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Certification Of Franchising Authority To Regulate Basic Cable Service Rates - Initial Finding Of Lack Of Competition 328 - Official Federal Forms
| Certification Of Franchising Authority To Regulate Basic Cable Service Rates - Initial Finding Of Lack Of Competition Form. This is a national form and can be used in Federal Communications Commission (FCC) . |
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Federal Communications Commission Approved by OMB Washington, D.C. 20554 3060- 0550 INSTRUCTIONS FOR FCC 328 FRANCHISING AUTHORITY CERTIFICATION 1. The Cable Television Consumer Protection and Competition Act, enacted regulation are void, and do not prevent a franchising authority from in October 1992, changes the mannerwhich cable television sy in stems that regulating the basic service tier and associated equipment. are not subject to effective competition are regulated. In general, rates for the basic service tier (the tier required as a condition of access to all other Question 4(b): The franchising authority must have a sufficient number of video services and containing, among other services, local broadcast station personnel to undertake rate regulation. signals and public, educational, and public access channels) and associated equipment will be subject to regulation by local or state governments A franchising authority unable to answer "yes" to questions 4(a) or 4(b) ("franchising authorities"). Rates for cable programming services and may wish to review the FCCs Report and Order in Docket 92-, FCC 266 associated equipment (all services except basic and pay channels) will be 93-177 (released May 3, 1993) for further information on the establishment subject to regulation by the FCC. Rates for pay channels (channels for of alternative federal regulatory procedures. which there is a specific per-channel or per-program charge) are not regulated. 9. Question 5: Franchising authorities must have procedural regulations allowing for public participation in rate regulation proceedings. If a 2. Only cable systems that are not subject to effective competition may be franchising authority does not have these regulations already in place, it regulated. Effective competition means that (a) fewer than 30 percent of the must adopt them within 120 days of certification and before it may households in the franchise area subscribe to the cable service of a cable undertake rate regulation. system; or (b) the franchise area is ) served by at least two unaffiliated (i multichannel video programming distributors each of which offers 10. Question 6: Most cable systems are not subject to effective competition, as comparable video programming to at least 50 percent of the households in defined by the Cable Act. (The definition is included in Item 2, above.) The the franchise area; and (ii) the number of households subscribing to franchising authority may presum that the cable systeme in its jurisdiction programming services offered by multichannel video programming is not subject to effective competition. distributors other than the largest multichannel video programming distributor exceeds 15 percent of the households in the franchise area; or (c) For purposes of applying the definition of effective competition (see Item 2 a multichannel video programming distributor operated by the franchising above), "multichannel video programming distributors" include a cable authority for that franchise area ofrfse video programming to at least 50 operator, a multichannel multipoint distribution service, a direct broadcast percent of the households in that franchise ar ea. satellite service, a television receive-only satellite program distributor, a video dialtone service, and a satellite master antenna television system. A 3. In order to regulate basic service tier rates, a franchising authority must be multichannel video programming distributors services will be deemed certified by the FCC. In order to be certified, a franchising authority must "offered" when they are both technically and actually available. Service is complete this formAn original and one copy . of the completed form and "technically available" when the multichannel distributor physically able is all attachments must be returned to the FCC by registered mail, return to deliver the service to a household wishing to subscribe, with only receipt requested, to the FCC at the address on the form. minimal additional investment by the distributor. A service is "actually available" if subscribers in the anchise arfrea are reasonably aware through 4. A copy of the form must be served on the cable operator by first-class mail marketing efforts that the service is available. Subscribership of those on or before the date the form is sent or delivered to the FCC. multichannel video programmng distributors offering service to at least 50 i percent of the households in a franchise area will be aggregated to 5. The franchising authoritys certification will become effective 30 days after determine whether at least 15 percent of the households in the franchise the date stamped on the postal return receipt unless otherwise notified by area are served by competitors. A multichannel video programming the Commission by that date. The franchising authority cannot begin to distributor must offer at least 12 channels of programming, at least one regulate rates, however, until it has actually adopted the required channel of which is non-broadcast, be found to offerto "comparable" video regulations (see below) and until it has notified the cable operator that it programming. has been certified and that it has adopted the required regulations. 11. This certification form must be signed by a government official with 6. In order to be certified, franchising authorities must answer "yes" to authority to act on behalf of the franchising authority. Questions 3, 4, and 5; which are explained as follows: FCC NOTICE REQUIRED BY THE PAPERWORK REDUCTION ACT 7. Question 3: The franchising authority must adopt rate regulations consistent with the Commissions regulations for basic cable service. To Public reporting burden for this collection of information is estimated to fulfill this requirement for certification, the franchising authority may average 30 minutes, including the time for reviewing instructions, simply adopt a regulation indicating that it will follow the regulations searching existing data sources, gathering and maintaining the data needed, established by the FCC. and completing and reviewing the collection of information. Send comments regarding this burden estimate or any other aspect of this The franchising authority has 120 days to adopt these regulations after the collection of information, including suggestions for reducing the burden, to time it is certified. The franchising authority may not, however, begin to the Federal Communications Commission,
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