Los Angeles County Municipal Code Ch. 16.68 Service, Rates and Consumer Protection

A.

Franchisee shall, within one year after acceptance of franchise, obtain all necessary permits, certifications and authorizations as may be required in the conduct of its business. Franchisee shall notify the director when all such permits, authorizations and certifications have been obtained. Should franchisee be unable to comply with the requirements of this subsection within the time specified herein, the franchise herein granted shall become null and void and franchisee shall have no rights thereunder; provided, however, that county may for good cause shown by franchisee grant extensions of time to comply with this requirement.

B.

Within 90 days after obtaining the necessary permits, certifications and authorizations, franchisee shall commence construction and installation of the cable television system. Franchisee shall notify the director, in writing, within 10 days thereof of the date of commencement of construction and installation work.

C.

The franchisee shall extend and complete the cable television system throughout the designated service area with reasonable diligence. Within two years after complying with the requirements of subsection A, franchisee shall be capable of providing basic service to every residence within the franchise service area notwithstanding the provisions of subsection D; provided, however, that the director may for good cause shown by franchisee grant extensions of time to comply with this requirement.

D.

Upon a reasonable request for basic service to any residence within franchisee's service area, franchisee shall promptly furnish the requested service to such residence; service shall be provided to a residence passed by franchisee's cable plant within 30 days of request for service. Notwithstanding the above, if the franchisee can show that permits or other authorizations must be obtained or that the provision of such service is impractical, technically unfeasible, economically noncompensatory or will impose an undue hardship, the director may waive or defer franchisee's obligation to provide service to such residence.

E.

For purposes of determining compliance with the provisions of this section, and to provide for a reasonable and nondiscriminatory policy governing provision of cable service to franchise service areas within the county, franchisee shall provide service to new subscribers at the normal installation charge and monthly rate for customers of that classification under the following terms and conditions:

a.

(1)

Where the new subscriber, or nearest subscriber of a group of new subscribers, is located within 100 feet of existing aerial or underground trunk or distribution feeder cable; and

(2)

Where the number of homes to be passed by such new extension cable plant bears the same or proportional ratio to the total amount of new cable plant as the average number of homes passed per mile of existing cable plant; or

b.

In the alternative, the ordinance granting the franchise may specify the number of homes to be passed per mile (for aerial and underground construction) which shall require mandatory provision of service.

In the event the requirements of subdivision E1 are not met, franchisee shall provide service to new subscribers at the normal monthly rate for customers of that classification and the installation cost per subscriber shall be determined as follows:

a.

Within 10 days of request from a potential subscriber, franchisee shall provide a written cost estimate to potential subscribers whose residence or commercial place of business is located in excess of 100 feet from the closest trunk or feeder cable. This estimate is to indicate franchisee's cost for labor and material plus 10 percent for overhead costs for excessive footage from energized trunk source and/or concealed wiring and/or nonstandard underground drops. In addition, the estimate may include the costs of use of utility poles for aerial cable, if applicable.

b.

In the event there are less than the average number of homes per mile to be passed by cable than are at present in the total plant, cable service will be supplied at a cost based on the following formula for both aerial and underground construction:

i. *Cost per mile to construct based on average homes per = Franchisee's average cost mile in plant for overhead or underground as may be applicable

* "Cost per mile to construct" means the turnkey price as supplied by the cable manufacturer of the newest version of their equipment presently being used by franchisee in the system. Such cost to construct will include the house drops.

F.

The franchisee shall not be responsible for providing service in those areas meeting the density requirements herein or in the ordinance granting the franchise if the franchisee is precluded by the property owner, instrument of record, or contract from providing cable services or constructing and installing facilities and equipment.

(Ord. 88-0159F § 1 (part), 1988.)

A.

Prior to the commencement of and during construction or reconstruction of the system, franchisee shall be required to notify all residents and property owners, at franchisee's expense, of the intended construction or reconstruction. All notices shall be personal or in writing, and shall be issued as follows:

At least 45 days prior to the intended construction or reconstruction, a general notice indicating the type of construction, projected construction schedule and proposed construction area(s).

The franchisee shall provide notice at least 20 days prior to entering private property or public ways or public easements adjacent to or on such private property.

a.

