[Added 6-21-1993 by Ord. No. 13-93]
There shall be a Cable Television Advisory Committee,
consisting of three members, who shall be residents of the Township
appointed by the Township Committee. The Cable Television Advisory
Committee shall be under the direction and control of the Township
Clerk who was appointed Municipal Complaint Officer pursuant to the
Cable Television Franchise Ordinance.
Each member of the Committee shall hold office
for a term of three years, except for the first appointments, which
shall be staggered as follows:
The Committee shall select its own Chairperson
who shall convene meetings as needed in accordance with the Open Public
Meetings Act, N.J.S.A. 10:4-6 et seq.
The Cable Television Advisory Committee shall,
under the direction and control of the Municipal Complaint Officer:
A.
Oversee programming on the public, education and government
access channel.
B.
Arbitrate disputes among persons requesting the use
of public, education and/or government access channel for initiation
of programming.
C.
Confer and consult with the cable television franchisee
with respect to public, education and government access channel programming.
D.
Serve as liaison between the Township government and
schools and liaison between the Township government and the cable
television franchisee.
E.
Receive, investigate and process subscriber complaints, resolve and settle complaints and disputes between such subscribers and the cable television franchisee and enforce decisions made by the Municipal Complaint Officer in accordance with N.J.S.A. 48:5A-26 and N.J.A.C. 14:17-7.1. In carrying out this mandate, the Committee shall have the power per the approval and under the direction of the Township Clerk and legislative authority of the Township Committee to establish procedures and methods by which such complaints shall be received, processed and acted upon pursuant to N.J.S.A. 48:5A-26 and which are necessary to effectuate the charge to promote and protect the public interest in cable television. All rules shall be issued by the Committee in accordance with the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Rules and Regulations, Section 76.1 et seq.; 47 CFR 419 et seq. (1972), as amended; the Federal Cable Communications Policy Act of 1984; the Cable Television Act, N.J.S.A. 48:5A-1 et seq.; the New Jersey Administrative Code, Chapter 14, Subchapters 17 and 18, and shall be approved by the Township Committee.
F.
Monitor cable television franchise compliance with
the provisions of local, state and federal law and any cable television
franchise ordinance.
G.
Meet with the cable television franchisee to address
customer service and all matters relative to cable television in the
Township.
H.
Conduct periodic evaluations, including subscriber
surveys, of the cable system with the cooperation of the franchisee
and, pursuant thereto, make recommendations through the Township Clerk
to the Township Committee for amendments to this article or to the
franchise ordinance.[1]
I.
Submit an annual report to the Township Clerk which
shall include, but need not be limited to, the following:
(1)
An account of franchise fees received and distributed.
(2)
A report on the cable television franchisee's compliance
with this article and any ordinance or agreement with the Township.
(3)
A summary of the cable television franchisee's responsiveness
to customer service problems and inquiries and their resolution. A
data log shall be maintained by the Committee listing every subscriber
complaint and the disposition thereof. Said log shall be documented
in a monthly summary report and available for inspection in the Township
Clerk's office.
(4)
A summary of the cable television franchisee's annual
report.
J.
Furnish such information and advice to the Township
Committee as may be required by this article or a the Township Committee
may from time to time request.
K.
Provide such other oversight of any cable television
franchise agreement as best assures continued compliance by all parties
to the agreement.
