[HISTORY: Adopted by the Township Committee
of the Township of Carneys Point as indicated in article histories.
Amendments noted where applicable.]
[Adopted 12-13-1965 by Ord. No. 184]
As used in this article, the following terms
shall have the meanings indicated:
Community antenna television service, and shall be construed
to mean the running of cables, lines and other apparatus for the transmission
and distribution of television signals within, upon, over and across
the streets and highways of the Township so as to set up, operate
and maintain a community television service for the transmission and
distribution of television broadcast signals to individual subscribing
members of the public by way of special connection through the cables,
lines or other apparatus of the operator.
No person, firm or corporation, or combination
of the same, shall engage in, carry on or conduct in the Township
of Carneys Point the operation of the business of microwave service
stations used to relay television broadcast signals to community antenna
television systems, commonly referred to as "CATV," unless said person,
firm or corporation shall have first applied for and secured a license
from the Township Committee of the Township of Carneys Point.
The application for the issuance of a license
shall be submitted to the Township Committee in writing, together
with the plan of operation intended by the applicant. The application
shall also be accompanied by the written permission of the person
or persons who shall be legally entitled to furnish the same, certifying
that the applicant has the necessary permission to install its lines,
cables or apparatus upon the property of such person or persons. This
section shall not refer to the property of the individual subscribers
but shall refer to any person who maintains poles, towers or other
structures to which the applicant's lines or cables may be attached.
The Township Committee in considering and reviewing
the application and in arriving at its decision shall be guided by
and take into consideration the public health, safety and general
welfare of the community, and particular consideration shall be given
to the extent of the public need for such service. The Township Committee
may also require the applicant to take such measures or precautions
as it may consider necessary as conditions to the issuance of such
license in furtherance of the public health, safety and general welfare
of the community.
Before any such license shall be granted or
issued, the applicant shall file with the Township Committee satisfactory
proof in a form acceptable to the Township Committee that the Township
has been insured at the applicant's expense to protect and save harmless
the Township, its agents, officers, employees or representatives from
any and all claims, demands, causes of action, liability, judgments,
costs and expenses or losses to any person or property of all nature,
including workmen's compensation, copyright or other infringement,
and further including any and all expenses which may be incurred by
the Township to assert any defense or participation in any litigation
in which the Township may become involved arising out of or caused
by or as a result of the applicant's construction, erection, maintenance,
use or presence of or removal of any of its installations, equipment
or attachments.
The term of any license granted under the authority
of this article shall extend for a period of one year and shall be
automatically renewable to the licensee in the absence of any matter
which constitutes a failure to comply with the provisions of this
article or default in any of the provisions of this article or any
of the other ordinances or regulations of the Township or default
in any of its obligations as otherwise may be provided for from time
to time by lawful authority.
There shall be paid to the Township a license
fee in an amount equal to 5% of the gross revenues of the licensee
derived from the Township, but which shall not be less than the sum
of $1,200, covering any one calendar licensed year. The Township retains
the right to demand inspection of any books of account of the licensee
to determine the proper amount of payment due. In addition to said
report, the licensee shall provide a certified annual statement by
a duly recognized certified public accountant showing the gross revenues
received from the Township.
Upon issuance of the license provided for herein,
the licensee shall make the CATV services available to those eligible
inhabitants of the Township desiring the service at the earliest practical
date. Any planning required by the licensee shall immediately commence,
and construction of the system must be commenced within one year of
the issuance of the license, and completion of the system shall be
required within two years of the issuance of the license.
No license issued or granted under the authority
of this article shall be assigned, transferred or sublet, including
any of the privileges or rights thereunder, without further application
and consent of the Township Committee.
No new poles or other installations for the
placing of the transmitting lines or cables shall be placed by the
licensee within the Township except as may be necessary for its purposes
hereunder. All new locations shall first be approved by the Township
Engineer in writing, and such approval must be requested of the Township
Engineer in writing. Further, they shall be placed or located so as
not to interfere with or hinder or obstruct the public use of streets,
alleys and other public places and shall not unnecessarily or unreasonably
interfere with, hinder or obstruct the use or enjoyment of private
property adjacent thereto.
A.
The Township shall have the right, free of any cost
or expense, to use any poles erected by or for or owned by the CATV
system in the Township, for any proper municipal purpose acceptable
to the CATV system, insofar as it may be done without interfering
with the free use and enjoyment of the CATV system's own wires and
fixtures.
B.
The licensee shall furnish, without any installation
or monthly service fee, the services of CATV to municipal and school
buildings situate within the Township as such services may be requested.
A.
