Town of Penfield, NY Article III Regulation of Franchise

§ 101-22 Regulatory authority.

A. Exercise appropriate regulatory. The Town shall exercise appropriate regulatory authority under the provisions of this chapter and applicable law. This authority shall be vested in the Town Board and administered through the Town Administrator or his/her designee to provide day-to-day administration and enforcement of the provisions of this chapter and any franchise granted under this chapter, and to carry out the Town's responsibilities.

B. Compliance with all laws. The grantee shall at all times comply with all laws and regulations of the local, state and federal government.

C. Plenary authority. The Town reserves the right to exercise the maximum plenary authority.

§ 101-23 Supervision of franchise.

A. The Town shall exercise all regulatory responsibility as permitted under current federal, state and local regulations, including, but not limited to:

(1) Administration and enforcement of the provisions of this chapter and any franchise granted under this chapter.

(2) Award renewal, an extension or terminate a franchise pursuant to the provisions of this chapter, the franchise and other applicable law.

(3) Consent prior to sale or transfer of any franchise granted under this chapter.

(4) The performance of grantee pursuant to the terms of this chapter and the franchise.

(5) Applicable rate regulation.

B. The Town also reserves the right to perform the following functions:

(1) Develop objective and coordinate activities related to the operation of public, educational and government access cable/video programming services.

(2) Coordinate plans for expansion, interconnection and growth of cable/video programming services.

(3) Formulate and recommend long-range telecommunications policy for the Town, and determine the Town's view of the future cable-related needs and interests of the community.

(4) Provide the administrative effort necessary to conduct periodic grantee performance evaluations, and any other activities required for the administration of the franchise.

(5) Monitor the grantee's process for handling citizen complaints and periodically inspect and analyze the record related to such complaints.

(6) Receive applications for rate increases if applicable and provide staff assistance in the analysis and recommendations thereto.

(7) Monitor the grantee's adherence to operational standards, service requirements and line extension policies.

(8) Ensure compliance with applicable laws and ordinances.

(9) Arrange tests and analysis of equipment and performance, as needed to ensure compliance with this chapter and the franchise.

(10) Ensure cable/video programming services continuity.

(11) Receive for examination all data and reports required by this chapter.

§ 101-24 Rates and charges.

A. Rate schedule required. The grantee shall file with the Town schedules that describe all services offered, all rates and charges of any kind, and all terms and conditions relating thereto. No rates or charges shall be effective except as they appear on a schedule so filed. The grantee shall notify subscribers in writing by mail at least 30 days prior to the implementation of any change in services offered, rates charged or terms and conditions related thereto.

B. Uniform rates required. The grantee shall establish rates that are uniform to all subscribers in the franchise area for all services. Nothing contained in this section shall prohibit the grantee from offering discounts to commercial and multiple-family dwelling subscribers billed on a bulk basis, promotional discounts or reduced installation rates for subscribers who have multiple services. The grantee shall send a complete list of its charges and rates for all tiers and services annually to all subscribers.

C. Authorization to regulate rates. The Town shall have the right to exercise rate regulation to the full extent authorized by federal, state or local law or regulation, or to refrain from exercising such regulation for any period of time, at the sole discretion of the Town.

D. FCC rate-making rules. If and when exercising rate regulation, the Town shall exercise its regulatory authority consistent with the Federal Communication Commission's (FCC) rate regulation rules.

E. Exclusive programming agreements prohibited. Unless approved by the Town and to the extent consistent with federal law, a grantee must not, in its rates or charges, or in the availability of the services or facilities of its system, or in any other respect, grant undue preferences or advantages to any subscriber or potential subscriber, or to any user or potential user, nor subject any of these persons to any undue prejudice or any disadvantage.

F. Service discrimination. A grantee must not deny, delay, or otherwise discriminate against subscribers or users on the basis of age, race, religion, color, sex, sexual orientation, handicap, national origin, or marital status, except for a discount of 40% to elderly and handicapped residents whose eligibility is certified by the Town and whose income falls below the federal income poverty level established for Monroe County, New York.

§ 101-25 Performance evaluation.

A. Performance evaluation. At its discretion, the Town shall conduct performance evaluations of the grantee once every five years. All such evaluation sessions shall be open to the public.

B. Special session authorized. Special evaluation sessions regarding the grantee's performance pursuant to this chapter, franchise and the public may be held at any time during the term of the franchise at the request of the Town.

C. Public notice required. All grantee evaluation sessions shall be open to the public and announced in a newspaper of general circulation in accordance with public notice.

D. Topics. Topics which may be discussed at any scheduled or special evaluation session may include, but not be limited to, system performance and construction, grantee compliance with this chapter and the franchise, customer service and complaint response, subscriber privacy, services provided, programming offered, service rate structures, franchise fees, penalties, free or discounted services, applications of new technologies, judicial and FCC filings, and cable/video system extensions.

E. Grantee cooperation required. During the review and evaluation by the Town, the grantee shall fully cooperate with the Town and shall provide such information and documents as the Town may need to reasonably perform its review.

§ 101-26 Penalties for offenses.

A. Penalties. In addition to any other remedies provided for in this chapter or otherwise available by law, the Town shall have the power to impose monetary penalties in the event a grantee violates any provision of this chapter, a franchise, or any rule or regulation adopted hereunder and shall conform to the following principles:

(1) Penalties shall exceed the financial benefits to a grantee delaying or failing to comply with the applicable requirement;

(2) Even where such benefits are not easily discernible, the penalties shall be large enough to have a significant deterrent effect on a grantee; and

(3) Penalties shall be sufficient to protect the Town and other affected parties against loss of revenues resulting from violations.

B. Other monetary sanctions. A franchise shall also provide for fines, liquidated damages and other monetary sanctions, the amounts of which shall also reflect the foregoing principles.

C. Private suit against grantee. Any person or organization adversely affected by a violation, or by a pattern and practice of violations, shall have the right to sue a grantee in a court of competent jurisdiction for damages and for injunctive and other relief to require enforcement of the franchise. Organizations shall be entitled to sue on behalf of themselves or their members. The remedy herein provided shall be in addition to any remedies provided by law. Except in emergency situations in which immediate relief is required, private litigants shall notify the Town Attorney not fewer than 10 days prior to filing suit. However, a suit by the Town shall not preempt the private litigant's right to proceed.