No transfer shall occur without prior approval of the Town; provided,
however, that no such approval shall be required for transfers resulting from
the transfer of ownership interests between existing holders of ownership
interests in a grantee, where such holders were also holders of ownership
interests in the grantee at the time of the original grant of the franchise
to the grantee.
An application for a transfer shall provide complete information on the proposed transaction, including details on the legal, financial, technical, and other qualifications of the transferee and on the potential impact of the transfer on subscriber rates and service. At a minimum, the information required under federal law and in § 46-15A to D, I to K, M and O of this chapter shall be provided with respect to the proposed transferee.
A.
In making a determination as to whether to grant, deny,
or grant subject to conditions an application for a transfer of a franchise,
the Town shall not unreasonably withhold its consent but shall first consider:
(1)
The legal, financial, and technical qualifications of
the transferee to operate the system;
(2)
Whether the incumbent cable operator is in compliance
with its franchise agreement and this chapter and, if not, the proposed transferee
owns or controls any other cable system in the Town, or whether operation
by the transferee may eliminate or reduce competition in the delivery of cable
service in the Town;
(3)
Whether the transferee owns or controls any other cable
system in the Town, or whether operation by the transferee may eliminate or
reduce competition in the delivery of cable service in the Town; and
(4)
Whether operation by the transferee or approval of the
transfer would adversely affect subscribers, the Town's interest under this
chapter, the franchise agreement, or other applicable law or make it less
likely that the future cable-related needs and interests of the community
would be satisfied at a reasonable cost.
B.
The Town reserves the right to review the purchase price
of any transfer or assignment of a cable system. To the extent permitted by
applicable law, any negotiated sale value which the Town deems unreasonable
will not be considered in the rate base for any subsequent request for rate
increases.
No application for a transfer of a franchise shall be granted unless
the transferee agrees in writing that it will abide by and accept all terms
of this chapter and the franchise agreement and that it will assume the obligations,
liabilities, and responsibility for all acts and omissions, known and unknown,
of the previous grantee under this chapter and the franchise agreement for
all purposes, including renewal, unless the Town, in its sole discretion,
expressly waives this requirement in whole or in part.
Approval by the Town of a transfer of a franchise shall not constitute
a waiver or release of any of the rights of the Town under this chapter or
a franchise agreement, whether arising before or after the date of the transfer.
As a condition of considering a transfer, the Town may impose a fee
on the transferee to cover its estimated out-of-pocket expenses in considering
the application for transfer of a franchise. Any amount collected in excess
of the estimated amount shall be returned to the transferee.
