Each cable system operator must satisfy all FCC and state customer service standards or consumer protection standards, as well as the provisions of this chapter. In the case of a conflict among standards, the stricter standard shall apply.
(Ord. 607 § 1, 2004)
The grantee shall not deny service or access or otherwise discriminate against subscribers, channel users or general citizens on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, sex, age, disability or occupation. Nothing in this section shall be deemed to prohibit senior discounts or discounts for new subscribers.
(Ord. 607 § 1, 2004)
If required by the ordinance granting a franchise, the grantee shall maintain a local business office in a location specified in the ordinance granting a franchise. If a local business office is not required by the ordinance granting a franchise, the grantee shall provide for a location within the city where bills may be paid, and equipment exchanged, picked up or delivered. The location shall be staffed with knowledgeable personnel able to render such assistance to subscribers.
(Ord. 607 § 1, 2004)
A. 
Telephone Number. The grantee shall also make a publicly listed toll-free telephone number available to subscribers for the purpose of receiving requests for service, inquiries and complaints from subscribers.
B. 
Telephone Hours. Customer service representatives must answer the phone at least 10 hours per day, Monday through Saturday, except for legal holidays. After such business hours, the phone shall be answered so that customers can register complaints and report service problems on a 24 hour per day, seven day per week basis, and so that the grantee can respond to service outages as required herein.
C. 
Telephone Answer Time. Pursuant to federal law, under normal operating conditions, telephone answer time by a customer service representative, including wait time, and the time required to transfer the call, shall not exceed 30 seconds. The customer shall receive a busy signal less than three percent of the total time that the telephone system is staffed by customer service representatives. These standards shall be met no less than 80% of the time measured quarterly. If the city receives complaints indicating a significant problem in any telephone system, the city may require the cable operator to meet the above standards not less than 80% of the time measured over a 60 day period until such time as the performance is perceived to be satisfactory.
D. 
Major System Outages. Notwithstanding subsection C of this section, in cases of major system outages or major service interruption, the grantee may provide a recorded message informing customers of the problem and probable correction time as long as subscribers are still able to reach a customer service representative.
(Ord. 607 § 1, 2004)
A. 
Appointments. All appointments for service, installation, or disconnection shall be specified by date. Each grantee shall specify a specific time at which the work will be done, and service personnel shall arrive within 30 minutes of the scheduled time. Service installation calls may be scheduled outside normal business hours, for the express convenience of the subscriber. For service calls responding to system or individual outages, holiday and weekend scheduling shall also be available.
B. 
Rescheduling Appointments. If at any time an installer or technician anticipates that he or she will be late for an appointment and believes a scheduled appointment time will be missed, an attempt to contact the subscriber shall be made and the appointment rescheduled at a time convenient to the subscriber, if rescheduling is necessary. An appointment with a subscriber shall not be cancelled after the close of business on the business day prior to the scheduled appointment. It is the grantee's burden to prove it met the appointment.
C. 
Missed Appointments. The grantee shall make available to subscribers who have experienced a missed appointment (where the missed appointment was not the subscriber's fault) remediation consistent with good business practices and in accordance with federal and California law. Such remedies shall include an opportunity to elect remedies under California Civil Code Section 1722, as it may be amended from time to time, if applicable.
(Ord. 607 § 1, 2004)
A. 
Acknowledging Service Request. Under normal operating conditions, requests for service, repair, and maintenance shall be acknowledged by a trained customer service representative within 24 hours, or before the end of the next business day, whichever is earlier.
B. 
Acknowledging Other Inquiries. Any other inquiries (including billing inquiries) shall be responded to within five business days of the inquiry or complaint.
C. 
Repairing Outages. Under normal operating conditions, repairs and maintenance for outages or service interruptions shall be completed within 24 hours after the outage or service interruption becomes known to grantee where the grantee has adequate access to facilities to which it must have access in order to remedy the problem. Each grantee shall obtain an emergency repair permit annually from the city's department of public works.
D. 
Service Problem Repairs. Under normal operating conditions, work to correct all other service problems must begin by the next business day after notification of the service problem, and must be completed within five business days from the date of the initial request.
E. 
Abnormal Operating Conditions. When normal operating conditions do not exist, a grantee shall complete the work in the shortest time possible.
F. 
Time for Extension. Except as a franchise ordinance otherwise provides, service shall be extended upon request to any person or to any government building in a grantee's franchise area: (1) within seven days of the request, where service can be provided by activating or installing a drop; (2) within 90 days of the request where an extension of one mile or less is required; or (3) within six months where an extension of one mile or more is required.
G. 
