Boscawen Select Board approves five-year Comcast franchise renewal

The Boscawen Select Board voted Wednesday to approve a five-year cable television franchise agreement with Comcast, moving forward with a contract that town staff said mirrors the community’s existing terms and carries a 3.5% franchise fee.

Comcast representative Monica Thiebaud told the board the Federal Cable Act defines a franchise as the local government’s authorization for a cable operator to place and operate facilities in public rights-of-way. She said the proposed renewal “is very similar to the existing franchise,” that basic terms including insurance amounts and density calculations were matched, and that Comcast agreed to implement “the 3 and a half percent franchise fee that the board has requested.”

Board members asked whether the contract requires Comcast to expand service to new addresses. Thiebaud said the franchise authorizes Comcast to operate within town rights-of-way but does not itself obligate the company to add service to specific addresses; she said the company is “always looking to add broadband expansion areas when it makes sense.”

There were no public speakers during the hearing. After closing the public-comment period the board took a voice vote to approve the agreement for the 2026–2031 term; a select board member moved to approve and another seconded the motion.

Town staff and board members discussed final signing arrangements after the vote and said they would complete the paperwork and handle signatures as needed to finalize the agreement.

Why it matters: cable franchise agreements define the operator’s right to use public rights-of-way and set local obligations, such as franchise fees the town can use for municipal purposes. The five-year term shortens the length of the contract from previous, longer terms discussed during earlier negotiations and reflects the board’s stated preference for a shorter renewal period.