Chapter 8A. Cable Communications

This Act applies to each current or future franchise, franchisee, subscriber, or other person subject to the requirements of the County Cable Communications Act, as amended by this and any future Act, and supersedes any contrary regulation, franchise, franchise agreement, subscriber agreement, or other agreement. The complaint adjudication provisions in Chapter 8A of the Code, as amended by this Act, apply to any complaint pending on, or filed on or after, the date this Act takes effect [March 6, 2003]. Section 8A-31A(i) applies to any subscriber agreement modified or entered into after this Act becomes law [December 5, 2002].

The County Executive must designate the initial term of 2 members of the Cable Compliance Commission as 2 years. Any later term of these 2 members, and the terms of all other members, mut be 3 years.

a facility that serves only to retransmit the television signals of one or more television broadcast stations;

a facility that serves subscribers without using any public right-of-way;

a facility of a common carrier that is subject, in whole or in part, to the provisions of Title II of the Communications Act of 1934, except that the facility will be considered a cable system to the extent that it is used in the transmission of video programming directly to subscribers, unless the extent of such use is solely to provide interactive on- demand services;

an open video system that complies with federal law; or

any facilities of any electric utility used solely for operating its electric utility systems.

support the production of local programming or the operation of local access channels, or both;

serve viewers as well as program producers; and

promote high quality productions, responsible and diverse points of view, and balance in subject matters.

an ownership or other interest in a franchisee is transferred, directly or indirectly, from one person or group of persons to another person or group of persons so that control of the franchisee is transferred; or

the rights held by the franchisee under a franchise agreement are transferred or assigned to another person or group of persons.

The following transactions do not constitute a transfer of a franchise:

A transaction among or between affiliates;

A sale of ownership, or other interest, in an entity controlling the franchisee, either directly or indirectly; or,

A transfer in trust, by mortgage, by other hypothecation, or by assignment, of any right, title, or interest of the franchisee in the franchise or cable system in order to secure indebtedness.

This Act applies to each current or future franchise, franchisee, subscriber, or other person subject to the requirements of the County Cable Communications Act, as amended by this and any future Act, and supersedes any contrary regulation, franchise, franchise agreement, subscriber agreement, or other agreement. The complaint adjudication provisions in Chapter 8A of the Code, as amended by this Act, apply to any complaint pending on, or filed on or after, the date this Act takes effect [March 6, 2003]. Section 8A-31A(i) applies to any subscriber agreement modified or entered into after this Act becomes law [December 5, 2002].

The County Executive must designate the initial term of 2 members of the Cable Compliance Commission as 2 years. Any later term of these 2 members, and the terms of all other members, mut be 3 years.

A franchise authorizes use of the public rights-of-way for installing cables, wires, lines, and other facilities to operate a cable system, but does not expressly or implicitly authorize the franchisee to provide service to, or install cables, wires, lines, or any other equipment or facilities private property without owner consent (except for use of compatible easements or rights-of-way under the Cable Act), or to use publicly or privately owned utility poles or conduits without a separate agreement with the owners.

A franchise is subject to the paramount right of use by the County and the public for public purposes. The County reserves the right to authorize use of public rights-of-way to other persons as it determines appropriate.

A franchise is nonexclusive and does not expressly or implicitly preclude the issuance of other franchises to operate cable systems within the County.

A franchise does not convey a property right to the franchisee or a right to renewal other than as may be required by state or federal law.

A franchise agreement constitutes a contract between the franchisee and the County once it is accepted by the franchisee. A franchisee contractually commits itself to comply with the terms, conditions and provisions of the franchise agreement and with all applicable laws, ordinances, codes, rules, regulations, and orders.

A franchisee is subject to and must comply with all applicable local, municipal, County, state and federal laws, ordinances, codes, rules, regulations, and orders including those pertaining to nondiscrimination.

A franchisee is expressly subject to the County's police power under Article 25A, Section 5(S) to the Annotated Code of Maryland.

Any other provision in this Code concerning the grant of franchises does not apply to the grant of franchises for the construction and operation of cable systems. The County, in granting a franchise under this Chapter, is exempt from the provisions of Chapter 11B.

