Act Committee schedules public hearing on Comcast franchise performance review

The Westchester Act Committee on Sept. 9 moved to schedule a public hearing to review Comcast's past performance under its franchise agreement as part of a multi-municipality negotiation process.

Sean, a borough staff member, explained the legal foundation for the hearing and future negotiations. "According to federal and state legislation, when a, company like Comcast or Verizon wants to use public rights of way to distribute its information... it has to pay, rent to do that," he said, describing the franchise fee framework and the borough's ability to negotiate customer service standards, reporting requirements and protections for the public rights-of-way.

Sean said the borough is negotiating as part of a Chester County consortium that now includes about 14 municipalities. He said a public hearing is a required step in the franchise-review process and would allow residents to comment on Comcast's performance; the formal renewal agreement is expected later in the negotiation process and could take several months.

The committee moved to schedule a hearing (the motion was presented at the Sept. 9 meeting). Committee discussion focused on ensuring the hearing covered customer service standards, system upgrades, rights-of-way protection and reporting requirements.

Ending: The hearing scheduling moves the borough forward in the franchise review and negotiation process; staff said the formal renewal agreement will be developed through ongoing consortium negotiations and further public engagement.