Agenda Packets - 1986/05/19 - Laserfiche WebLink

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- 10 - pursuant to Section b[5 of the Cable Act.' Tribune - United Cable of Montgomery County V. Montgomery County, No. 85-2272(L) (D. Md. filed Nov. 13, 1985). TUC claims that Section 624(c- of the Cable leiAct renders enforcement of requirements for the p_ on of services, facilities, and equipment in effect on the effective data of the Cable Act subject to the modification provisions found in Section 625. Parmittilig Montgomery County to enforce the penalty provisions of the franchise agreement would therefore be inconsistent with the federally -created Section 625 modification procedure. Under Section 632 of the Cable Act, franchising authorities can enforce provisions relating to customer service requirements, constriction schedules, and other construction -related requirements cf the operators only to the extent not inconsistent with the Act. The Fourth Circuit directed the district court to issue a preliminary injunction for a maximum period of 120 days, ending on March10, 1986, barring Montgomery County from enforcing the penalty provisions the franch-se =y "r"-'. pending Lesolutinn of TUC's Section 625 request for modification of the agreement. The court held that the federally pro`eciedagreemaght to modification of commercially imp nts would mean very little if local franchising authorities were able to burden it by enforcing massiVft penalties di.ring the pendency of the modification proceedings. Montgomery County has filed a petlti.on f,)r rehearing en banc by the Fourth Circuit. In the meantime, TUC and Montgomery County have agreed to extend the deadline for the modification procedure for the third time to April 30, 1986. Settlement negotiations are continuing. If the Fourth Circuit's interpretation of Section 624(c) is upheld, it could severely affect the enforceability of penalty provisions contained in franchise agreements. A cable company could theoretically avoid liability for breach simply by filing a conti:uoue stream of Section 625 modification request a. ' Section 625 establishes standards governing the circumstances under which a cable operator can obtain relief from its existing sew:u , facil" y end •i 1' 'e'� obligations. For a detailed discussion of Section. 625, see Guide, Chapter III.I.