A franchisee or other person is not excused from complying with any of the terms and conditions of this Chapter or a franchise agreement by any failure of the County, one or more occasions, to require compliance or performance.

This Chapter applies to a franchise agreement as if fully set forth in the franchise agreement. The express terms of this Chapter prevail over conflicting or inconsistent provisions in a franchise agreement.

The provisions of a franchise agreement must be liberally construed in order to effectuate its objectives consistent with this Chapter and the public interest.

A franchise agreement is governed by, and construed in accordance with, the laws of Maryland.

A person seeking a franchise or a current franchisee must apply to the County for a new franchise, renewal of a franchise under the formal or informal procedures in Section 626 of the Cable Act, modification of a franchise agreement, transfer of a franchise, or a transfer of an interest in a franchisee if the transfer is subject to County approval. An applicant has the burden to demonstrate compliance with all application requirements of this Chapter.

An applicant must:

A person may apply for a new franchise in response to the County’s request for proposals or on an unsolicited basis. The County may issue a request for proposals when the County receives an unsolicited application or at any other time. If the County elects to issue a request for proposals after receiving an unsolicited application, the applicant may submit an amended application in response to the request for proposals, may inform the County that its unsolicited application should be considered as its response to the request for proposals, or may withdraw its unsolicited application. The County may reject an application that is unresponsive to a requirement of a request for proposals.

An application for a new franchise must contain the following information:

An application to modify a franchise agreement must include the following information:

An application to renew a franchise must comply with Section 8A-22.

An application to transfer a franchise or an interest in a franchisee must comply with Section 8A-23.

An applicant must certify that the application contains all required information.

Within 10 business days after receiving an application for a new franchise for an overbuild, the County Executive must determine whether the application is complete under subsection (d). If the application is complete, the Executive must accept it for filing. If the application is not complete, the Executive must specify the additional information required under subsection (d) before the application can be accepted for filing.

The County may grant a franchise for a period not to exceed 15 years to serve all or any specified geographic areas of the County.

The County may grant a limited franchise for a period not to exceed 10 years to serve a geographic area that meets both of the following criteria:

The County may condition the grant of a franchise on the completion of construction within a specified time or the performance of other specific obligations and specify that the failure of the franchisee to comply with the condition will void the franchise without further action by the County.

The Executive must conduct a public hearing on an application for a new franchise. The Executive must conduct the hearing on an application for a new franchise for an overbuild within 90 days after the Executive accepts the application for filing. The Executive must give public notice of the hearing at least 15 calendar days before the hearing. At the public hearing, the Executive may accept written and oral testimony and any other material relevant to the application. The Executive may consider multiple applications in a single proceeding.

In evaluating an application for a new franchise, the County must consider:

Where an applicant proposes to overbuild an existing cable system, the County must consider the factors in subsection (e) and:

The Executive must propose to grant or deny the franchise application and must notify the applicant of the proposed action. Before proposing action, the Executive must consider the application, the written and oral testimony and other material presented at the hearing, and any other information relevant to the application. For an application for a new overbuild franchise, the Executive must make the proposal within 120 days after accepting the application for filing.

If the Executive proposes to grant a franchise application, the Executive and the applicant must agree on the terms of a franchise agreement within 60 days after the applicant receives the notice of the proposed grant. The Executive and the applicant may extend this period for up to 60 more days. If the two parties do not reach agreement by the end of the original or any extended period, the notice of proposed grant is void.

As required by State law, the County must advertise the terms of a proposed franchise agreement, including the proposed compensation to the County, for three successive weeks in one or more newspapers of general circulation in the County to allow the public to comment on the proposed franchise agreement.

If the Executive and the applicant agree on a proposed franchise agreement, the Executive must submit the proposed agreement to the Council for approval. For an application for a new overbuild franchise, the Executive must submit the proposed franchise agreement to the Council within 10 days after the end of the advertising period.

Every franchise grant is subject to a franchise acceptance fee in an amount not to exceed the County's costs to consider the application, less the amount of the filing fee. The County’s costs include time spent by County employees and officials to review, negotiate, and approve the franchise agreement, and fees paid to attorneys, experts, and other consultants. Within 30 days after the Council grants a franchise under this Chapter, the County must notify the approved applicant of the amount of the franchise acceptance fee and how the County calculated the amount. If the approved applicant does not pay the franchise acceptance fee within 30 days after the County notifies the applicant, the grant is void. The franchisee must not act under the franchise until the franchisee complies with the bond, insurance, and other prerequisites of the franchise agreement.

