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Home My WebLink About20 URGENCY ORD 1256 08-05-02AGENDA REPORT NO. 20 08-05-02 MEETING DATE: AUGUST 5, 2002 400 10 TO: FROM: SUBJECT: WILLIAM A. HUSTON, CITY MANAGER PUBLIC WORKS DEPARTMENT/ENGINEERING DIVISION ADOPTION OF URGENCY ORDINANCE NO. 1256 EXTENDING A CABLE TELEVISION FRANCHISE WITH MEDIA ONE OF LOS ANGELES, INC., DBA AT&T BROADBAND, FOR THIRTY DAYS SUMMARY The City has completed a thorough review of AT&T compliance with Franchise requirements and concluded that certain deficiencies require corrective action. The City has issued corrective notices to AT&T and is awaiting an adequate response. The Franchise will expire on August 5, 2002. Staff is recommending that the City Council approve a thirty day franchise extension to September 5, 2002 in order to review and consider any response by AT&T. RECOMMENDATION Staff recommends that the City Council adopt Urgency Ordinance No. 1256 extending a Cable Television Franchise with Media One of Los Angeles, Inc., dba AT&T Broadband, for thirty days. FISCAL IMPACT Extension of the Franchise Agreement will insure the continued collection of Franchise Fees by AT&T Broadband. BACKGROUND In the fall of 2001, the City retained the services of Telecommunication Management Corp. (TMC) to thoroughly review all aspects of Media One's (AT&T Broadband) compliance with City franchise requirements and with other applicable laws. This analysis included the following: · Customer Survey · Franchise Compliance Audit · Franchise FeeAudit · Proof of Performance Review · Physical Plant Inspection The franchise fee audit revealed that AT&T Broadband may owe the City the sum of $14,976.00 through March 1, 2002, because fees for recovered bad debt and cable modem fees for the second half of 2000 were not included. The City directed AT&T Broadband to remit a check to the City for the unpaid franchise fee plus interest. S:\City Council Items\02 City Council Items\Tustin Media One-ATT Broadband Franchise Extension #2 Staff Report. doc Page 2 August 5, 2002 AT&T Broadband Urgency Ordinance No. 1256 The physical plant inspection determined that AT&T Broadband is in violation of the various statutory and regulatory provisions of the California Electrical Code, Health and Safety Code § 18938(b), Tustin City Code §§ 7418(h) & 8400, and California Public Utilities General Order Nos. 95 & 128. AT&T Broadband was further directed to deliver to the City a written report describing its corrective action plan for the identified locations and estimated time for completion of the work. Staff also notified AT&T Broadband that a follow up inspection of the correctiOns will be conducted by the City's consultant to confirm compliance, at AT&T Broadband's expense. While AT&T Broadband has responded in writing to the various notices, staff has not received adequate or complete responses to these notices. Therefore, staff recommends that the City Council adopt an urgency ordinance to extend the franchise for another thirty days so that the City can receive further information from AT&T Broadband in response to these notices and determine whether the outstanding issues can be satisfactorily resolved and the franchise renewed, or whether denial of the franchise is appropriate. The current franchise extension expires on August 5, 2002. This extension will move the expiration date to September 5, 2002. Tim D. Serlet ~, Director of Public Works/City Engineer A~i~~nager ORDINANCE NO. 1256 AN URGENCY ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF TUSTIN, CALIFORNIA, EXTENDING A CABLE TELEVISION FRANCHISE WITH MEDIA ONE OF LOS ANGELES, INC., DBA AT&T BROADBAND FOR THIRTY DAYS UNTIL SEPTEMBER 5, 2002. WHEREAS, Media One of Los Angeles, Inc., d.b.a. AT&T Broadband ("Media One") holds a non-exclusive cable television franchise in the City of Tustin (the "City") as successor-in-interest to Continental Cablevision, Inc., pursuant to Ordinance No. 1002; and WHEREAS, Media One's franchise expired July 6, 2002 pursuant to Section 4 of Ordinance No. 1002; and WHEREAS, the City granted an extension to Media One's franchise on June 17, 2002 to expire on August 5, 2002 pursuant to Urgency Ordinance No. 1254; and WHEREAS, the City has completed a thorough review of Media One's compliance with Franchise, Municipal Code, State and Federal requirements and concluded that certain deficiencies require corrective action; and WHEREAS, the City has issued corrective notices to Media One and is awaiting a satisfactory response; and WHEREAS, Tustin City Code § 7415(c)(6) provides that the City Council shall grant cable television franchises by ordinance; and WHEREAS, this urgency ordinance is necessary for the immediate protection of the public health, welfare, and general safety in that the extension of Media One's franchise is necessary to: regulate Media One's access to the public rights of way which may conflict with the public use thereof; insure correction of defective electrical connections to residential, commercial and industrial buildings; continue to provide local access channels for government and emergency information; regulate subscriber service; and insure accurate and complete franchise payments. THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF TUSTIN, CALIFORNIA, DOES HEREBY ORDAIN AS FOLLOWS: SECTION 1. FRANCHISE EXTENSION. The cable television franchise granted to Media One of Los Angeles, Inc., dba AT&T Broadband pursuant to Ordinance No. 1002 and extended for 30 days by Urgency Ordinance No. 1256 is hereby extended for thirty (30) days to expire on September 5, 2002. SECTION2. URGENCY. This urgency ordinance is necessary for the immediate protection of the public health, welfare, and general safety in that the extension of Media One's franchise is necessary to: regulate Media One's access to the public rights of way which may conflict with the public use thereof; insure correction of defective electrical connections to residential, commercial and industrial buildings; continue to provide local access channels for government and emergency information; regulate subscriber service; and insure accurate and complete franchise payments. SECTION 3. SEVERABILITY. If any section, subsection, subdivision, sentence, clause, phrase, or portion of this Ordinance is, for any reason, held to be invalid or unconstitutional by the decision of any court of competent jurisdiction, such decision shall not affect the validity of the remaining portions of this Ordinance. The City Council hereby declares that it would have adopted this Ordinance and each section, subsection, subdivision, sentence, clause, phrase, or portion thereof, irrespective of the fact that any one or more sections, subsection, subdivision, sentence, clause, phrase, or portions thereof be declared invalid or unconstitutional. PASSED AND ADOPTED at a regular meeting of the City Council of the City of Tustin held on the 5th day of August, 2002. JEFFERY M. THOMAS Mayor PAMELA STOKER City Clerk STATE OF CALIFORNIA ) COUNTY OF ORANGE ) ss CITY OF TUSTIN ) CERTIFICATION FOR ORDINANCE NO. 1254 PAMELA STOKER, City Clerk and ex-officio Clerk of the City Council of the City of Tustin, California, does hereby certify that the whole number of the members of the City Council of the City of Tustin is five; that the above and foregoing Ordinance No. 1256 was passed and adopted at a regular meeting of the City Council held on the 5th day of August, 2002 by the following vote: COUNCILPERSONS AYES: COUNCILPERSONS NOES: COUNCILPERSONS ABSTAINED: COUNCILPERSONS ABSENT: PAMELA STOKER City Clerk Public Works Department