Service Upgrades. Requests for additional outlets, service upgrades or other connections (e.g., DMX, VCR, A/B switch) separate from the initial installation shall be performed within seven business days after an order has been placed.
H. 
Service Standards to be Met. Under normal operating conditions, the service standards set out in this section shall be met at least 90% of the time, measured on a quarterly basis. The phrase "at least 90% of the time" refers to the number of service requests received by the grantee, so that if grantee receives 100 service requests, at least 90 of those requests shall be scheduled and/or completed within the time limits specified in this chapter. Nothing in this section shall require grantee to process service requests that grantee reasonably determines are not based on objectively verifiable service problems, and such service request may be excluded from the determination of whether the grantee has met the service standard.
I. 
Sufficient Service Staff Required. The failure of the grantee to hire sufficient staff or to properly train its staff shall not justify a grantee's failure to comply with this provision.
(Ord. 607 § 1, 2004)
Upon reasonable request or complaint by a subscriber, the grantee shall, at its sole expense, perform such signal level tests as necessary to establish if a signal of requisite quality is being delivered to the subscriber's premises. The test shall be conducted at the subscriber's receiver and at other such locations deemed necessary by the grantee. The subscriber shall be provided with the test results upon request.
(Ord. 607 § 1, 2004)
The city shall be provided with a copy of all notices for rate changes, programming changes and channel lineup changes that are sent to subscribers within the franchise area. Such copies of notices shall be provided to the city prior to and/or at the same time as the notice(s) are first provided to any subscriber in the franchise area.
(Ord. 607 § 1, 2004)
A grantee shall provide each subscriber at the time service is installed, and annually thereafter, clear and accurate written information:
A. 
On placing a service call, filing a complaint, or requesting an adjustment (including when a subscriber is entitled to refunds for outages and how to obtain them);
B. 
Showing the telephone number of city office responsible for administering the franchise;
C. 
Providing a schedule of rates and charges (which listing must identify any discounts offered), including but not limited to disconnect fees and service downgrade fees, if any; deposits, refunds of deposits, payment options, channel positions, services provided, a copy of the service contract, delinquent subscriber disconnect and reconnect procedures, notifying subscribers of the availability of parental control devices, and the conditions under which they will be provided and the cost (if any) charged; and notifying subscribers of the privacy policy;
D. 
Describing conditions that must be met to qualify for discounts;
E. 
Describing policies related to privacy and confidentiality;
F. 
Describing any other of the grantee's policies in connection with its subscribers; and
G. 
Describing any discounts, services, or specialized equipment available to subscribers with disabilities; explaining how to obtain them; and explaining how to use any accessibility features.
Subscribers shall also be given notice of any material changes in the foregoing at least 30 days before such changes take effect.
(Ord. 607 § 1, 2004)
Where service interruptions of one hour duration or longer are planned, the grantee shall notify subscribers at least 24 hours before the anticipated interruption, provided that no notification shall be required for service interruptions occurring between two a.m. and six a.m. Notification does not need to be repeated before each anticipated interruption as long as the initial notification advises of the possibility of repeated interruptions during a specified period not to exceed one month. To the extent feasible, the grantee shall avoid interruptions between five p.m. and midnight.
(Ord. 607 § 1, 2004)
The grantee shall notify subscribers of any changes in programming services or channel position as soon as possible through announcements on the cable system and in writing. Notices must be given to subscribers a minimum of 30 days in advance of such changes if the change is within the control of the grantee. The grantee shall provide a copy of all notifications to the city.
(Ord. 607 § 1, 2004)
Each grantee shall take appropriate steps to ensure that all written operator promotional materials, announcements, and advertising of residential cable service to subscribers and the general public, where price information is listed in any manner, clearly and accurately discloses price terms. In the case of telephone orders, an operator shall take appropriate steps to ensure that price terms are clearly and accurately disclosed to potential customers in advance of taking the order.
(Ord. 607 § 1, 2004)
A. 
Prorated Billing. A grantee's first billing statement to a subscriber after a new installation or service change will be prorated as appropriate and will reflect any security deposit.
B. 
Monthly Billing. Bills for service shall be monthly. Nothing in this section shall prohibit the voluntary prepayment of services by subscribers, provided that the grantee shall not be required to offer or accept any discount or other reduction in the amount paid by any subscriber for a voluntary prepayment of services.
C. 
Clear Billing Statement. A grantee's billing statement must be clear, concise, and under-standable, must itemize each category of service and equipment provided to the subscriber; and must state clearly the charges therefor. Bills shall include a listing of the grantee's customer service telephone number in a manner that makes such number significantly more prominent than any other telephone numbers listed on the bill.
D. 