Should there be above-ground or underground installations (excluding aerial cable lines utilizing existing poles and existing cable paths) which will affect the property, said notice shall be in writing and shall contain specific information regarding any above-ground or underground installations (excluding aerial cable lines utilizing existing poles and existing cable paths) which shall affect the property.

b.

Should property owner or resident notify franchisee of objection to placement of any such above-ground or underground installations (excluding aerial cable lines utilizing existing poles and existing cable paths), franchisee shall make a good-faith effort to comply with property owner/resident's preferences, if any, on location of placement of said appurtenances, consistent with sound engineering practices.

Franchisee shall provide notice three days in advance of entering private property or public ways or public easements adjacent to or on such private property.

B.

In addition to any other notice of proposed entry required under this ordinance, franchisee's personnel shall make a reasonable attempt to give personal notice to resident immediately preceding entry on private property or public ways or public easements adjacent to or on such private property.

(Ord. 88-0159F § 1 (part), 1988.)

Franchisee, its employees, agents, contractors and subcontractors shall be properly identified prior to and during entry on private and public property. Identification shall include the name and telephone number of franchisee on all trucks and vehicles used by installation personnel.

(Ord. 88-0159F § 1 (part), 1988.)

After performance of work, franchisee shall restore said private and public property as nearly as possible to its condition prior to construction. Any disturbance of landscaping, fencing or other improvements upon private or public property shall, at the sole expense of franchisee, be promptly repaired or restored (including replacement of such valuables as shrubbery and fencing) to the reasonable satisfaction of the property owner.

(Ord. 88-0159F § 1 (part), 1988.)

Franchisee shall, upon written request from the county, provide and maintain, at no cost to county, at least one cable television drop and free basic service to each county facility, whether an owned or a leased facility, law enforcement facility, fire station, public school or other public facility located within the authorized franchise service area.

(Ord. 88-0159F § 1 (part), 1988.)

A.

Franchisee shall provide and maintain, at no cost to county or school, at least one cable television drop and free basic service to each private, nonprofit school site within the authorized franchise service area.

B.

As used in this section, "private, nonprofit schools" means schools that satisfy the requirements of Section 12154 of the Education Code of the state of California, and which are exempt from taxation under Section 214 of the Revenue and Taxation Code of the state of California.

(Ord. 88-0159F § 1 (part), 1988.)

The franchisee shall incorporate into its cable television system the capability to permit the county in times of emergency to override the audio portion of all channels simultaneously. In addition, if feasible, the franchisee may be required to designate a channel, which may be a PEG channel, to be used for emergency broadcasts of both audio and video. The franchisee shall cooperate with the county in the use and operation of the emergency alert override system.

(Ord. 88-0159F § 1 (part), 1988.)

A.

The county reserves the right to require the franchisee to interconnect its cable television system with any other cable television system operating within the county of Los Angeles. For good cause shown, county may waive or defer this requirement to interconnect, or grant reasonable extensions of time, to comply with this requirement.

B.

For the purpose of this section, "interconnection" shall be defined as reception of or connection to those electronic signals which are delivered to the franchised cable television system by any foreign source for distribution via the cable television system. Such electronic signals shall be in a format acceptable (within the state-of-the-art technology) for unattended processing into radio frequency energy for retransmission into the cable television system.

(Ord. 88-0159F § 1 (part), 1988.)

Franchisee shall retain full responsibility for the quality of cable television service to all recipients of redistributed service (i.e., through microwave, master antennae or satellite redistribution). Franchisee shall be presumed to have retained such responsibility together with all obligations arising from the franchise, including but not limited to charges to the ultimate recipient for service.

(Ord. 88-0159F § 1 (part), 1988.)

A.

Franchisee shall at all times comply with the rules and regulations governing community antenna television system (CATV) operations promulgated by the FCC, specifically, but not limited to, those set out in Part 76 of the FCC Rules and Regulations. This shall particularly include adherence by the franchisee to FCC rules regarding technical and engineering specifications involved in the construction of the CATV system, and signal carriage therein.

B.

Any modification(s) of Section 76.31 of the FCC Rules and Regulations resulting from amendment thereto by the FCC shall, to the extent applicable, be considered as a part of the franchise as of the effective date of the amendment.

(Ord. 88-0159F § 1 (part), 1988.)