All installations of equipment shall be of a permanent
nature, durable and installed in accordance with good engineering
practice and sufficient to comply with all existing Township regulations,
ordinances and state laws so as not to interfere in any manner with
the right of the public or individual property owners and shall not
interfere with the travel and use of public places by the public and
during the construction, repair or removal thereof shall not obstruct
or impede traffic.
B.
Construction and maintenance of the transmission distribution
system shall be in accordance with the provisions of the National
Electrical Safety Code and such applicable ordinances and regulations
of the Township as may be presently in effect or may become effective
in the future.
C.
The installations and other facilities of the licensee
shall be removed by it when no longer used for its intended purpose
or whenever required by the Township in connection with public improvements
or for other reasonable cause certified by the Township.
D.
Any public highways, sidewalks or abutting property
disturbed or damaged in the erection, construction, maintenance or
operation of the facilities of the licensee shall be promptly repaired
by it to the satisfaction of the Township.
A.
The licensee shall not engage in the sale, rental
or service of television sets or receivers, nor is the authority granted
by the license hereunder to be construed as giving to the licensee
the authority to construct, maintain or operate a pay-television system;
nor shall it be construed to be an exclusive franchise, contract,
grant or right. The Township expressly reserves its rights, powers
and authority of and over streets, alleys and other public places
in the Township pursuant to its ordinances and the statutes of the
State of New Jersey heretofore or hereinafter enacted and further
reserves the right to grant franchises or contracts for this or any
other purposes pursuant to such ordinances and statutes.
B.
The Township expressly reserves the right and power
to make and adopt regulations pursuant to this article by resolution
to regulate the conduct of the licensee in its operation of CATV as
well as the regulation of the system, including the fixing of standards
of service consistent with other public authority and the fixing of
rates for connection and service charges. No changes or revisions
in the rates and service charges shall be made, however, unless the
licensee shall have first been given adequate notice of the intention
to so change or revise and an opportunity to be heard thereon.
If the licensee shall fail to comply with any
of the provisions of this article or shall default in any of its obligations
and shall fail after written notice from the Township to correct such
default or noncompliance, then the Township may forthwith terminate
and revoke the license granted hereunder and any rights pertaining
thereto. In case of such revocation, the licensee shall remove all
of its equipment located within the corporate limits of the Township
within the time specified by the Township. The notice provided for
herein may be by certified or registered mail, with return receipt
requested, and directed to the business address of the licensee.
[Adopted 1-23-2002 by Ord. No. 710[1]]
[1]
Editor's Note: this article superseded former
Article II, Franchise, adopted 9-23-1981 by Ord. No. 349, Article
III, NYT Cable TV Franchise, adopted 8-8-1984 by Ord. No. 386, and
Article IV, Garden State Cable TV Franchise, adopted 5-27-1992 by
Ord. No. 535.
The Township hereby grants to Comcast Cablevision
of Garden State, L.P., 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 Township,
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 Township of
a cable television and communications system.
A.
For the purpose of this article, the following terms,
phrases, words and their derivations shall have the meaning given
herein. Such meaning or definition of terms is supplemental to those
definitions of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) rules and
regulations, 47 C.F.R. Subsection 76.1 et seq., and the Cable Communications
Policy Act, 47 U.S.C. Section 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:
B.
ACT OR CABLE TELEVISION ACT
BASIC CABLE SERVICE
BOARD OR BPU
COMPANY
FCC
MUNICIPALITY OR TOWNSHIP
OFFICE OR OCTV
As used in this article, the following terms shall
have the meanings indicated:
Chapter 186 of the General Laws of New Jersey, and subsequent amendments thereto, N.J.S.A. 48:5A-1. et seq.
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 grantee of rights under this article and is known as
Comcast Cablevision of Garden State, L.P.
The Federal Communications Commission.
The Township of Carneys Point, County of Salem, State of
New Jersey.
The Office of Cable Television of the Board.
Public hearings conducted by the Township, concerning
the renewal of municipal consent herein wanted 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 Township,
having received at said public hearings all comments regarding the
qualifications of the company to receive this renewal of municipal
consent, the Township 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 automatic renewal
of 10 years as provided by N.J.S.A. 48:5A-19 and 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 article, the municipality shall have the right
to petition the OCTV 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 Township 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 Township or any higher
amount permitted by the Act or otherwise allowable by law, whichever
is greater.
The consent granted under this article to the
renewal of the franchise shall apply to the entirety of the Township
and any property subsequently annexed hereto.
The company shall be required to proffer service
along any public right-of-way to any person's residence or business
located in all areas of the franchise territory as described herein,
at tariffed rates for standard and nonstandard installations.
A.