Payment Due Date Specified. A grantee's billing statement must show a specific payment due date not earlier than the later of:
1. 
Fifteen days after the date the statement is mailed; or
2. 
The tenth day of the service period for which the bill is rendered.
E. 
Late Fee. Late fee penalties and notice requirements will meet the California state consumer law standards.
F. 
Grantee's Billing Errors. Subscribers shall not be charged a late fee or otherwise penalized for any failure by a grantee, including failure to timely or correctly bill the subscriber, or failure to properly credit the subscriber for a payment timely made. Payments shall be considered timely if received on the due date.
G. 
Payment by Mail or in Person. A grantee's bill must permit a subscriber to remit payment by mail or in person at the grantee's local office or payment facility.
(Ord. 607 § 1, 2004)
Grantee shall provide an appropriately detailed response to all written billing complaints from subscribers within 30 days of receipt.
(Ord. 607 § 1, 2004)
Refunds to subscribers shall be issued no later than:
A. 
The subscriber's next billing cycle following resolution of the refund request, or
B. 
Thirty days, whichever is earlier.
(Ord. 607 § 1, 2004)
A. 
Prorated Credit for Service Impairment. A subscriber's account shall be credited a prorated share of the monthly charge for the service upon subscriber's request if a subscriber is without service or if service is substantially impaired for any reason for a period exceeding one hour during any 24 hour period.
B. 
Impairment Caused by Subscriber. A grantee need not credit a subscriber if it establishes that a subscriber will obtain a refund for a loss of service or impairment caused by the subscriber or by subscriber-owned equipment (not including, for purposes of this section, in-home wiring installed by the grantee).
C. 
Credit Issued Next Billing Cycle. Credits for cable service shall be issued no later than the subscriber's next billing cycle after the determination that the credit is warranted.
D. 
Other Credits. Nothing in this section shall prohibit the grantee from giving other credits.
(Ord. 607 § 1, 2004)
A. 
Disconnection for Nonpayment. A grantee shall not disconnect a subscriber's cable service for nonpayment unless:
1. 
The subscriber is delinquent in payment for cable service;
2. 
A separate, written notice of impending disconnection, postage prepaid, has been sent to the subscriber at least 20 days before the date on which service may be disconnected, at the premises where the subscriber requests billing, which notice shall identify the names and address of the subscriber whose account is delinquent, state the date by which disconnection may occur if payment is not made, and the amount the subscriber must pay to avoid disconnection, and a telephone number of a representative of the grantee who can provide additional information and handle complaints or initiate an investigation concerning the services and charges in question;
3. 
The subscriber fails to pay the amounts owed to avoid disconnection by the date of disconnection; and
4. 
No pending inquiry exists regarding the bill to which grantee has not responded in writing.
B. 
No Disconnection if Payment Made. If the subscriber pays all amounts due, including late charges, before the date scheduled for disconnection, the grantee shall not disconnect service. Service may only be terminated on days in which the subscriber can reach a representative of the grantee either in person or by telephone.
C. 
Reinstating Service. After disconnection (except as noted below), upon payment by the subscriber in full of all proper fees or charges, including the payment of the reconnection charge, if any, the grantee shall promptly reinstate service.
(Ord. 607 § 1, 2004)
A. 
Disconnection. A grantee may immediately disconnect a subscriber if:
1. 
The subscriber is damaging, destroying, or unlawfully tampering with or has damaged or destroyed or unlawfully tampered with the grantee's cable system;
2. 
The subscriber is not authorized to receive a service and is receiving it and/or is facilitating, aiding or abetting the unauthorized receipt of service by others; or
3. 
Subscriber-installed or attached equipment is resulting in signal leakage that is in violation of FCC rules.
B. 
Lawful Use of Equipment. A subscriber may use or install any equipment on the subscriber's premises, and connect it to the cable system, unless expressly prohibited by law. Installation or use of any such equipment by a subscriber is permitted and a grantee shall not disconnect such a subscriber unless the use or installation of the equipment creates grounds for disconnection pursuant to Section 5.20.400(A) (nonpayment).
C. 
Restoration of Service. After disconnection, the grantee shall restore service after the subscriber provides adequate assurance that it has ceased the practices that led to disconnection, and paid all proper fees and charges, including any reconnect fees and all amounts owed the grantee for damage to its cable system or equipment. Provided that, no reconnection fee may be imposed on a subscriber disconnected pursuant to this article if the leakage was the result of the grantee's acts or omissions; or in any case unless the grantee notifies the subscriber of the leakage at least three business days in advance of disconnection, and the subscriber has failed to correct the leakage within that time.