Franchisee shall dedicate one channel for exclusive use by the county. In the event of incorporation of all or a portion of the franchise area, said channel shall remain dedicated for exclusive county use. Franchisee may utilize the exclusive county use channel until such time as the director provides franchisee with 60 days prior written notification of intention to use the channel; provided, however, that prior to any such use by franchisee, franchisee shall give 60 days prior written notice by certified mail to the director of such use.

(Ord. 88-0159F § 1 (part), 1988.)

A.

In addition to exclusive county use channel as provided for in Section 16.68.070, franchisee shall dedicate a minimum of six channels for public, educational and governmental uses. Use of each type of said channels shall be in accordance with county policies and procedures. County reserves the right to change, delete or amend such policies and procedures during the term of the franchise.

B.

If less than six PEG channels are to be activated initially, activation of channels beyond those required for initial activation shall be according to a formula which shall be expressed in the ordinance granting the franchise.

C.

Channels activated for public or educational access uses shall contain daily notice of the name, address and telephone number of the party to contact for information regarding access uses, and advisement that other channels, if any, are available for PEG uses. The language of the notices shall be approved by the director, prior to carriage, and the notices shall be provided on a scheduled basis as determined by the director.

In addition, in the event that not all PEG channels are activated and utilized for PEG uses, the franchisee shall issue periodic written notice (at least once a year) to subscribers informing them that additional channels are dedicated for public, educational and governmental uses and are temporarily being used for other programming purposes until needed for community and governmental uses. Information shall also be provided regarding whom to contact regarding PEG uses.

D.

Franchisee may utilize PEG channels dedicated for, but not yet utilized for, PEG uses, for programming of their choice until such time as utilized for PEG uses; provided, however, that prior to franchisee's use of any such PEG channel(s), franchisee give 60 days written notice by certified mail to the director of such use. The director shall give franchisee 60 days prior written notice of intention to use such channel(s) for PEG use(s). Provided, however, should franchisee utilize such channel(s) with programming which provides for local ad-avails, franchisee shall be required to provide PEG informational notices as required in subsection (C)(1) on any such channel.

E.

Underutilized PEG channels activated for PEG uses may also be utilized by franchisee for compatible type programming subject to rules and procedures established and as may be modified by the county throughout the term of the franchise.

F.

Franchisee shall not be permitted to use a dedicated PEG channel if other channel capacity on the system has not been programmed.

G.

The director may for good cause shown by franchisee waive or modify the requirements of this section.

(Ord. 88-0159F § 1 (part), 1988.)

Franchisee shall agree that the provision of PEG channels, free cable drop and free basic service, as specified in Sections 16.68.020, 16.68.030, 16.68.070 and 16.68.080, shall not be considered as within the meaning of the term "franchise fee" or "payments in kind" as used in Section 622(g) of the Cable Act.

(Ord. 88-0159F § 1 (part), 1988.)

When required by the director, franchisee shall provide return capability channel(s) for use in connection with the exclusive county use channel and/or PEG channel(s). Said return capability may be provided on PEG channels.

(Ord. 88-0159F § 1 (part), 1988.)

Franchisee shall provide leased access channels as required pursuant to Section 612 of the Cable Act. Total system capacity shall be calculated inclusive of PEG channels. Franchisee shall submit information regarding leased access channel rates to county when requested. Leased access channel rates shall be available for public inspection.

(Ord. 88-0159F § 1 (part), 1988.)

To the extent authorized by law, every franchisee shall carry a public broadcast station(s) on a cable channel within channels 2 through 13, inclusive, or on its current broadcast channel identification number, or on a cable channel number as otherwise agreed to by the director and the franchisee. Franchisee may not change the cable channel placement of the public broadcast station(s) without the director's written approval. This requirement shall apply to all franchises granted, renewed, assigned or modified after the effective date of the ordinance codified in this section.

(Ord. 88-0192 § 1, 1988.)

A.

The Director may for good cause shown by franchisee waive or modify the requirements of this subsection.

B.

The county may require franchisee to deliver to subscriber terminals those television broadcasts and cablecast signals which are now or hereafter authorized for carriage by the FCC. The signals produced by the system shall be of high quality throughout the system with no difference perceptible to viewers whether in close proximity to the headend or at the furthest extension of the trunk line.

C.

Franchisee shall distribute in color those television signals which it receives in color. The system, as installed, shall be capable of passing standard black and white and color video channels with associated audio signals without material degradation and with no phase shift and no effect on color fidelity and intelligence.

D.