A franchisee must have the following insurance coverage in force at all times during the franchise period:

To ensure the franchisee's performance of franchise obligations, a franchisee must have in force at all times during the franchise period a bond in a form approved by the County Attorney, consisting of cash, an irrevocable letter of credit, or a performance bond. A performance bond must be provided by a surety qualified to do business in Maryland. The bond must be to the benefit of the County or to other parties named in a franchise agreement. The bond must be of a type and in a sum specified in the franchise agreement as necessary to ensure the faithful performance and discharge of obligations imposed by law and the franchise agreement. Except for a limited franchise, the minimum bond amount must not be less than $250,000.

A franchisee must, at its sole cost and expense, indemnify, hold harmless, and defend the County, its officials, boards, commissions, agents, and employees, against any claims, suits, causes of action, proceedings and judgments for damages or equitable relief arising out of the construction, maintenance, or operation of its cable system regardless of whether the act or omission complained of is authorized, allowed or prohibited by the franchise. This requirement includes claims arising out of copyright infringement or a failure by the franchisee to secure consent from the owner, authorized distributor, or licensee of a program to be delivered by the cable system.

In an overbuild situation the County may require franchisees to indemnify each other for any damage to facilities and services caused by construction or maintenance of their respective cable systems.

The following minimum requirements for facilities and services apply to all franchises:

The County may negotiate franchise terms exceeding the minimum requirements in subsection (a).

The County may waive minimum requirements set forth in subsection (a) for limited franchises where the applicant demonstrates that a waiver is in the public interest.

A franchisee, in consideration of the privilege granted under a franchise for the use of public rights-of-way to construct and operate a cable system, must pay the County 5 percent of the franchisee's gross revenues from the operation of its cable system to provide cable service in its franchise area during the period of its franchise. A franchisee must pay the franchise fee due to the County for the preceding quarter within 30 days after the end of that quarter.

Any payment of franchise fees to adjust for a shortfall in the quarterly payments for the preceding year must be made no later than the filing date for the audited annual financial statements as specified in subsection (d) of this section. An adjustment for any overpayment will be credited in one or more subsequent quarterly payments.

Unless a franchise agreement provides otherwise, a franchisee must file with the County within 30 days of the end of each quarter a financial statement showing the gross revenues received by the franchisee during the preceding quarter and the number of subscribers in each participating municipality.

A franchisee must file within 3 months after the end of its fiscal year the franchisee's annual financial statements for the preceding year certified by an authorized officer of the franchisee or an affiliate and audited by a certified public accountant. The franchisee must bear the cost of the preparation of all financial statements.

The County may inspect and audit any books and records, and recompute any amounts determined to be payable under the franchise. However, any audit to recompute franchise fees must take place within 36 months after the end of the franchisee's fiscal year. The franchisee must bear the cost of the audit if the annual payment to the County for the preceding year is increased by more than 5 percent as a result of the audit.

In the event that a franchise payment is not received by the County on or before the due date, interest will be charged from the due date at the annual interest rate then charged for unpaid federal income taxes. In addition, the franchisee will pay a late charge of 5 percent of the amount of the payment. Interest and late charges will not be imposed for any payment necessary as a result of the yearly adjustment provided for in subsection (b) of this section, if the payment to correct for a shortfall does not exceed 10 percent of the total payments made during the year. In the event such payment exceeds 10 percent of the total payments made during the year, the franchisee will be liable for interest and late charges for the entire amount due.

When a franchise terminates for any reason, the franchisee must file with the County within 90 days of the date the franchise operations stop an audited financial statement showing the gross revenues received by the franchisee since the end of the previous fiscal year. Adjustments must be made at that time for franchise fees due to the date that the franchisee's operations ceased.

Within 3 months of the close of its fiscal year, a franchisee must file with the County and each participating municipality an annual report that includes the information required in the franchise agreement.

A franchisee must maintain a complete set of books and records available for inspection by the County during normal business hours.

