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Bridgeville opens public hearing on Verizon cable franchise renewal
Summary
Borough Manager Joe Cox opened a public hearing under section 626 of the Federal Cable Act to begin renewing the borough's five-year cable franchise with Verizon, outlining potential municipal benefits such as customer-service standards, community channels and a 5% franchise fee to the borough.
Borough Manager Joe Cox opened a public hearing on the renewal of Verizon's cable franchise, saying the session is being held under section 626 of the Federal Cable Act and is the borough's opportunity to review Verizon's past performance and identify future community cable needs. "This is a public hearing held in pursuit of section 6 2 6 of the Federal Cable Act, which sets forth the process for franchise renewal," Cox said.
Cox told the audience the borough's current Verizon contract is a five-year agreement and contrasted that with Comcast's 10-year arrangement. He outlined the kinds of benefits municipalities commonly negotiate in renewals: "state of the art cable system now and in the future, strong customer service standards, free facility services to community facilities, better reporting requirements from the cable operator, maximize franchise fees," and options for public, educational and governmental channels.
Council indicated it has retained special legal counsel to assist with the renewal and said the franchise typically yields a 5% quarterly franchise fee paid to the borough. The chair opened the hearing to public comment and, after an initial period with no speakers, recessed briefly and then concluded that portion of the hearing for the night.
The hearing is an early, fact-finding stage of the renewal process; borough officials said they will solicit public comment and review Verizon's performance before drafting renewal terms or seeking a new agreement.