Franchisee shall render such service to subscriber as will meet technical and performance requirements of the franchise. At a minimum, franchisee shall provide the broad categories of services and mix, quality, and level of programming represented to the county in the application and made a part of the franchise agreement by attached exhibit.

As an aid to county in monitoring signal strength and quality, franchisee shall provide county with copies of all FCC Signal Performance Reports. Should the FCC no longer require signal performance reports, franchisee shall make and submit such performance tests and reports in response to written request by the county. Any time the signal does not meet FCC standards or the standards of franchisee's application as incorporated in the ordinance granting the franchise, franchisee shall make a pro rata rebate, in money or in services, to each subscriber based upon the percentage by which the signal falls below standard and upon the length of time that such condition has existed. Such rebate shall be made to the satisfaction of each subscriber, or of county if agreement with the subscriber cannot be reached.

The director may for good cause shown by franchisee waive or modify the requirements of this subsection.

E.

Franchisee shall provide program origination if so required by the FCC or the ordinance granting the franchise.

F.

Franchisee shall render efficient service, making repairs promptly and interrupting service only for good cause and for the shortest possible time; any scheduled interruptions, insofar as possible, shall be preceded by notice given to subscribers at least 24 hours in advance and shall occur during periods of minimum use of the system.

G.

Franchisee must retain and have available emergency personnel capable of performing emergency repairs and maintenance 24 hours a day, every day, including weekends and holidays. The director may waive or modify this requirement if franchisee can demonstrate that it is not economically feasible to provide such emergency personnel.

H.

Franchisee shall promptly notify the cable television section of the department when the cable television system is down, when the system is having technical difficulties which may affect services to the subscriber, or when franchisee's telephone lines are out of service, in order that the department is able to advise those subscribers who contact the department due to inability to reach the cable operator. In addition, franchisee shall advise the cable television section of the department, by telephone and in writing, of all scheduled maintenance which will cause disruptions to service, and of any outages of more than four hours duration.

I.

Credit(s) shall automatically be given on a pro-rata basis to any subscriber(s) affected by interruption(s) of service for more than two hours due to actions or outages under the control of the franchisee, exclusive of scheduled repairs or maintenance that franchisee has provided advance notice of to subscribers; for such interruption(s) of service not under the control of the franchisee, credit(s) shall be given on a pro-rata basis upon the request of the subscriber(s).

J.

Franchisee shall maintain and upgrade the system and services to reflect feasible technical and economic developments occurring during the term of the franchise which will benefit the public in terms of new and more effective and efficient service and to provide a state-of-the-art cable television system which meets the interests and needs of the community during the term of the franchise.

K.

Franchisee shall provide and maintain continuous service to subscribers unless allowed otherwise by the FCC. Franchisee may petition the FCC to authorize the suspension or abandonment of service upon such reasonable terms and conditions as may be prescribed by the FCC. A copy of any such petition shall be filed with the county engineer concurrently with the filing of the petition with the FCC.

L.

Upon request of subscriber or potential subscriber, franchisee shall provide a morning (before 12 noon) or afternoon (after 12 noon) service call or installation appointment. Should franchisee be unable to keep the appointment, subscriber shall be notified at the earliest possible opportunity, and shall be rescheduled on a priority basis.

(Ord. 88-0159F § 1 (part), 1988.)

Franchisee shall provide the director with complete technical documentation of the cable television system as installed. Said documentation shall include, but is not limited to, headend equipment and location, satellite location and technical parameters, and the backbone cable routing, but need not include each subscriber drop. Such documentation shall be sent to the director within 60 days of initiation of subscriber service and shall be updated as necessary.

(Ord. 88-0159F § 1 (part), 1988.)

A.

Response to subscriber complaints shall be initiated within one business day of receipt and the resolution of subscriber complaints shall be effected by the franchisee not later than three business days after receipt of the complaint. Should a supervisor not be available when requested by a subscriber, a supervisor shall return the subscriber's telephone call at the earliest possible time and in no event later than the end of the next business day. If a subscriber has notified franchisee in writing that a bill is in dispute, franchisee shall not terminate service pending resolution of the dispute, nor shall the account be turned over or reported to a collection agency, provided that the remaining balance of the bill is current. A bill shall not be considered to be in dispute solely by reason of nonpayment by subscriber.

B.