Upon written request of the franchisee and approval by the County Attorney, information of a proprietary nature submitted to the County under this Chapter or a franchise agreement must not be made available for public inspection.

A franchisee must maintain in its franchise area a business office open during normal business hours with a listed local telephone number and a sufficient number of telephone lines to allow reasonable access by subscribers and members of the public. When the business office is closed, the franchisee must have an answering machine or service to take complaints and inquiries.

A franchisee must have personnel and equipment available at all times to locate and correct major system malfunctions. Major system malfunctions must be corrected without delay. Corrective action for all other malfunctions must be initiated as provided in the franchise agreement but not later than the next business day after the subscriber service call is received. Corrective action must be completed as promptly as possible.

A franchise agreement must include procedures to investigate and resolve all complaints, including those regarding the quality of service and equipment malfunction.

A franchisee must provide each subscriber at the time cable service is installed written instructions for placing a service call, filing a complaint, or requesting an adjustment. These instructions must include the name, address, and telephone number of the County office designated to handle subscriber complaints. Each subscriber must also be provided with a schedule of the subscriber's rates and charges, a copy of the service contract, delinquent subscriber disconnect and reconnect procedures, and a description of any other relevant franchisee subscriber policies. The franchisee must provide to the County a copy of all forms describing customer service policies and procedures when they are distributed to subscribers, and if possible, should provide these forms to the County before they are distributed. All forms must be conspicuously posted in the franchisee's local business office.

A franchisee may interrupt service on the cable system only for good cause and, except in emergency situations, only after prior notice to subscribers and the County of the anticipated service interruption. Any interruption must be for the shortest time possible.

A franchisee must maintain a complete record of service complaints received and action taken. These records must be open to the County for inspection during normal business hours. A monthly summary of such records must be submitted to the County by all franchisees except limited franchisees. A limited franchisee must submit reports as required in the franchise agreement. Complaint records must be retained for 3 years.

Unless approved by the County and to the extent consistent with federal law, a franchisee must not, in its cable service rates or charges, or in the availability of its cable services, or in any other respect, grant undue preferences or advantages to any subscriber or potential subscriber, or to any user or potential user, nor subject any of these persons to any undue prejudice or any disadvantage. Unless prohibited by applicable federal law, the County may require the franchisee to have a uniform rate structure for its cable services throughout the franchise area. A franchisee must not deny, delay, or otherwise burden service or discriminate against subscribers or users on the basis of age, race, religion, color, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, handicap, national origin, or marital status, except for discounts for the elderly and handicapped, as defined in Chapter 27.

A franchisee must not deny cable service to any potential subscriber because of the income of the residents of the area in which the subscriber resides.

A franchisee must protect the privacy of all subscribers under Section 631 of the Cable Act. A franchisee must not condition subscriber service on the subscriber's grant of permission to disclose information, which, cannot be disclosed without the subscriber's explicit consent under federal law.

A person must not intercept or use any video, voice, or data signal transmissions over a cable system, unless the interception or use is authorized by the franchisee or other person having the lawful right to authorize the reception or use. A violation of this subsection is a Class A offense.

A franchisee must use, with the owner's permission, existing poles, conduits or other facilities whenever possible. Copies of agreements for use of poles, conduits or other facilities must be filed with the County as required by the franchise agreement.

All transmission lines, equipment and structures must be installed and located to cause minimum interference with the rights and reasonable convenience of property owners.

Suitable safety devices and practices as required by local, County, state and federal laws, regulations, and permits must be used during construction, maintenance, and repair of a cable system.

A franchisee must remove, replace, or modify at its own expense any of its facilities in a public right-of-way when the County requires it to do so, to allow the County to change, maintain, repair or improve a public thoroughfare.

The franchisee must put the cable underground at its expense on streets and roads where both electrical and telephone utility wiring are underground, and must move the cable underground after initial installation when electrical and telephone utility wiring are moved underground. The franchisee must put the cable underground between a street or road and a subscriber's residence if both electrical and telephone utility wiring are underground. A franchisee may install aerial cable if either electric or telephone utility wiring is aerial, except where a property owner or resident requests underground installation and agrees to pay the additional cost over aerial installation.

