television franchise being operated by Comcast is due to expire on December 22, 2014; and WHEREAS, by letter to the City of Pueblo received on or about January 25, 2012, Comcast has requested commencement of franchise renewal procedures pursuant to Section 626 of the Cable Communications Policy Act of 1984 ("Cable Act"546; and), 47 USC § WHEREAS, for the benefit of the residents of Pueblo, it is desirable that the City commence the formal franchise renewal process under Section 626 of the Cable Act; NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF PUEBLO, that: SECTION 1. The City Council hereby initiates the commencement of 626 of the Cable Act which shall affordthe first phase of a proceeding under § the public within the jurisdictional authority of the City of Pueblo appropriate notice and participation for the purpose of identifying future cable-related community needs and interests and reviewing the performance of the cable operator under the franchise during the current franchise term. All notices, publications, correspondence and filings associated with hearings in connection with this proceeding shall be filed in the office of the City Clerk and identified by a caption styled as follows: BEFORE THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PUEBLO, COLORADO IN RE THE CABLE TELEVISION FRANCHISE RENEWAL MATTER CONCERNING COMCAST OF COLORADO, IV, LLC, FRANCHISE EXPIRING DECEMBER 22, 2014 - ASCERTAINMENT PHASE ; provided, however, that all public comments and information filed in the office of the City Clerk relating to this proceeding will be considered by City Council regardless of form. The first phase of the proceeding is referred to as the "Ascertainment Phase," and shall commence on the date of adoption of this Resolution, shall continue for so long as necessary or desirable, and shall terminate only upon adoption by Council of a resolution closing the proceeding and adopting findings. SECTION 2. The City Clerk is directed to publish public notice of the commencement of the Ascertainment Phase which shall solicit written public comment regarding the community's future cable-related needs and interests and the cable operator's past performance and directing that all comments be filed in the office of the City Clerk. Comment shall be solicited concerning: (a) the duration of the franchise term; (b) public, educational and governmental access channels, studios and equipment; (c) desired system rebuild and upgrades; (d) expanded channel capacity; (e) consumer complaints and issues; (f) customer service; (g) terms set forth in take-it-or-leave-it subscriber agreements; (h) rates for installation, reconnection, bad checks, changes in level of service, additional outlets, and remote control devices; (i) telephone responsiveness to outages, billing problems or other customer issues; (j) customer rights; (k) implementation of an institutional network; (l) service area and expansion thereof; (m) construction deadlines for system upgrades; (n) line extension policies; (o) free service to public entities in the public interest; (p) leased access channels; (q) franchise fees payable to City; (r) removal of obsolete facilities, (s) ownership of cable in dwellings; (t) easement and right of way usage; (u) impact on public rights-of-way; (v) construction requirements, excavation permits, excavation fees and notice of construction to residents; (w) undergrounding of cable wires and facilities; (x) construction timetable for rebuilds and upgrades; (y) maintenance of local offices; (z) relocation of system or portions thereof; (aa) emergency notification; (bb) termination of franchise; (cc) "favored nation" provisions for benefit of City of Pueblo and its residents; (dd) emergency uses of cable system; (ee) as-built drawings and recordkeeping; (ff) pole and conduit sharing provisions; and any other matter pertinent to a cable television franchise which is or may be appropriate for a renewal franchise, regardless of whether the matter is addressed in the current franchise. SECTION 3. rd A public hearing is hereby scheduled before the City Council on the 23 day of July, 2012 in the City Council Chambers, Interim City Hall, 301 W. B Street, Pueblo, Colorado, commencing at 7:00 o'clock p.m., or as soon thereafter as the business of Council permits, to receive public comment and information regarding the community's future cable needs and interests and the cable operator's past performance, including all matters identified in Section 2 of this Resolution. Notice of the hearing shall be published by the City Clerk at least once in the Pueblo Chieftain no later than thirty (30) days before the hearing. The City Clerk shall also provide a copy of the notice to Comcast and request that such notice or a summary thereof be included in subscriber billings during the thirty (30) day period prior to the hearing. The City Manager is hereby directed to schedule announcements of the date, time, purpose and location of such hearing on the governmental access channel of the Comcast cable system at various times during the thirty-day period prior to the hearing. Council may continue the hearing from time to time, and may hold such additional hearings during the Ascertainment Phase of this proceeding as Council may deem appropriate. SECTION 4. This Resolution shall become effective upon approval and adoption by City Council. INTRODUCED: April 9, 2012 BY: Leroy Garcia COUNCIL PERSON Background Paper for Proposed RESOLUTION DATE: April 9, 2012 AGENDA ITEM # M-14 DEPARTMENT: Law Department Thomas J. Florczak, City Attorney TITLE A RESOLUTION COMMENCING THE ASCERTAINMENT PHASE CONCERNING RENEWAL OF THE CABLE TELEVISION FRANCHISE BEING OPERATED BY COMCAST OF COLORADO IV, LLC, SOLICITING PUBLIC COMMENT, AND SCHEDULING AN INITIAL PUBLIC HEARING FOR THE PURPOSES OF IDENTIFYING THE CITY OF PUEBLO'S FUTURE CABLE-RELATED COMMUNITY NEEDS AND INTERESTS AND REVIEWING THE CABLE OPERATOR'S PAST PERFORMANCE UNDER THE FRANCHISE ISSUE Should the City Council commence renewal procedures under the federal Cable Act with respect to Comcast's Cable-TV franchise? RECOMMENDATION Approval of the Resolution. BACKGROUND The current cable television franchise being operated by Comcast of Colorado IV, LLC ("Comcast") is due to expire on December 22, 2014. The City received a letter on January 25, 2012 from Comcast requesting the commencement of the franchise renewal procedures pursuant to Section 626 of the Cable Communications Policy Act of 1984. This Resolution constitutes the City Council initiation of the commencement of the first phase of a proceeding under Section 626 of the Cable Act. This phase will afford the public within the City of Pueblo the ability to participate in identifying future cable-related community needs and interests, and schedules a first public hearing for July 23, 2012. FINANCIAL IMPACT None.