Upon complaint by any subscriber, franchisee shall have the burden to satisfy the director that a signal is being delivered which is of sufficient strength and quality to meet standards contained in the FCC rules and regulations, as well as the county standards in effect during the term of the franchise.

C.

Franchisee shall maintain a written complaint record containing the following information:

Date and time of subscriber complaint;

Identification of the complainant by name, address and telephone number;

Description of the nature of the complaint;

A record of when and what action was taken by franchisee to resolve the complaint.

D.

The complaint record shall be kept at franchisee's local office for a period of two years after receipt of any such complaint. A copy of said complaint record shall be submitted by franchisee to the director upon franchisee's application for extension of service area(s), modification, transfer or renewal of franchise and within 10 days following receipt of a written request therefor from the director.

If required by the director, said complaint record shall contain a semi-annual (through June 30th and through December 31st) breakdown indicating the total number of complaints received for the preceding reporting period, and shall indicate the major classifications of complaints as follows: construction, billing, customer relations/service, miscellaneous.

E.

Throughout the term of the franchise, franchisee shall maintain an outage log showing the date, approximate time and duration, type and probable cause of all headend, trunk or distribution line service failures. The log shall also include information relating to routine testing or scheduled maintenance outages. A copy of said outage log shall be submitted by franchisee to county within 10 days following receipt of a written request therefor from the county.

(Ord. 88-0159F § 1 (part), 1988.)

When complaints have been made, evidence indicates an unresolved controversy or significant noncompliance with franchise standards, or when circumstances exist which, in the judgment of the director, cast doubts upon the reliability or quality of cable service, the director may require franchisee, at franchisee's cost, to test, analyze and provide a written report on the performance of the system. Said report shall be delivered to the director, no later than 14 days after franchisee is notified, in writing, of the required report and shall include the following information: nature of the complaints which precipitated the special tests; what system component was tested, the equipment used, and procedures employed in said testing; the results of such test; and the method in which said complaints were resolved. The director may require that tests and analyses be supervised by an independent professional engineer acceptable to the county. The tests shall be forwarded to the director with a report interpreting the results of the tests and recommending actions to be taken.

(Ord. 88-0159F § 1 (part), 1988.)

Franchisee shall, upon reasonable request or complaint by a subscriber, perform such tests as necessary at the subscriber's terminal to establish whether a signal of requisite quality is being delivered to the subscriber's premises. The results of such test(s) shall be given to the subscriber as soon as the test is completed and evaluated, and in no event later than 10 days after the test is conducted.

(Ord. 88-0159F § 1 (part), 1988.)

The director shall have the right to conduct periodic reviews of the performance and quality of the system during the term of the franchise. The record of subscriber complaints, the record of performance tests and other tests or surveys conducted shall be included in the review.

(Ord. 88-0159F § 1 (part), 1988.)

A.

Prior to or at the time of installation, franchisee shall provide each new subscriber with written information regarding:

A listing of all services, packages and rates available at the time, including billing options and dispute procedures, refund procedures, and company policies regarding disconnection and reconnection services and charges;

a.

If franchisee has elected to utilize line item charges for franchise fees, copyright and other fees as permitted under Section 634 of the Cable Act, any such listings, whether written or oral, shall disclose to the prospective subscriber the total costs associated with receiving cable services. Prior to the issuance of any such notices, a copy shall be submitted to the director for review and approval of the notices.

The availability of any devices required by federal, state or local law, such as, but not limited to, parental lock box device and a switching device ("A/B" switch), and any fees or charges associated with receiving the devices;

The address, telephone number and hours of business of franchisee's local office for service and resolution of complaints for the franchise area;

Identification of the department, including address and telephone number, as the referral agency, in a form of language to be provided by the director;

A separate, written notice containing information regarding protection of subscriber privacy rights as specified under Section 631 of the Cable Act. Said notice to subscribers regarding protection of privacy rights shall be issued in a separate, written notice at least once a year thereafter;

Other appropriate information regarding franchisee's system as required by the county.

B.

Franchisee shall also provide a separate, written notice to all subscribers every six months or as required by the director, which identifies the department as required in subsection (A)(4).

Semi-annually, the director shall provide the language of the notice to be issued to new and current subscribers. Failure to circulate the notice every six months as required in this subsection B shall result in the franchisee being assessed a fine of one dollar per subscriber per month until such time as notification is made to subscribers as required.

