[HISTORY: Adopted by the City Council of
the City of Vineland 8-9-1994 by Ord. No. 94-59 (Ch.
A464 of the 1990 Code); amended in its entirety 11-25-2008 by Ord. No.
2008-80. Subsequent amendments noted where applicable.]
The City of Vineland hereby grants to Comcast 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 City of Vineland 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 City of Vineland 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:
Chapter 186 of the General Laws of New Jersey, 1972, and
subsequent amendments thereto, N.J.S.A. 48:5A-1 et seq.
The company's application for renewal of municipal consent.
Any service tier, which includes the retransmission of local
television broadcast signals as defined by the FCC.
The Board of Public Utilities, State of New Jersey.
The City of Vineland, New Jersey.
The grantee of rights under this ordinance and is known as
"Comcast of South Jersey, LLC."
The Federal Communications Commission.
The Office of Cable Television of the Board.
Consists of the area of the City of Vineland currently served
with existing plant as set forth in the map annexed to the company's
application for municipal consent.
Public hearings conducted by the City of Vineland, concerning
the renewal of municipal consent herein granted to the company, were
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 City
of Vineland, having received at said public hearings all comments
regarding the qualifications of the company to receive this renewal
of municipal consent, the City of Vineland 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 City of Vineland shall find that the company
has not substantially complied with the material terms and conditions
of this ordinance, the City of Vineland shall have the right to petition
the OCTV, pursuant to N.J.S.A. 48:5A-47, for appropriate action, including
modification or termination of the certificate of approval; provided,
however, that the City of Vineland 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 City of Vineland 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 City of Vineland 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 City of Vineland 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 natural 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
City of Vineland shall alter or change the grade of any street, alley
or other way or place the company, upon reasonable notice by the City
of Vineland, 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 City of Vineland 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 City of Vineland
upon written request of the Municipal Administrator or Clerk.
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 reasonable 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 City
of Vineland 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 designated as the Complaint
Officer for the City of Vineland pursuant to N.J.S.A. 48:5A-26(b).
All complaints shall be received and processed in accordance with
N.J.A.C. 14:17-6.5. The City of Vineland shall have the right to request
copies of records and reports pertaining to complaints by City of
Vineland 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., Monday through Friday.
During the life of the franchise the company shall give to the
City of Vineland a bond in the amount of $25,000. Such bond shall
be to insure the faithful performance of all undertakings of the company
as represented in its 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 City of Vineland, 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, each senior and youth center owned or operated by the City
of Vineland and the Vineland Public Library, 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 City of Vineland. Monthly service charges
shall be waived on all additional outlets.
C.
The company shall provide free basic Internet service, via high-speed
cable modem, to one nonnetworked personal computer in each qualified
existing and future public school in the City, elementary, intermediate
and secondary, at no charge, provided the facility is located within
175 feet of active cable distribution plant. The Internet service
shall be installed on a personal computer that is accessible to the
students and not for administrative use only.
D.
The company shall provide free basic Internet access via high-speed
cable modem on one nonnetworked personal computer in each qualified
existing and future public library at no charge, provided the facility
is located within 175 feet of active cable distribution plant. The
Internet service shall be installed on a personal computer that is
accessible to library patrons and not for administrative use only.
E.
Within six months of the issuance of a renewal certificate of approval,
the company shall provide to the City a one-time technology grant
in the amount of $145,000 to meet the cable-related needs of the community.
A.
The company will continue to provide one educational/governmental
(EG) channel for the residents of the City of Vineland on the most
basic tier of service offered by the company in accordance with the
Cable Act, Section 611, and as further set forth below. Educational/governmental
video programming shall be provided by the governing body. Unused
capacity may be utilized by the company subject to the provisions
for "fallow time" below.
B.
The company does not relinquish its ownership of or ultimate right
of control over a channel by designating it for EG use. An EG access
user, whether an educational or government user, acquires no property
or other interest by virtue of the use of a channel so designated,
and may not rely on the continued use of a particular channel number,
no matter how long the same channel may have been designated for such
use.
C.
The company shall not exercise editorial control over any educational
or governmental use of channel capacity, except company may refuse
to transmit any educational or governmental access program or portion
of an educational or governmental access program that contains obscenity,
indecency, or nudity.
D.
The governing body of City of Vineland shall be responsible for developing,
implementing, and enforcing rules for EG access channel use.
E.
Educational access. "Educational access" shall mean noncommercial
use by educational institutions such as public or private schools,
but not home schools, community colleges, and universities.
F.
Government access. "Government access" shall mean noncommercial use
by the governing body of City of Vineland.
G.
Company use of fallow time. Because fallow time on EG channels is
not in the public interest, in the event the City of Vineland elects
not to fully program their EG access channel, company may program
unused time on those channels subject to reclamation by the City of
Vineland upon no less than 60 days' written notice. "Fallow time"
shall mean periods when the channel is not being actively used, such
as when the viewer's screen would be blank, feature only static, or
similarly limited uses that reasonably constitute a waste of the channel
space.
H.
Indemnification. The City shall indemnify company for any liability,
loss, or damage it may suffer due to violation of the intellectual
property rights of third parties on the EG channel and from claims
arising out of the City's rules for or administration of access.
I.
The company will provide an additional EG access channel, upon a
demonstration by the City that utilization of the existing EG access
channel exceeds 40 hours per week of original, noncommercial, first-run,
locally produced full motion video programming over a period of 18
consecutive weeks; and providing the City has continued its partnership
with Cumberland County College in presenting educational programming
to the residents a minimum of 12 hours weekly.
J.
The company will provide access to a switch based at the company's
hub site via a static IP address to change programming between the
City of Vineland and Cumberland County College at the direction of
the City.
[Amended 10-24-2017 by Ord. No.
2017-70]
The Council of the City of Vineland may, in its discretion,
appoint an advisory committee (herein, the "committee"), consisting
of five members, one member to be appointed by each Council person.
The committee may also appoint one alternate member. The committee
shall meet periodically at Vineland City Hall, unless the committee
unanimously agrees to meet elsewhere, and shall:
A.
Monitor compliance of the city and the company with regard to the
conditions of the franchise.
B.
Discuss and recommend solutions to problems concerning the operation
of the cable system.
C.
Attempt to resolve any problems which may result from implementation
of this ordinance.
D.
Recommend to the city, on a timely basis, any changes in this franchise
which in the future could be permitted under federal or state law
changes, amendments and judicial interpretations hereafter promulgated.
Such changes are subject to the formal amendment process, which shall
include acceptance from the company and approval from the Board of
Regulatory Commissioners pursuant to existing law.
E.
Develop rules for the use the EG channel and provide the company
with a copy of said rules.
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 City of Vineland or any other person, during an emergency,
if for any reason the City of Vineland is unable to make full use
of the cable television system as contemplated herein.
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.
All of the statements and commitments contained in the application
or annexed thereto and incorporated therein, and any amendment thereto,
except as modified herein, are binding upon the company as terms and
conditions of this consent. The application and other relevant writings
submitted by the company shall be annexed hereto and made a part hereof
by reference, provided same do not conflict with applicable state
or federal law.
Should the City of Vineland 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.
Nothing in this franchise or in any prior agreement is or was
intended to confer third-party beneficiary status on any member of
the public to enforce the terms of such agreements or franchise.