A franchisee must obtain any required permits before starting construction work on public and private property and must restore the public and private property to their former condition after construction is completed. The County, or private property owner may, after prior notice to the franchisee, repair any damage done by the franchisee at the franchisee's expense if restoration is not satisfactorily performed within a reasonable time.

Subject to the supervision and direction of the County, a franchisee may trim trees within public rights-of-way at its own expense as necessary to protect its wires and facilities. A franchisee may trim trees on private property with the consent of the property owner.

At the request of any person holding a valid building moving permit and upon sufficient notice, the franchisee must temporarily raise, lower or cut its wires as necessary to facilitate a move. The direct expense of these temporary changes, including standby time, must be paid by the permit holder. The franchisee may require payment in advance.

Any cable system constructed in the County must meet or exceed the technical standards under applicable law. All television signals transmitted on a cable system must include any closed captioning information for the hearing impaired. Antennas, supporting structures, and outside plant used in the cable system must comply with the recommendations of the Electronics Industries Association and applicable federal and local regulations on tower structures and outside plant.

All construction, installation and maintenance must comply with the National Electrical Safety Code, the National Electric Code, the Bell System Code of Pole Line Construction, all state and local regulations, and accepted industry practices.

The franchisee must perform at its expense proof of performance tests designed to demonstrate compliance with the requirements of applicable law at the stages of construction specified in the franchise agreement. The franchisee must provide the proof of performance test results promptly to the County.

The County may require periodic proof of performance tests to be performed at the expense of the franchisee after the completion of construction. The franchisee must provide the test results promptly to the County.

The franchisee must advise the County when a proof of performance test is scheduled so that the County may have an observer present.

The franchisee must post with the County, and maintain at all times during the term of the franchise, a cash security deposit in the amount specified in the franchise agreement. The County must hold the security deposit as security for:

The County must place any security deposit in an interest bearing account such as those in which the County general funds are located. The interest will accrue to the benefit of the franchisee but may not be withdrawn. All interest is added to and becomes part of the original security deposit during the term of the franchise.

The County may immediately withdraw an appropriate amount, including interest and penalties, from the security deposit if:

Within 30 days after the County gives notice that an amount has been withdrawn from the security deposit, the franchisee must deposit a sum of money equal to the amount withdrawn. If the franchisee does not deposit the required amount within 30 days, the entire security deposit remaining may be forfeited. In addition, that failure is a violation of this Chapter for which the County may revoke the franchise or take any other enforcement action.

The security deposit is the property of the County if the franchise is revoked. The County must return the security deposit to the franchisee after the franchise is terminated if there is no outstanding default or unpaid amounts owed to the County by the franchisee.

The rights reserved to the County with respect to the security deposit are in addition to all other rights of the County under this Chapter or other law. An action, proceeding, or exercise of a right with respect to the security deposit does not affect any other right the County may have.

The requirements of this Section may be waived only with the Council’s approval.

This Act applies to each current or future franchise, franchisee, subscriber, or other person subject to the requirements of the County Cable Communications Act, as amended by this and any future Act, and supersedes any contrary regulation, franchise, franchise agreement, subscriber agreement, or other agreement. The complaint adjudication provisions in Chapter 8A of the Code, as amended by this Act, apply to any complaint pending on, or filed on or after, the date this Act takes effect [March 6, 2003]. Section 8A-31A(i) applies to any subscriber agreement modified or entered into after this Act becomes law [December 5, 2002].

The County Executive must designate the initial term of 2 members of the Cable Compliance Commission as 2 years. Any later term of these 2 members, and the terms of all other members, mut be 3 years.

If a franchisee violates any provision of the law or its franchise agreement, the County may take one or more of the following actions:

In determining which remedy or remedies are appropriate under subsection (a), the County must consider the nature of the violation, the person or persons bearing the impact of the violation, the nature of the remedy required in order to prevent further violations, and any other matters the County determines are appropriate.

In addition to or instead of these remedies, the County may seek legal or equitable relief from any court of competent jurisdiction.

Before initiating a remedy under this section other than revocation of the franchise, the County must give the franchisee written notice of the violations claimed and at least 10 working days to correct the violations.