C.

The notices required in subsections (A)(5) and (B) of Section 16.68.130 may be included in the mailing of the subscriber's billing statement, but shall not be accompanied by any promotional materials.

Franchisee shall place the department (attn: Cable TV Franchising Section) on a mailing list for the notices required in subsections (A)(5) and (B) of this Section 16.68.130.

(Ord. 88-0159F § 1 (part), 1988.)

A.

Franchisee shall maintain a local business office within the county and provide the director with the name, address and telephone number of the person(s) who will act as the franchisee's agent(s) for general management of the system and to receive complaints regarding quality of service, equipment malfunctions, and similar matters. Franchisee shall advise county of a change of franchisee's agent(s) within five working days of any such change. The local office shall be open to receive inquiries or complaints from subscribers during normal business hours. A toll-free phone number shall be available to all

subscribers located within the franchised area for the reporting of service problems on a 24 hours per day, seven days per week, 365 days per year basis.

B.

Franchisee shall provide sufficient telephone lines, either adequately staffed or with answering capability, providing, at the minimum, emergency referral information. Franchisee shall return calls for services or complaints received during normal business hours within four business hours of receipt, and shall promptly investigate and resolve all calls for service and complaints. During periods when answering service or machine is used, franchisee shall provide on-call personnel who shall contact the answering service/machine, at a minimum, every four hours to check on requests for service and complaints.

C.

In order to determine whether sufficient telephone lines are provided, the director may require that a busy study, traffic study or other study be conducted, at franchisee's expense, if any, by the local telephone company. Should franchisee have its own telephone equipment which can report on telephone line(s) usage, the franchisee may submit such report from its own system.

D.

Should the director determine that insufficient telephone lines or inadequate staff exists, franchisee shall take necessary steps to ensure that adequate telephone lines or staffing are available for normal, daily activities. Consideration shall be given for periods of promotional activities or outages. The monthly billing period shall be considered as a normal, daily activity for purposes of determining adequate telephone lines and/or staffing.

(Ord. 88-0159F § 1 (part), 1988.)

All basic service tier rates and the charges for related equipment, installation and services ("basic rates") are subject to regulation by the county, as well as any other rates or charges which the county may at any time be authorized to regulate. Notwithstanding any different or inconsistent provisions in any county ordinance, the county will follow the rate regulations promulgated by the Federal Communications Commission ("FCC") in regulating the basic rates of any franchise for which the FCC has certified or subsequently certifies the county to regulate. The director is authorized to execute on behalf of the county and file with the FCC such certification forms or other instruments as are now or may hereafter be required by the FCC in order to enable the county to regulate basic rates.

A.

Franchisee shall not change any regulated rates or charges unless and until such changes are approved or authorized in the manner provided in this section and the requirements of Section 16.68.180 have been met.

B.

Franchisee shall notify the director of any proposed change in rates or charges prior to any such notice being given to subscribers. The notification shall include a written list showing the rates and charges currently in effect and the proposed changes. The notice shall also include the justification(s) for the proposed changes(s).

To ensure that a reasonable opportunity is given for consideration of the view of interested parties, franchisee shall notify subscribers of any proposed change in basic rates within 14 days after notice has been provided to the director. The director will accept written or telephonic public comment for 10 days after subscribers have been so notified. The county may also require the franchisee to provide notice of such proposed changes on access, local origination, or other applicable

channels(s) on the cable system. All notices will list the FCC community identifier for the cable system and the name, address, and phone number of the director.

C.

Within 30 days after submission of franchisee's proposed changes, or within such additional time as may be authorized by state or federal law, the director shall either approve or disapprove of the proposed changes, or any of them, and shall notify franchisee of his decision. A franchisee's failure to provide any reasonably requested material pertaining to a basic rate increase request will cause the director to request additional review time beyond 30 days. To the extent that any proposed regulated change is disapproved, the director shall set forth in writing his findings of fact with respect thereto.

Franchisee may, within 10 days after mailing of the notification of decision, appeal such decision to the board or other hearing body designated by the board. Upon receipt of the appeal, the board, or other designated hearing body, may take any one of the following actions:

a.

Approve the decision;

b.

Refer the matter back to the director with or without instruction;

c.

Set the matter for public hearing before itself; such public hearing shall be held de novo as if no hearing previously had been held.

