San Francisco County Municipal Code Art. VI Cable System Requirements

Sec. 11.45. Applicability. Sec. 11.46. Customer Service Requirements. Sec. 11.47. Technical Requirements. Sec. 11.48. Rate Regulation. Sec. 11.49. Subscriber Privacy. Sec. 11.50. Type of Franchise. Sec. 11.51. Compliance With Customer Service Standards and Consumer Protection Laws. Sec. 11.52. Public Service Announcements in the Event of an Emergency. Sec. 11.53. Interconnection.

In addition to satisfying requirements established in a Franchise, all of the provisions of this Article VI shall apply to Cable Systems providing Cable Service to Subscribers, except as prohibited by Applicable Law. (Added by Ord. 58-00, File No. 000198, App. 4/7/2000)

(a) Non-Discriminatory Access to Service. A Cable System Grantee shall provide Cable Service upon request to the City or any Person in the Required Service Area, at no more than the standard installation rate for all Subscribers, without charge for any line extension, regardless of whether extension of plant is required. A Cable System Grantee or UVPP shall not be required to provide Cable Service to any Subscriber who does not pay the applicable fees or charges, except as may be required by the terms of an applicable Franchise. (b) Inside Wiring. The obligation to provide Cable Service includes the obligation to provide the inside wiring required to deliver the Cable Service to the customer premises equipment used to receive the Cable Service, at no more than the standard installation rate, so long as the Grantee can obtain any necessary consent to access the premises. However, a Grantee or UVPP may not require a Subscriber or the City to use inside wiring provided by Grantee as a condition of receiving Service. (c) Exclusive Contracts. A Cable System Grantee may not require a Subscriber or a building owner or manager to enter into an exclusive contract as a condition of receiving Service. Any exclusive contract executed after the effective date of the ordinance adopting this Chapter shall inform the Person executing the exclusive contract, in type of equal size and prominence to the rest of the contract: (1) that the Person cannot be denied Service for refusing to agree to an exclusive contract; and (2) that installation rates may be subject to regulation and they should contact the City's Department of Telecommunications and Information Services for additional information. The notice shall include a phone number and contact for the Department of Telecommunications and Information Services provided by the Director.

(d) Month-to-Month Service. Cable Services shall be available to Subscribers on a month-to-month basis. (e) Disconnection/Downgrades. A Cable System Grantee or UVPP shall promptly disconnect from the Cable System or downgrade any Subscriber who so requests. No period of notice prior to voluntary termination or downgrade of Service may be required of Subscribers by any Grantee or UVPP. A Subscriber shall not be liable for any penalty, termination charge, or charge for Service after the date of any voluntary disconnection unless all of the following apply: (1) the Subscriber took Service pursuant to a bona fide promotional offering that offered the Subscriber reduced rates or increased Service if Service was taken for a designated period; and (2) the Service offering required the Subscriber to pay for disconnection if Service was terminated before the end of the Service period; and (3) the disconnection fee does not exceed the difference between the price paid by the Subscriber for Service already received and the price the Subscriber would have paid if Service had been purchased at the standard price available to Subscribers; and (4) the disconnection fee was prominently displayed, and agreed to in writing by the Subscriber. (Added by Ord. 58-00, File No. 000198, App. 4/7/2000)

(a) Technical Standards. All Cable Systems shall meet or exceed the technical standards set forth in 47 C.F.R. Subpart K (Sections 76.601and any other applicable technical standards established by Applicable Law. (b) Tests. A Cable System Grantee shall perform all tests necessary to demonstrate compliance with technical and performance standards established by its Franchise and other Applicable Law. Unless a Franchise or Applicable Law provides otherwise, all tests shall be performed following procedures prescribed by the Department. A written report of any test results shall be filed with the City within seven (7) City business days of a request by the City. If a location fails to meet technical or performance specifications, the Cable System Grantee shall, without requiring additional action by the City, promptly take corrective action, retest the locations until compliance is achieved, and report the results of its corrective action to the City. (Added by Ord. 58-00, File No. 000198, App. 4/7/2000)

The City reserves all power to implement and impose regulation on a Cable System's rates and charges to the maximum extent permissible under Applicable Law. (Added by Ord. 58-00, File No. 000198, App. 4/7/2000)

Every Cable System Grantee or UVPP shall at all times protect the privacy of all Subscribers by implementing and complying with the provisions of 47 U.S.C. Section 551. A Grantee or UVPP shall not condition the provision of Service on the Subscriber's grant of permission to disclose information which, pursuant to Applicable Law, cannot be disclosed without the Subscriber's explicit consent. Any notice provided to a Subscriber pursuant to subsection (a) of 47 U.S.C. Section 551 shall inform the Subscriber, in type of equal size and prominence to the rest of the notice: (1) that the Subscriber cannot be denied Service for failure to grant permission to disclose information requiring the Subscriber's consent; and (2) that the Subscriber shall have the right to prevent disclosure of his or her name and address. (Added by Ord. 58-00, File No. 000198, App. 4/7/2000)

A person holding a Cable System Franchise that is not for an OVS may not acquire an OVS Franchise for the same Facilities unless the Person applies for an OVS Franchise. Similarly, a Person holding an OVS Franchise may not acquire a Cable System Franchise that is not for an OVS unless the Person applies for an appropriate Franchise. In either case, the Person's acceptance of a new Franchise Pursuant to Section 11.13(j) above shall not be effective unless it includes an instrument in a form approved by the City Attorney surrendering the pre-existing Franchise. (Added by Ord. 58-00, File No. 000198, App. 4/7/2000)

LAWS. A Cable System Grantee or UVPP shall, at all times, comply with all applicable customer service standards and consumer protection laws established by Applicable Law, including, without limitation, those established by the FCC at 47 C.F.R. 76.309. A Cable System Grantee or UVPP shall also comply with any additional customer service standards established by the City from time to time that exceed or address matters not addressed by the standards established by other Applicable Law and any consumer protection laws enacted by the City from time to time that are not specifically preempted by other Applicable Law. (Added by Ord. 58-00, File No. 000198, App. 4/7/2000)

Every Cable System Grantee shall install and maintain an emergency alert system that can override audio and video on all channels to provide an emergency alert to Subscribers. Such an emergency alert system must be designed and maintained so that local officials designated by the City can activate the system remotely without the Grantee's assistance. (Added by Ord. 58-00, File No. 000198, App. 4/7/2000)

To the extent financially and technically possible and when requested by the City, a Cable System shall interconnect with another Cable System within or adjacent to the City and with any City-owned communications network for which the City requests interconnection, on fair, reasonable, and non-discriminatory terms for purposes of ensuring the full availability of access to public, educational, and government access signals. Such interconnection shall not give any Person the right to use or distribute another Person's Proprietary, commercial programming. (Added by Ord. 58-00, File No. 000198, App. 4/7/2000)