Localities Flood FCC With Opposition to LFA FNPRM
Localities and their allies inundated the FCC with filings opposing a Further NPRM proposing treating cable operators' in-kind contributions required by local franchise authorities -- such as public, educational and government channel transmission -- as franchise fees (see 1811070045). Wednesday was the comments deadline. The opposition hadn't swayed the agency's GOP commissioners yet, said a cable lawyer with LFA experience. It's unclear if the additional comments might sway them.
Sign up for a free preview to unlock the rest of this article
If your job depends on informed compliance, you need International Trade Today. Delivered every business day and available any time online, only International Trade Today helps you stay current on the increasingly complex international trade regulatory environment.
The NPRM "is a gross overreach into and preemption of signed agreements" between cable operators and LFAs, and cable companies knowingly took part in agreement negotiations and adoptions, Georgia Municipal Association Executive Director Larry Hanson said in a docket 05-311 posting Tuesday. He said if the FCC "wishes to level the playing field," it should rescind or modify September's declaratory ruling and order designed to speed 5G small-cell deployment (see 1809260029) to not favor the wireless industry over cable providers.
The LFA action could have "a direct and devastating effect" on Maine's 72 PEG outlets by axing a main source of funding, Community TV Association of Maine President Sally Hebert said. University of Hawaii predicted "a severe, adverse impact" to its Institutional Network that long term could mean lesser service in what have been high-cost service areas like neighbor islands. Vermont State Rep. Brian Savage (R) said the Cable Act's PEG provisions were aimed at serving community needs and enhancing local voices, and a too-broad definition of franchise fee that includes in-kind support would "shift the fair balance" between LFAs and cable operators and could result in defunded PEG access.
The League of Wisconsin Municipalities and Wisconsin Community Media said the only support for PEG channels in the state comes from franchise fees. They said PEG programmers there "will not survive further reductions," especially since municipalities can't use property taxes or other revenue sources to offset franchise fee revenue losses because of limits on property tax growth. The Alabama League of Municipalities also raised red flags. The FCC didn't comment.
Public Knowledge said since the FCC doesn't have authority over information services, it lacks ability to pre-empt state and local regulation. The International Municipal Lawyers Association (IMLA) said the FCC's tentative conclusion that cable-related in-kind contributions are franchise fees goes against congressional intent in the Cable Act, which allowed or even required LFAs to impose cable-related obligations in franchises. IMLA said redefinition of franchise fee seems to be an FCC attempt to regulate the amount of the fee itself and how it's paid, which isn't power it has. A cable lawyer said the industry believes the intent of franchise fees was to cover the cost of localities monitoring and regulating cable operators -- work that's rarely done anymore.