Upon completion of the appeal process at the county level, franchisee may avail itself of appeals provided by state or federal law.

D.

The county may prescribe a reasonable rate or charge if it determines that a proposed regulated rate or charge is unreasonable.

E.

The county may order refunds to subscribers, including interest computed at applicable rates published by the Internal Revenue Service for its tax refunds and additional tax payments, where the county determines that a regulated rate or charge is unreasonable.

(Ord. 94-0015F § 1, 1994: Ord. 88-0159F § 1 (part), 1988.)

Franchisee shall provide at least 10 days written notice to a subscriber prior to discontinuance of service for nonpayment. The notice shall contain the date, time and place by which payment must be made in order to prevent disconnection of service.

(Ord. 88-0159F § 1 (part), 1988.)

In the event franchisee has improperly or inadvertently disconnected cable services to a subscriber, franchisee shall provide for restoration without charge to subscriber within two business days of discovery of disconnection.

(Ord. 88-0159F § 1 (part), 1988.)

Franchisee shall notify subscribers at least 30 days prior to the first inclusion of franchise fees and/or other line items on their statements, as permitted in Section 622(f) and (g) of the Cable Act. Said notice shall explain the election to use line item designations and the effects such designations shall have on the total costs associated with receiving cable services. No such notice shall be issued to subscribers until the county has reviewed and approved the notice. Any designation of franchise fees as a separate line item on the statement shall use the term "franchise fee."

(Ord. 88-0159F § 1 (part), 1988.)

Whether or not the franchise is subject to rate regulation by the county, franchisee shall provide notice to subscribers and the county of changes in rates, charges, tiering or carriage as provided herein:

A.

Franchisee shall notify all subscribers, in writing, of any proposed changes in subscriber rates, charges, tiering or carriage at least 60 days in advance of the effective date of such proposed changes. In no event shall a subscriber be billed for service at the increased rate or charge prior to the delivery of the notification to the subscriber.

B.

Franchisee shall notify the director, in writing, of any proposed changes in subscriber rates and charges, tiering or carriage at least 90 days in advance of the effective date of such proposed changes. The notification to the director shall include a list showing the rates and charges currently in effect and the proposed changes. Only those rates and charges that are on file with the department may be charged to subscribers.

C.

If it is impractical or impossible for franchisee to provide above notifications due to conditions beyond franchisee's control, franchisee shall give reasonable notice to subscribers and the director.

D.

In the event of a rate increase, retiering or other change(s) in service by franchisee, subscribers may downgrade or disconnect service without charge; provided, however, that charges may be imposed for failure to return converter boxes, remote controls or other equipment owned by the franchisee.

(Ord. 88-0159F § 1 (part), 1988.)

A.

Upon termination of service to any subscriber, franchisee shall promptly remove all its facilities and equipment from the premises of such subscriber upon subscriber's request, except as provided in subsection B. Upon termination of services, should franchisee not promptly collect its equipment from the premises of the subscriber, the subscriber shall not be charged for continued services, nor for failure to return any equipment.

B.

Should franchisee require the subscriber to return the equipment, franchisee shall establish convenient hours, which must include convenient evening and weekend hours, for return of equipment, and the subscriber shall have a reasonable length of time in which to return the equipment. The subscriber shall be advised of the date by which the equipment must be returned before a charge may be imposed for failure to return equipment.

(Ord. 88-0159F § 1 (part), 1988.)

Franchisee shall not grant any preference or advantage to any person or group, nor subject any person or group to prejudice or disadvantage as to rates, charges, services, service facilities, rules and regulations or in any other respect relative to the rights granted under the franchise. Nothing in this section shall prohibit the franchisee from offering limited, promotional specials, nor from offering bulk or discount billings where practical.

(Ord. 88-0159F § 1 (part), 1988.)

Provided the subscriber does not violate any federal, state or local laws regarding the reception of cable services, makes payments for such services in a timely fashion to franchisee, and maintains franchisee's equipment in good working order, the franchisee may not refuse cable service to a subscriber.

(Ord. 88-0159F § 1 (part), 1988.)

The county reserves the right to modify, during the term of the franchise, the existing consumer standards contained within the ordinance granting the franchise, and to establish additional consumer service standards from time to time, as may be necessary to protect the subscriber, the franchisee and the county.

(Ord. 88-0159F § 1 (part), 1988.)