[HISTORY: Adopted by the Mayor and Council of the Borough of Folsom 8-8-2002
by Ord. No. 297. Amendments noted where applicable.]
The municipality hereby grants to Comcast Cablevision renewal of its
nonexclusive municipal consent to place in, upon, across, above, over and
under highways, streets, alleys, sidewalks, easements, public ways and public
places in the municipality poles, wires, cables, underground conduits, manholes
and other television conductors, fixtures, apparatus and equipment as may
be necessary for the construction, operation and maintenance in the municipality
of a cable television and communications system.
For the purpose of this ordinance, the following terms, phrases, words
and their derivations shall have the meanings given herein. Such meaning or
definition of terms is supplemental to those definitions of the Federal Communications
Commission (FCC) rules and regulations, 47 CFR Subsection 76.1 et seq., and
the Cable Communications Policy Act, 47 U.S.C. § 521 et seq., as
amended, and the Cable Television Act, N.J.S.A. 48:5A-1 et seq., and shall
in no way be construed to broaden, alter or conflict with the federal and
state definitions:
APPLICATION
The company's application for renewal of municipal consent.
BASIC CABLE SERVICE
Any service tier, which includes the retransmission of local television
broadcast signals as defined by the FCC.
BOARD or BPU
The Board of Public Utilities, State of New Jersey.
COMPANY
The grantee of rights under this ordinance and is known as "Comcast
Cablevision of South Jersey, Inc."
FCC
The Federal Communications Commission.
A public hearing conducted by the municipality, concerning the renewal
of municipal consent herein granted to the company, was held after proper
public notice pursuant to the terms and conditions of the Act and the regulations
of the Board adopted pursuant thereto. Said hearings, having been fully open
to the public, and the municipality, having received at said public hearings
all comments regarding the qualifications of the company to receive this renewal
of municipal consent, the municipality hereby finds that the company possesses
the necessary legal, technical, character, financial and other qualifications
and that the company's operating and construction arrangements are adequate
and feasible.
A. The nonexclusive municipal consent granted herein shall
expire 15 years from the date of expiration of the previous certificate of
approval issued by the Board with a ten-year automatic renewal as provided
by N.J.S.A. 48:5A-19 and 48:5A-25, and N.J.A.C. 14:18-13.6.
B. In the event that the municipality shall find that the
company has not substantially complied with the material terms and conditions
of this ordinance, the municipality shall have the right to petition the OCTV,
pursuant to N.J.S.A. 48:5A-47, for appropriate action, including modification
and/or termination of the certificate of approval; provided, however, that
the municipality shall first have given the company written notice of all
alleged instances of noncompliance and an opportunity to cure same within
90 days of that notification.
Pursuant to the terms and conditions of the Act, the company shall,
during each year of operation under the consent granted herein, pay to the
municipality 2% of the gross revenues from all recurring charges in the nature
of subscription fees paid by subscribers for cable television reception service
in the municipality or any higher amount permitted by the Act or otherwise
allowable by law, whichever is greater.
The consent granted under this ordinance to the renewal of the franchise
shall apply to the entirety of the municipality and any property subsequently
annexed hereto.
The company shall be required to proffer service to any residence or
business along any public right-of-way in the primary service area, as set
forth in the company's application. Any extension of plant beyond the primary
service area shall be governed by the company's line extension policy, as
set forth in the company's application.
A. Restoration. In the event that the company or its agents
shall disturb any pavement, street surfaces, sidewalks, driveways, or other
surface in the nature topography, the company shall, at its sole expense,
restore and replace such places or things so disturbed in as good a condition
as existed prior to the commencement of said work.
B. Relocation. If, at any time during the period of this
consent, the municipality shall alter or change the grade of any street, alley
or other way or place, the company, upon reasonable notice from the municipality,
shall remove, re-lay or relocate its equipment, at the expense of the company.
C. Removal or trimming of trees. During the exercise of
its rights and privileges under this franchise, the company shall have the
authority to trim trees upon and overhanging streets, alleys, sidewalks or
other public places of the municipality so as to prevent the branches of such
trees from coming in contact with the wires and cable of the company. Such
trimming shall be only to the extent necessary to maintain proper clearance
of the company's wire and cables.
In providing services to its customers, the company shall comply with
N.J.A.C. 14:18-1 et seq. and all applicable state and federal statutes and
regulations. The company shall strive to meet or exceed all voluntary company
and industry standards in the delivery of customer service and shall be prepared
to report on it to the municipality upon written request of the Clerk/Municipal
Administrator.