(Ord. 607 § 1, 2004)
Any security deposit and/or other funds, including interest, due a subscriber that disconnects or downgrades service shall be returned to the subscriber within 30 days or in the next billing cycle, whichever is later, from the date disconnection or downgrade was requested except in cases where the subscriber does not permit the grantee to recover its equipment, in which case the amounts owed shall be paid to subscribers within 30 days of the date the equipment was recovered, or in the next billing cycle, whichever is later.
(Ord. 607 § 1, 2004)
A. 
Subscriber Termination. A subscriber may terminate service at any time without penalty.
B. 
Disconnection Upon Subscriber Termination. A grantee shall promptly disconnect from the cable system or downgrade any subscriber who so requests. No charges for service may be made after the subscriber requests disconnection. No period of notice before voluntary termination or downgrade of cable service may be required of subscribers by any grantee. There shall be no charge for disconnection, except for the collection fee authorized by state law, and any downgrade charges shall conform to applicable law. The notice required by Section 5.20.360 shall describe the collection fee authorized by state law and the circumstances in which it may apply.
(Ord. 607 § 1, 2004)
A. 
Without limiting a grantee's obligations under federal law, a grantee shall provide parental control devices to all subscribers who request them that enable the subscriber to block the video and audio portion of any channel or channels of programming. A grantee shall notify all subscribers in writing of the availability of these devices at the time of initial connection, and at least annually thereafter.
B. 
To the extent required by federal law, if a grantee plans to provide a premium channel without charge to a subscriber who does not subscribe to such premium channel, the grantee shall provide at least 30 days prior written notice thereof to such subscriber, and upon the subscriber's request, shall block entirely the subscriber's reception of such channel. For purposes of this section, a "channel" means any pay service offered on a per channel or per program basis, which offers movies rated by the Motion Picture Association as X, NC-17, or R.
(Ord. 607 § 1, 2004)
A grantee may require a reasonable, nondiscriminatory deposit on equipment provided to subscribers. Deposits will be placed in an interest-bearing account, and the grantee shall return the deposit, plus interest earned to the date the deposit is returned to the subscriber, less any amount the grantee can demonstrate should be deducted for damage to such equipment.
(Ord. 607 § 1, 2004)
Except as applicable law may otherwise provide, an operator may remove its property from a subscriber's premises within 30 days of the termination of service or when it determines that operator's equipment has not been returned by a subscriber. If a grantee fails to remove its property in that period, the property shall be deemed abandoned unless the grantee has been denied access to the subscriber's premises, or the grantee has a continuing right to occupy the premises under applicable law.
(Ord. 607 § 1, 2004)
A. 
The grantee shall not sell or otherwise release to any person, without specific written authorization from each individual subscriber, any list that identifies individual subscriber viewing habits or any list that contains the name, address and/or telephone numbers of individual subscribers without the prior written or electronic consent of the subscriber. Compliance with federal privacy requirements shall be deemed compliance with this section provided that federal law or regulations continue to provide for privacy requirements.
B. 
The grantee shall not place in a residence any equipment capable of being used by the grantee for audio eavesdropping or video surveillance. In addition, the grantee shall not activate any two-way communications capability of the system in a subscriber's residence, or use the system to gather information about individual subscriber viewing habits, without the subscriber's informed written or electronic consent. Notwithstanding the above, the grantee shall have the right to use the system to: (1) obtain information necessary to render cable service or any other service provided by the grantee to the subscriber; (2) verify receipt of cable service for billing purposes; or (3) detect unauthorized reception.
(Ord. 607 § 1, 2004)
For each violation of a cable system customer service standard, penalties will be imposed as follows and shall not be charged or passed through to subscribers:
A. 
Two hundred dollars for each day of each material breach, not to exceed $600 for each occurrence of material breach.
B. 
If there is a subsequent material breach of the same provision within 12 months, $400 for each day of each material breach, not to exceed $1,200 for each occurrence of the material breach.
C. 
If there is a third or additional material breach of the same provision within 12 months of the first, $1,000 for each day of each material breach, not to exceed $3,000 for each occurrence of the material breach.
(Ord. 607 § 1, 2004)
Notwithstanding the requirements of this article, the city manager is authorized to relieve a grantee of its obligations under this article if:
A. 
Grantee shows that there is an alternative standard that is substantially similar to that established by this article;
B. 
The city manager determines that there is sufficient competition among cable operators that renders application of these standards unnecessary; or
C. 
In light of the number of customers served by a grantee, the requirements of this article are, in the city manager's sole discretion, unduly burdensome and there is an alternative way to serve the same interest.
The city manager shall inform the city council of any decision to relieve a cable operator of any obligations.
(Ord. 607 § 1, 2004)