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Eagan City Council takes stand against cable TV billPosted: 10/10/03 by Erin Johnson The Eagan City Council took a stand Oct. 7 against a proposed U.S. Senate bill that could eliminate cable franchise fees the city currently collects as revenue. According to the League of Minnesota Cities, cities charge franchise fees as a kind of ìrentî for the use of public rights-of-way by cable providers who use public property for private gain. The loss of those fees would have a major impact on Eaganís communications budget, which is entirely funded by franchise fees. That revenue is also used to support the cityís local cable access station, Burnsville Eagan Community Television (BECT), which broadcasts city council meetings, local sports events and local political and religious programming, among other things. Last year, Eagan collected more than $490,000 in franchise fees. In addition to covering the cityís communications budget and supporting BECT, funds were used to improve technology in the Community Room in City Hall and to extend cable to the Eagan Community Center. ìThatís a pretty significant amount of dollars,î said City Administrator Tom Hedges. ìI think our consumers and customers see the value of cable TV and what weíre attempting to do in terms of addressing communications and information.î Several groups, including the League of Minnesota Cities and the National League of Cities, have rallied to oppose the bill and protect the right of cities to collect franchise fees from cable providers, including cable modem subscriptions. The bill has already been passed by the House and is on its way to the Senate. ìWhat youíll find (in the bill) is a major tinkering with franchise fees and what would become the inability to do a number of things at the local levels of government as it relates to cable television and communications, which we rely very heavily on for our constituency,î Hedges said. Tom Garrison, communications director for the city of Eagan, said the scope of the bill keeps appearing to broaden, causing concern that ìby some interpretations, they could strike at the heart of all franchise fees, leaving cities in a very disadvantaged position.î Alan Miller, a member of the Burnsville Eagan Telecommunications Commission, spoke to the council about the affect the bill could have on public access channels. ìIf we didnít have cable television, our people, our subscribers, our constituents, would not be able to enjoy the programming that they enjoy,î he said. ìThese two bills strike right at the heart of our ability to control our programming. What they would do is give a free ride to the providers to use our rights of way. Ultimately, I think that providers would like to get back some of the channels that have been with the city.î Losing half a million dollars would drive BECT right out of the community access television business, he said. ìWe couldnít handle that in todayís budget crunch without imposing a burden on the constituents of the city. Thatís not right,î he said. ìOnly the providers would benefit. I canít understand an administration which talks of home rule and stateís rights and local government, then embraces a bill such as this, which takes away all of the above.î The Congressional Budget Office estimates it would cost cities across the country $80 billion to $120 billion a year in lost revenue, he said. ìAt a time when they can ill afford to lose it,î he said. The council not only adopted a resolution opposing the bill, but also directed city staff to send letters and make phone calls to state senators and congressional delegates. ìA resolution is all fine and good, but we need to fax this, mail this and call,î said Council Member Cyndee Fields. Council Member Mike Maguire said he would like to see added to the resolution a statement about the importance of cable access programming to the fiber of a community. ìItís not just a matter of getting to see our shining faces on city council meetings, but itís being able to see community events, things going on in the community and staying in touch with those things,î he said. ìThose are particularly important for a city the size of Eagan.î Erin Johnson is at eagan.thisweek@ecm-inc.com. -- Check out this week's newspaper for more about your community. © Thisweek Newspapers |
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