A. The company shall continue to comply fully with all applicable
state and federal statutes and regulations regarding credit for outages, the
reporting of same to regulatory agencies and notification of same to customers.
B. The company shall continue to fully comply with all applicable
state and federal statutes and regulations regarding the availability of devices
for the hearing impaired and the notification of same to customers.
C. The company shall use every effort to meet or exceed
voluntary standards for telephone accessibility developed by the National
Cable Television Association (NCTA).
D. Nothing herein shall impair the right of any subscriber
or the municipality to express any comment with respect to telephone accessibility
to the Complaint Officer, or impair the right of the Complaint Officer to
take any action that is permitted under law.
The Office of Cable Television is hereby designed as the Complaint Officer
for the municipality pursuant to N.J.S.A. 48:5A-26b. All complaints shall
be received and processed in accordance with N.J.A.C. 14:17-6.5. The municipality
shall have the right to request copies of records and reports pertaining to
complaints by municipality customers from the OCTV.
During the term of this franchise, and any renewal thereof, the company
shall maintain a business office or agent in accordance with N.J.A.C. 14:18-5.1
for the purpose of receiving, investigating and resolving all local complaints
regarding the quality of service, equipment malfunctions, and similar matters.
Such a business office shall have a publicly listed toll-free telephone number
and be open during standard business hours, and in no event (excepting emergent
circumstances) less than 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
During the life of the franchise, the company shall give to the municipality
a bond in the amount of $25,000. Such bond shall be to insure application
for municipal consent incorporated herein.
The rates of the company shall be subject to regulation as permitted
by federal and state law.
A. The company shall provide total preferred cable television
service on one outlet at no cost to each school in the municipality, public
and private, elementary, intermediate, and secondary, provided the school
is within 175 feet of active cable distribution plant. Each additional outlet
installed, if any, shall be paid for on a materials-plus-labor basis by the
school requesting service. Monthly service charges shall be waived on all
additional outlets.
B. The company shall provide total preferred cable television
service at no cost on one outlet to each police, fire, emergency management
facility and public library in the municipality, provided the facility is
located within 175 feet of active cable distribution plant. Each additional
outlet installed, if any, shall be paid for on a materials-plus-labor basis
by the municipality. Monthly service charges shall be waived on all additional
outlets.
In the event that the municipality determines that it is necessary and
feasible for it to contract with the company for the purpose of providing
two-way or interconnection services, the company shall be required to apply
to the BPU for approval to enter into and establish the terms and conditions
of such contract. All costs for such application to the BPU shall be borne
by the municipality.
A. The company will comply with the Emergency Alert System
(EAS) rules in accordance with applicable state and federal statutes and regulations.
B. The company shall in no way be held liable for any injury
suffered by the municipality or any other person, during an emergency, if
for any reason the municipality is unable to make full use of the cable television
system as contemplated herein.
A. The company shall at all times maintain a comprehensive
general liability insurance policy with a single limit amount of $1,000,000
covering liability for any death, personal injury, property damages or other
liability arising out of its construction and operation of the cable television
system, and an excess liability (or "umbrella") policy in the amount of $5,000,000.
B. All of the commitments and statements contained in the
application and any amendment thereto submitted in writing to the municipality
by the company, except as modified herein, are binding upon the company as
terms and conditions of this municipal consent. The application and any other
relevant writing submitted by the company shall be annexed hereto and made
a part hereof by reference as long as it does not conflict with state or federal
law. All ordinances or parts of ordinances or other agreements between the
municipality and the company that are in conflict with the provisions of this
agreement are hereby declared invalid and superseded.
Should the municipality grant a franchise to construct, operate and
maintain a cable television system to any other person, corporation or entity
on terms materially less burdensome or more favorable than the terms contained
herein, the company may substitute such language that is more favorable or
less burdensome for the comparable provision of this ordinance subject to
the provisions of N.J.A.C. 14:17-6.7.
If any section, subsection, sentence, clause, phrase or portion of this
ordinance is for any reason held invalid or unconstitutional by any court
or federal or state agency of competent jurisdiction, such portion shall be
deemed a separate, distinct and independent provision, and its validity or
unconstitutionality shall not affect the validity of the remaining portions
of the ordinance.
This ordinance shall take effect immediately upon issuance of a renewal
certificate of approval from the BPU.