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Board approves Comcast franchise renewal; PEG fee lowered to 2.5% amid industry decline
Summary
The board approved the Mount Hood Cable Regulatory Commission’s recommended franchise agreement renewal with Comcast, which sets a 2.5% PEG-related franchise fee and updates franchise terms as cable subscribership declines and technology changes.
The Multnomah County Board of Commissioners approved a franchise renewal for Comcast on March 15, adopting the agreement recommended by the Mount Hood Cable Regulatory Commission (MHCRC). The agreement reduces the PEG (public, education and government) percentage from 3% to 2.5% of gross revenues for the MHCRC district and updates provisions to align with federal and state law.
Andrew Spear, staff to the Mount Hood commission and a planner in the City of Portland’s Bureau of Planning and Sustainability, walked the board through the long negotiation process. Spear summarized the landscape for cable revenues and subscribers and said the commission secured movement from Comcast after extended negotiation: “I personally feel very excited, but was able to get, that movement from Comcast,” he said, describing progress from earlier offers Comcast had made.
Spear and commission counsel said cable subscribership and franchise revenues have declined substantially over the last decade. The presentation showed a fall from roughly 80,000 Comcast subscribers in the MHCRC jurisdiction in 2011 to about 70,000 at the time of the 2024 calendar-year report. Spear said the decline reduces negotiating leverage for jurisdictions and informed the decision to accept a 2.5% PEG fee.
Community media centers that rely on PEG funding — MetroEast and Open Signal — submitted public comments during the MHCRC process expressing concern that lower PEG fees shrink capital and operating funds for community media. Commissioners and MHCRC staff said some PEG funds are restricted for capital and infrastructure needs tied to PEG delivery.
Commissioner Moyer, who serves on the MHCRC, praised the negotiations for securing a higher rate than earlier Comcast offers. “Getting the rate up to 2.5% was excellent work,” she said.
All county commissioners voted to approve the franchise renewal on the record (roll-call: Moyer Aye; Singleton Aye; Broom Edwards Aye; Chair Vega Peterson Aye). The same agreement had been approved by East County cities and recommended by MHCRC staff and legal counsel. City of Portland staff presented a similar recommendation to Portland’s council committee earlier in the week.
Staff said the franchise agreement also contains updated language clarifying gross-revenue definitions to support audits and compliance, addresses FCC Order 621 implications, and removes an earlier institutional network (iNet) requirement because that system has been decommissioned.
The renewal concludes a multi-year negotiation process the MHCRC began in 2019 and resumes franchise terms under contemporary legal and technological conditions.