Except for limited franchises, the County must hold a minimum of 3 performance evaluation public hearings during the term of each franchise. The County Executive may determine the times for the hearings and the issues that the franchisee must address in the hearings.

The County may hold performance evaluation public hearings for limited franchises as determined by the County Executive.

If a franchisee initiates a formal franchise renewal process under Section 626(a)--(g) of the Cable Act, the franchisee must notify the County, and each participating municipality, at least 30 months and no more than 36 months before the franchise expiration date. When the County receives a notice from the franchisee, or at any time at the County's own initiative, the County must take the following actions:

In considering a renewal application, the County must consider whether:

If a preliminary decision is made that a franchise should not be renewed, at the request of the franchisee or on its own initiative, the County must commence an administrative proceeding under Section 626(c) of the Cable Act. A hearing must be held under Section 2A-8 of this Code. The burden of proof is governed by the Cable Act. The hearing officer must issue a recommended decision consistent with the Cable Act. Parties to the hearing and the public must have 30 days after the recommended decision is issued to comment. The County Executive must recommend that the Council grant of deny an application within 30 calendar days after the deadline for receipt of comments.

The Council must hold a public hearing on a renewal application. After the public hearing, the Council must consider all of the evidence, either grant or deny the renewal application by resolution, and give the reasons for its determination in the resolution.

The Council must hold a public hearing on any negotiated franchise agreement prior to final Council action on the franchise. This may be done in conjunction with the public hearing held under subsection (d).

Notwithstanding subsections (a) through (c) in this section, a franchisee may submit a proposal for renewal of a franchise under 626(h) of the Cable Act. The County must hold one or more public hearing or provide some other procedure for public comment on the proposal. After the public hearing or comment period, the County Executive must recommend that the Council grant or deny the franchise renewal and the terms and conditions of any recommended renewal.

The renewal of a franchise is not effective until the franchisee has paid the renewal fee. The County must notify the franchisee of the amount of the renewal fee and how the fee is calculated when the County approves the renewed franchise agreement. The renewal fee must not exceed the County's costs of the renewal process, less the renewal filing fee.

If the County denies the renewal of a franchise, and the franchisee does not have other authority to maintain and operate its facilities in the County’s public rights-of-way, the County may, on the recommendation of the County Executive and with the approval of the Council, acquire ownership of the cable system or transfer ownership of the system to another person, subject to applicable law. Any acquisition or transfer under this subsection must be at fair market value, determined on the basis of the cable system valued as a going concern but with no value allocated to the franchise itself, subject to applicable law.

If the County does not renew a franchise and the franchisee does not have other authority to maintain and operate its facilities in the County’s public rights-of-way, and the County does not buy the cable system, the County may require the former franchisee to remove its facilities and equipment, subject to applicable law. If the former franchisee fails to do so within a reasonable period of time, the County may remove the facilities and equipment at the former franchisee's or the surety's expense or at the expense of both, subject to applicable law.

A transfer of a franchise, or a transfer of an interest in a franchisee that results in a change in ownership interest of a franchise of 5 percent or more, must not occur without prior approval by the County. However, a transfer of an interest to a person who already holds an ownership interest of 25 percent or more does not require prior County approval if transfer of a franchise does not occur. A transfer of a franchise will not be approved by the County when the transferor has held the franchise less than 3 years unless the County finds that the transfer is necessary and in the best interests of the County and its residents.

An application to transfer a franchise must meet the requirements of Section 8A-8(b) and provide complete information on the proposed transaction, including the legal, character, financial, technical, and other pertinent qualifications of the transferee, and on the potential impact of the transfer on subscriber services or rates. The proposed transferee must provide all information required in Section 8A-8(d)(1) through (3), (10), and (12). The information required in Section 8A-8(d)(4) through (9) must also be provided if the proposed transferee expects material changes to occur in those areas as a result of the transfer.

An application for transfer of an interest in a franchisee must describe the proposed transaction in detail and identify the interest to be transferred, the transferor, and transferee. If the proposed transferee is not a current equity owner of the franchisee, the application must include the information required by Section 8A-8(d)(1) and (2).

An application for a transfer must provide all documents and information related to the transaction and to the financial position of the cable system before and after the proposed transaction.

