04-11-1990 Council Agenda - Laserfiche WebLink

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TIM N banal Association of Tekcommunkaaom Bitten and Advisors An Milner* of IM Nation I Lugo> 1 of Glee 719 Volgy Testifies for Cities On April 12, 1989, Mayor Thomas J. Volgy testified on behalf of NLC and USCM during hearings on the anticompetitive nature of the cable Industry. This hearing was held by Senator Metzenbaum, Chair, Senate subcommittee on anti- trust, monopolies and business fights. What follows are excerpts from testimony sub. mltted by Mayor Volgy as well as other representatives from the media field. Mr. Chairman: 1 want to thank you for this pportunity to testily before ou and the Committee on the Ital telecommunications slues you are considering. As he former chair of the National League of Cities Telecommunl- atlons and Transportation Steering Committee, as the reseal chair of the Conference of Mayors' Telecommunications Committee and the Chair of Its ew Task Force on Telecom - munications and Telco's, and as ne of the original negotiators epresenting the cities on Fed- eral legislation leading to the Also In This Issue: President'sLetter 2 Leglelative & tarot Affaln Hearings Highlights 5 MrizrnMum SInf 111 Volunee 8, Nu ter 3 MAY-I JUNE 1989 CAWS* Ali ftife Yl111tIC+a'aYle (1.10 R) Thomas J. Mooney, Mayor, Tucson, Arizona and Mayor Pro-Tem, Saul N. Ramirez. Jr.. Laredo, Texas testily on brill of cities during Senator Melzenbaum's hearings Telecommunications Act of 1984, I am extremely encour- aged by your interest, Mr. Chair- man, and that of the committee, In this vital area of public policy. At stake Is something as crucial as freedom of speech in the electronic age. At stake is something as crucial as access to a technology which can Improve the Quality of our lives and which can Improve the economic well -being of our citi- zens. At stake are the rights of consumers In a monopolistic market. Freedom of speech Is guaran- teed not only to those who can afford It, but to rich and poor alike. Contractual commitments consumers of telecommunica- tions. Senate 8111 88 promised us competition Instead of regula. tion. Today we have neither. in fact, what we have today Is a (continued on page 4) Congressional Debate Begins: Bills Hit by Catharine Rice With a flurry of activity, a major debate on regulatory policy for the cable Industry has been kicked off In Congress. Three pieces of legislation have been Introduced which are designed to provide cities and towns with broad new regulatory authority and Increase compel!. lion, and more bills are expected In the next few weeks. Sen. Howard Metzenbaum (D -Ohio), Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee's subcommittee on antitrust, monopolies and business rights, introduced two bills (S. 833 and S. 834) on April 18 which are Intended to check the monopoly power of cable companies. Just two weeks later, Sen. Joseph Lieberman (D- Conn.) Introduced a bill (S. 905) that would repeal rate deregulation In its entirety. Rep. Christopher Shays Intro- duced companion legislation (H.R. 2222) In the House. As NATOA News went to press, Introduction of legislation on the Question of telephone com- pany entry Into the cable bush ness was anticipated. The Metzenbaum Bills Citing the fact that 99 percent of the nation's cable sub - (continued on page 2) National League of Cities Institute 1301 Pennsylvania Ave., NW Washington, DC 20004 PAGE 1 1 1 Flea Class Mail US. Postage PAID Washhgbn, DC Perms Na 3471