The company has completed an upgrade of the cable
television distribution system serving the Township. The upgraded
system is a hybrid fiber optic/coaxial cable system following a fiber
to the node architecture. The upgraded system provides improved picture
quality, enhanced signal reliability and increased channel capacity.
B.
The upgrade has been completed following the company's
engineering guidelines for hybrid fiber/coaxial (HFC) plant design,
which meets or exceeds all applicable state and federal regulations
as well as voluntary cable television industry standards and follows
commonly accepted industry practices.
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 by
the municipality, shall remove, relay or relocate its equipment, at
the expense of the company.
C.
Temporary removal of cables. The company shall, upon
request of the municipality at the company's expense, temporarily
raise, lower, or remove its lines in order to facilitate the moving
of buildings or machinery or in other like circumstances. Whenever
the request is made by, for, or on behalf of private parties, the
cost will be borne by those same parties.
D.
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 community upon written request of the Township Administrator
or Clerk.
A.
The company shall continue to comply fully with all
applicable state and federal statutes and regulations regarding credits
for outages, the reporting of it to regulatory agencies and notification
of it 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 it 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). Those standards shall include,
but not be limited to, the goal of answering 90% of incoming telephone
calls within 30 seconds.
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 appropriate under law.
E.
The company is permitted, but is not required to,
charge a late fee consistent with applicable state and federal statutes
and regulations.
The Office of Cable Television is hereby designated
as the complaint officer for the municipality 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 Municipality shall have the right to
request copies of records and reports pertaining to complaints by
Township customers from the OCTV.
A.
During the term of this franchise, and any renewal
thereof, the company shall maintain a local business office or agent
for the purpose of receiving, investigating and resolving all complaints
regarding the quality of service, equipment malfunctions and similar
matters. Such local business office shall be open during normal business
hours and in no event less than 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Monday through
Friday. The Company's employees, representatives or agents will provide
telephone response for such purposes as mentioned herein 24 hours
per day.
B.
The telephone number and address of the local office
shall be listed in applicable telephone directories and in correspondence
from the company to the customer. The telephone number for the local
office shall utilize an exchange that is a nontoll call for Township
residents.
C.
Additionally, the company shall make reasonable efforts
to provide additional payment options to Township customers that are
economically practicable, and technically feasible including, but
not limited to online bill payment, electronic fund transfers (EFT's),
automatic credit card debiting, third-party payment locations and/or
establishment of drop-box locations for the purpose of added customer
convenience.
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 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 continue to provide a dedicated
government access channel. The government access channel is currently
maintained and administered by the Township for the purpose of cable-casting
noncommercial governmental access programming in conformance with
the Township's published access rules and all applicable state and
federal statutes and regulations.
B.
The company shall continue to provide system-wide
leased or commercial access channel opportunities on a channel maintained
by the company for the purpose of cable-casting commercial access
programming in conformance with the company's guideline and applicable
state and federal statutes and regulations.
C.
The company shall take appropriate steps to ensure
that the signals originated on the access channels are carried without
material degradation, and with a signal whose quality is equal to
that of the other channels that the company transmits.
D.
The company shall provide the Township with a one-time
technology grant in the amount of $25,000 within six months of receipt
of a renewal certificate of approval for the purpose of purchasing
technology equipment in relation to the government access channel.
A.
The company shall provide preferred cable television
service on one outlet to each qualified existing and future municipal
building including police, fire, first aid, emergency management,
public library and community centers in the Township at no cost or
charge, provided the facility is located within 200 feet of the active
cable distribution plant. Installation of additional outlets shall
be paid for on a materials-plus-labor basis by the municipality. Monthly
service charges shall be waived on all additional outlets.
B.
The company shall continue to provide preferred cable
television service on one outlet at no cost to each qualified existing
and future public and private, elementary, intermediate and secondary
school in the Township, provided the school is within 200 feet of
the active cable distribution plant. The school may distribute the
signal to all classrooms within the school on the school's internal
network as long as that network meets or exceeds FCC standards for
cumulative leakage index (CLI). Should the schools request additional
outlets to be installed, such installation 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.
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 school in the Township, public
and private, elementary, intermediate and secondary, at no charge.
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. The
Internet service shall be installed on a personal computer that is
accessible to library patrons and not for administrative use only.
In the event that the Township 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 Township.
A.
The company shall be required to fully comply with
all applicable federal and state statutes and regulations rules and
regulations governing the implementation, operation and testing of
the emergency alert system (EAS).
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.
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 $3,000,000.
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 writings submitted
by the company shall be considered a part of this article 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 Township and the company that are in conflict with the
provisions of this agreement are hereby declared invalid and superseded.
Should the Township 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 article subject to the provisions of N.J.A.C. 14:17-6.7.
