The Television Cable Oversight Authority shall have the following functions and powers, the expenses of which are to be paid for by the city:
(A) Advise the City Council on applications for franchises;
(B) Advise the Council on matters which might constitute grounds for revocation of a franchise in accordance with the franchise agreement;
(C) Resolve disagreements among franchisee and public and private users of the system to the extent possible;
(D) Advise the Mayor and Council on regulation of rates in accordance with this chapter, other ordinances and federal regulations;
(E) Facilitate and conduct outreach activities to encourage government, education, community group and individual use of the access channels;
(F) Determine general policies and production standing relating to the services provided subscribers in the operation and use of the access channels, with the view of maximizing the diversity of programs and services to the subscribers. The use of access channels shall be allocated on a first come first serve basis subject to limitations on monopolization of system time or prime times;
(G) Develop policies for Council approval for allocating channel capacity on access channels;
(H) Encourage use of access channels along the widest range of institutions, groups or individuals within the city;
(I) Submit an annual report to the Mayor and Council, including, but not limited to, the total number of hours of utilization of access channels, a review of any plans submitted during the year by franchisees for development of new services and hourly subtotals for various programming categories. The annual report shall also include relevant information concerning education uses, public access for local programming under public control, local government access, pay TV and channel leasing;
(J) Cooperate with other systems in supervising interconnecting of systems;
(K) Maintain a knowledge of current developments in cable communications by subscribing to trade publications and attending cable communication seminars and meetings;
(L) Monitor the status of state and federal legislation and Federal Communications Commission rulings and advise Council of the affect on franchises;
(M) Submit a budget request to the Mayor and Council to cover expenses incurred in respect to performance of functions provided by the Commission. This request may include funds to be used for the development of the use of access channels, including protection grants to users, and the purchase and maintenance of equipment not required to be provided by the franchisee, and funds to be used as per diem expenses and such salaries for the members as may be permitted and prescribed from time to time by separate ordinance;
(N) Audit all franchise records of franchise holders and, in the Authority's discretion, require the preparation and filing of information additional to that required herein;
(O) Conduct a detailed evaluation of the system at least every three years and make recommendations to the Mayor and Council for amendments to this subchapter and the cable television regulations set out in Chapter 112;
(P) Employ, as necessary, services of a technical, accounting, legal, administrative and regulatory nature;
(Q) Act on behalf of or use as the designee of the Mayor and Council for purposes of proposing rules, regulations and arbitration procedures as deemed necessary by the Council and/or to provide any other service to the Council that may be reasonably required by the Mayor or Council under the authority of this and other ordinances;
(R) In conjunction with the franchisees, the authority shall develop and publish within 12 months of the date of award of the initial franchise hereunder, and amend as necessary from time to time, a cable communications system rules and procedures manual to define the authorities, functions and responsibilities, and to adopt rules and procedures in relation thereto. Prior to the publication of that manual, and upon any significant amendments thereto, the authority shall submit the same to the Council for final approval;
(S) In conjunction with the renewal of franchises, as provided for under state or federal law, the Authority shall develop procedures for the implementation of a renewal procedure of the cable franchise. The Authority shall, without being limited to, perform the following:
(1) Begin a public proceeding to review the franchisee's current and past performances and to identify future cable related communication needs and interests;
(2) Establish deadlines for the franchisee to submit a proposal for renewal of the franchise and develop required material to be submitted by the franchisee, including upgrade information;
(3) Give public notice and recommend to the Council the renewal of the franchise or recommend to the Council a preliminary denial of the franchise renewal;
(4) If the Authority wishes, or at the request of the franchisee, the Authority shall give public notice and begin administrative proceedings which gives all parties an opportunity to introduce evidence, produce witnesses and otherwise participate in a public hearing. The Authority shall have a transcript made of that hearing; and
(5) If a public hearing is held as set forth above, make a recommendation to the Council on whether:
(a) The franchisee has substantially complied with the material terms of the franchise under applicable law;
(b) The cable service has been reasonable in light of community needs;
(c) The franchisee has the financial, legal and technical ability to provide service, facilities and equipment in its proposal; and
(d) The proposal is reasonable to meet the future cable related needs and interests.
(1) Give notice to the franchisee on behalf of the city concerning rate regulation and receive all notices and filings from the franchisee relative to the regulation. The procedure and form of notice shall be as prescribed by the Federal Communications Commission or, in the absence of federal guidelines, the Authority;
(2) Analyze the data submitted by the franchisee in support of the proposed rates; seek additional information from the franchisee as necessary; and, where appropriate, issue orders tolling the effective date of proposed rate increases and/or imposing an accounting order;
(3) Schedule and conduct public hearings relative to an initial review of rates subject to city regulation, and subsequent changes to the rates, and receive comments thereto, both written and oral;
(4) Make recommendations to the Mayor and City Council for final city action concerning an initial review of rates or subsequent rate changes, including the drafting of a recommended decision relevant to the final action, as appropriate;
(5) Perform all administrative tasks concerning rate regulation and take all actions on behalf of the city relevant thereto other than final action on the approval or disapproval of rates and the imposition of remedies; and
(6) Provide general advice to the Mayor and City Council relative to rate regulation and the procedures related to the regulation.
(U) Enforce all violations and provisions of Ords. 26-97 and 40-97, specifically including, but not limited to, conducting hearings, issuing remedial orders, imposing civil fines and penalties and liens.
(Ord. 31-92, passed 12-15-1992; Ord. 32-93, passed 12-21-1993; Ord. 31-2001, passed 11-6-2001)