Island County approves Comcast cable renewal and new Ziply Fiber franchise after residents raise landline outage concerns

The Island County Board of Commissioners on Feb. 25 approved a 10-year renewal of Comcast's countywide cable franchise and granted a new telecommunications franchise to Ziply Fiber Northwest covering portions of Whidbey and Camano islands, after residents raised public-safety concerns about landline service during power outages.

The Comcast renewal (PW2023-0273) retains the company's countywide distribution and moves the agreement into the county's new 10-year template with an embedded extension option. "There is no change to their overall distribution system at this point in time," said Ed C. Wester, Island County engineer, during the public hearing. The Comcast cable franchise includes the county's standard 5% cable-revenue provision. The board voted to approve the franchise on a voice vote.

The board also approved a new Ziply Fiber franchise (PW2023-0141) limited to telecommunications/broadband services rather than cable. County staff and commissioners emphasized that federal and state rules treat broadband and cable differently; "47 U.S.C." was cited as the body of federal law that distinguishes regulatory…