Laserfiche WebLink
RESOLUTION NO. 9276 <br />CITY OF MOUNDS VIEW <br />COUNTY OF RAMSEY <br />STATE OF MINNESOTA <br />RESOLUTION IN SUPPORT OF <br />THE PROTECTING COMMUNITY TELEVISION ACT <br />WHEREAS, the City of Mounds View is a member of the North Suburban <br />Communications Commission (the "Commission"), a Joint Powers Commission <br />organized pursuant to Minn. Stat. § 471.59, as amended, and includes the cities of Arden <br />Hills, Falcon Heights, Lauderdale, Little Canada, New Brighton, North Oaks, Roseville, <br />St. Anthony, and the City of Mounds View (collectively the "Member Cities"); and <br />WHEREAS, the Commission negotiates and manages the cable franchises <br />agreements of the Member Cities and operates North Suburban Access Corporation <br />("NSAC"), a local community public educational and governmental ("PEG") access facility <br />on behalf of the Member Cities; and <br />WHEREAS, NSAC provides coverage of local events, such as local high school <br />sporting events and most government meetings that local broadcast stations (i.e. WCCO, <br />KSTP, KMSP, and KARE) typically will not cover, and, in light of a rapidly decreasing print <br />media, CTV North Suburbs ("CTV") is the principal, and may soon be the sole, source for <br />local residents to have access to coverage of local events; and <br />WHEREAS, CTV is funded through franchise fee and PEG fee revenues <br />negotiated in the cable franchise agreements; and <br />WHEREAS, the Member Cities require, as part of the cable franchise agreements, <br />that cable companies meet demonstrated community needs by providing non -monetary <br />in-kind contributions that benefit the Member Cities, local schools, public safety buildings, <br />as well as CTV; and <br />WHEREAS, in 1984 Congress defined a franchise fee as a "tax, fee, or <br />assessment" and, for the past 35 years, it has been solely a monetary fee; and <br />WHEREAS, last year the FCC departed from the clear language of the Cable Act <br />and ruled that a franchise fee is both a monetary and non -monetary fee and permits cable <br />companies to unilaterally assign a value to the non -monetary in-kind contributions and <br />then subtract that amount from the franchise fees the cable operator pays the local <br />community; <br />WHEREAS, the FCC order results in decreased vital funding to the Member Cities <br />and CTV; and <br />