House Bill 6456 (H-2), Addressing Cable and Video Franchising in Michigan, to Hurt Communities If Passed Into Law

House Bill 6456 (H-2), Addressing Cable and Video Franchising in Michigan, to Hurt Communities If Passed Into Law

Communities to Lose Revenue and Community Access TV to be Eliminated or Scaled Back

SOUTHFIELD, Mich., Nov. 6 /PRNewswire/ -- There is pending legislation before the Michigan House of Representatives, House Bill 6456 (H-2), which addresses cable and video franchising in Michigan. If passed in its current form, House Bill 6456 (H-2) would drastically cut funding to Michigan communities and could eliminate local cable access community television programming, warns PROTEC, the Michigan Coalition to Protect Public Rights-of- Way, the Michigan chapters of NATOA, the National Association of Telecommunications Officers and Advisors and the Alliance for Community Media.

"This legislation would slash revenues to communities and could end community access television as we know it," said Dearborn Mayor Michael Guido, whose city is a member of PROTEC. "We have always welcomed competition. We want to make sure that the needs of the local citizens are met."

The bill, which could be voted on as early as November 9, is projected to cut revenues and in-kind services to Michigan communities annually. Experts have determined that the loss would be in the range of $47 million to $57 million per year. House Bill 6456 (H-2) would also put a permanent cap on community channels and eliminate Institutional Networks (I-NETs), which allow live telecasts from various locations throughout a community, keeping municipal buildings connected.

Other facts about House Bill 6456 (H-2), in its current form:
* The loss of customer service at the local level will result with
complaints going to the Michigan Public Service Commission (MPSC) in
Lansing
* It allows phone and cable companies to redline and cherry-pick
neighborhoods and homes. The current local system requires that ALL
residents within cities and villages receive service while service in
rural areas is subject to strict local requirements
* Public right-of-ways are left unprotected. With the elimination of
current franchise contracts, this leaves local communities very little
authority to protect public safety and right-of-ways

"Local communities still want, and demand, local access cable programming," Guido added. "Residents want to know what is going on in their communities, schools and nonprofits. Without local access cable programming, this very important media outlet would leave communities with little to no means of communicating to area residents."

Subscribers should express their concerns to their legislators, through direct phone calls and emails through their Web site. Voice your concerns and demand your legislators vote no on House Bill 6456 (H-2) until local needs are met.

"If this Bill passes, there will be no local control," said Michigan Municipal League President and Farmington Hills Mayor Vicki Barnett. "Cities will have little enforcement power, and customer complaints will be referred to the Michigan Public Service Commission.

"It's a shame that this bill leaves thousands of residents with no protection by requiring them to leave messages on a phone service line to be fielded by an agency with little experience in handling these issues, rather than contacting their local government and getting the issue resolved quickly," Barnett added

PROTEC, The Michigan Coalition to Protect Public Rights-of-Way, was formed in 1996 by several Michigan cities interested in protecting their citizens' control over public rights-of-way, and their right to receive fair compensation from the telecommunications companies that use public property. For more information, please visit http://protec-mi.org/

The National Association of Telecommunications Officers and Advisors (NATOA) is a national organization that represents the communications needs and interests of local governments. NATOA members' responsibilities include cable administration, telecommunications franchising, rights-of-way management and government access programming, INET planning and management. NATOA has its own Michigan state chapter.

The Alliance for Community Media is committed to assuring everyone's access to electronic media. A nonprofit, national membership organization founded in 1976, the Alliance represents over 3,000 Public, Educational and Governmental (PEG) access organizations throughout the country. Alliance for Community Media has its own Michigan state chapter.

First Call Analyst:
FCMN Contact:

Source: PROTEC

CONTACT: Michael Layne or Glenn Oswald, +1-248-855-6777, for PROTEC

Web site: http://protec-mi.org/

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