A. Approval Of Changes: The initial rates and charges for programming services shall be set forth within each franchise granted. The City reserves the right to regulate rates for basic service and any other services offered over the system, pursuant to Federal or State law. The operator shall maintain on file with the City at all times a current schedule of all rates and charges. The operator shall be subject to the rate regulation provisions provided for herein, and those of the Federal Communications Commission at 47 CFR, part 76, subpart N. The City shall follow all applicable rules relating to cable rate regulation promulgated by the FCC at 47 CFR, part 76, subpart N.
B. Notification: Not less than thirty (30) days prior to the effective date of any change in any fee, charge, deposit, term or condition set forth in a franchise or permit (or such shorter period as may, upon a showing of good cause, be approved by the City), the operator shall: 1) submit a revised schedule of rates and charges to the City, and 2) provide notice of the proposed change to each affected subscriber. The operator shall provide written notice to affected subscribers prior to the imposition of a rate or fee change. The operator shall not make any change in any rate unless it has provided the notice required in this Section.
C. Consumer Protection And Customer Service: The City expressly reserves the right to enforce FCC rules and regulations promulgated pursuant to section 632 of the Cable Act or any other applicable section of the Cable Act. The City also reserves the right to establish and enforce any law or regulation concerning customer service that may impose requirements exceeding standards set by the FCC pursuant to applicable sections of the Cable Act, or which would address matters not addressed by the standards set by the FCC pursuant to the Cable Act.
D. Charges For Disconnection Or Downgrading Of Service:
1. The operator may impose a charge reasonably related to the cost incurred for a downgrade of service, except that no separate charge may be imposed when:
a. A subscriber requests total disconnection from the system; or
b. A subscriber requests the downgrade within a thirty (30) day period following any rate increase relative to the service in question.
2. If a subscriber requests disconnection from cable service prior to the effective date of an increase in rates, the subscriber shall not be charged the increased rate if the operator fails to disconnect cable service prior to the effective date. Any subscriber who has paid in advance for the next billing period and who requests disconnection from cable service shall receive a prorated refund of any amounts paid in advance.
E. Preferential Treatment Prohibited: The operator shall not, as to rates, charges, service, service facilities, repairs, maintenance, rules, regulations, or in any other respect, make or grant undue preference or advantage to any person or business, nor subject any person or business to any prejudice or disfavor. This section shall not preclude the operator from establishing and implementing bulk subscriber rates or discounts or rate classifications based upon reasonable criteria.
F. Subscriber Complaint Practices:
1. The operator shall maintain an office in Moorhead, Minnesota, or Fargo, North Dakota, which shall be open during normal business hours. The operator shall have a publicly listed toll free telephone number and be so operated as to receive subscriber complaints and requests on a twenty four (24) hour a day, seven (7) days a week basis. At a minimum, the operator shall endeavor to connect a telephone caller to a live service representative within thirty (30) seconds, seven (7) days per week, at least during the hours of seven o'clock (7:00) A.M. to eleven o'clock (11:00) P.M. The operator shall maintain written or computer generated records demonstrating, to the satisfaction of the city, its ability to meet these standards. A written or computer generated log available for city inspection shall be maintained listing all complaints and their dispositions.
2. The operator shall render efficient service, make repairs promptly and interrupt service only for good cause and for the shortest time possible. Such interruptions, insofar as possible, shall occur during periods of minimum use of the system. A written log available for city inspection shall be maintained for all service interruptions.
3. Subscriber requests for maintenance or repairs received prior to two o'clock (2:00) P.M., Monday through Friday, shall, whenever possible, be performed the same day.
4. Subscriber requests for maintenance or repairs received after two o'clock (2:00) P.M., Monday through Friday, shall, whenever possible be performed within twenty four (24) hours of the request.
5. Subscriber requests for repairs received on Saturdays or Sundays shall, whenever possible, be performed within twenty four (24) hours of the request.
6. The operator shall respond within two (2) hours to all outage reports affecting at least one channel for five percent (5%) or more of the system's subscribers.
7. If the operator fails to correct a system outage (i.e., 10 percent or more of the channels provided to a subscriber are not able to be received) problem within twenty four (24) hours, the operator shall, upon request from a subscriber, credit one- thirtieth (1/30) of the monthly charge to the subscriber for each twenty four (24) hours or fraction thereof after the first twenty four (24) hours during which a subscriber is with reduced service.
8. All money owed to a subscriber, or potential subscriber, shall be refunded within twenty (20) working days of the operator's knowledge of the obligation. Credit may be issued to the subscriber's account by mutual agreement.
9. The operator shall provide the city with the name of its chief management employee for the referral of complaints made to the city. (Ord. 99-2, 4-5-1999, eff. 4-19-1999)
G. Installation And Repairs: Subscribers who request installation or repairs shall be given the schedule option of morning or afternoon appointments. Persons requesting installation of cable service shall be afforded a right of rescission between the time cable service is requested and the time cable service is actually installed. When possible, all new installations, repairs, reconnects, service upgrades or downgrades shall be performed within seven (7) working days of the date the order was placed by the subscriber. (Ord. 2014-04, 5-27-2014)
H. Subscriber Information: Upon installation, the operator shall provide to all subscribers (and operator shall initially provide to the city) written subscriber service information which shall include, but not be limited to, the following:
1. The procedure for investigation and resolution of subscriber service complaints, including the telephone number and contact person at the city who may assist in the resolution of complaints;
2. Programming services, rates, and charges for all services, including public access related charges;
3. Billing practices as required by subsection I of this section;
4. Service termination procedures;
5. Change in service procedures;
6. Refund policy;
7. Office hours; and
8. Converter/VCR hookup information and use instructions. Operator will, within a reasonable period of time, notify all subscribers and the city of any material changes in the above referenced service information.
I. Subscriber Billing Practices:
1. The operator shall notify each of its subscribers, through the written service information, of its billing practices. The service information shall describe the operator's billing practices including, but not limited to, the following: frequency of billing, time periods upon which billing is based, advance billing practices, security deposit requirements, charges for late payments or returned checks, payments necessary to avoid account delinquency, availability of credits for service outages, procedures to be followed to request service deletions including the notice period a subscriber must give to avoid liability for such services and procedures to be followed in the event of a billing dispute.
2. The operator shall notify all affected subscribers not less than thirty (30) days prior to any change in the billing practices and such notice shall include a description of the changed practice.
3. The subscriber bill shall contain the following information presented in plain language and format:
a. Name and address of the operator;
b. The period of time over which each chargeable service is billed including prorated periods as a result of the establishment and termination of cable service;
c. Each rate or charge levied;
d. The amount of the bill for the current billing period, separate from any balance;
e. The operator's telephone number;
f. The date on which payment is due from the subscriber.
J. Parental Control Option: The operator shall, for a lawful fee, furnish parental control devices to all subscribers who wish to be able to black out any objectionable programming from the cable service entering the subscriber's home.
K. Periodic Subscriber Survey: Operator will notify city of subscriber surveys being conducted and shall allow the city, upon request, the opportunity to review all survey results at the office of the operator. (Ord. 99-2, 4-5-1999, eff. 4-19-1999)