A public hearing must be held on an application for transfer of an interest in a franchisee of 25 percent or more.

Before approving transfer of a franchise, the County must consider the legal, financial, technical and character qualifications of the transferee to operate the system, and whether operation by the proposed franchisee will adversely affect the cable services to subscribers or otherwise be contrary to the public interest. Before approving a transfer of an interest in a franchisee, the County must consider whether the transferee's interest will have any effect on the franchisee's operation of the system, the franchisee's qualifications, or the public interest.

The Council must take final action on an application for transfer of a franchise after receiving recommendation from the County Executive. The County Executive may take final action on an application for transfer of an interest.

Approval by the County of a transfer of a franchise does not constitute a waiver or release of any of the rights of the County under this Chapter or the franchise agreement, arising before or after the date of the transfer. A transfer does not waive or release any non-performance that occurred before the transfer. All previous non-performance becomes the responsibility of the new franchisee unless the County otherwise agrees.

The County may impose a grant fee to cover its costs in excess of the filing fee in considering an application for transfer of a franchise, except for the transfer of any franchise granted before January 1, 1988.

Any entity guaranteeing the performance of a franchisee may apply to the County for release for release of the guarantee if:

A franchise may be revoked by the County on the recommendation of the County Executive and with the approval of the Council, for failure to construct, operate, or maintain the cable system as required by this Chapter or the franchise agreement, or for some other material breach of this Chapter or the franchise agreement. If the County has issued a franchise specifically conditioned upon the completion of construction or other specific obligations by a specified date under Section 8A-9(c), failure of the franchisee to complete construction or comply with other specific obligations as required will result in the automatic forfeiture of the franchise without further action by the County. However, the County, at its discretion and for good cause shown by the franchisee, may grant an extension of time. The County must give a franchisee written notice that it is in material breach of this Chapter or the franchise agreement. If the franchisee does not correct the breach within 30 days of the notice, or corrective action is not being actively and expeditiously pursued, the County may give written notice to the franchisee of its intent to revoke the franchise. The County must give the franchisee written notice of the basis for a revocation, stating its reasons. An administrative hearing must be held under the County's Administrative Procedures Act before the County may revoke a franchise. The hearing procedures may be modified by the County Executive where appropriate.

The presiding officer must issue a recommended decision after the administrative hearing. The County Executive may provide for the filing of written comments in response to the recommended decision. After the comment period, the County Executive must submit written recommendations to the Council.

The Council must hold a public hearing, and then determine by written resolution whether or not to revoke the franchise based on the recommended decision, the recommendations of the County Executive, information presented at the public hearing, and other evidence in the record. The resolution must include reasons for the Council's decision.

If the County revokes a franchise, or if for any other reason a franchisee abandons, terminates, or fails to operate or maintain service to its subscribers, and the franchisee does not have other authority to maintain and operate its facilities in the County’s public rights-of-way, the County may, subject to applicable law:

All subscribers have the right to receive all available cable services from the franchisee if their financial and other obligations to the franchisee are satisfied.

If the franchise is terminated or transferred, the franchisee must do everything in its power to ensure that all subscribers receive continuous, uninterrupted cable service. The franchisee must cooperate with the County to operate the system for a transition period after termination or transfer as necessary to maintain continuity of cable service to all subscribers. The transition period must not exceed 12 months without the franchisee's written consent. During the transition period, the cable system must be operated under terms and conditions to which the County and the franchisee agree, or on such other terms and conditions that will continue, to the extent possible, the same level of cable service to subscribers and that will provide reasonable compensation to the cable operator.

If the franchisee discontinues service to its subscribers without County approval, the franchise may be terminated immediately, and if the franchisee does not have other authority to maintain and operate its facilities in the County’s public rights-of-way, the County may take possession of all facilities and property, real and personal, related to the cable system for the purpose of operating the system. The County may undertake such operation itself or authorize operation by a contractor.

All access grants, franchise fees, and other moneys received by the County from any franchisee may be spent only under a budget approved by the Council and in accordance with the County cable communication plan.

The cable communications plan must be proposed by the County Executive to the Council annually and may be amended at any time. The County Executive should consult with the franchisee and the appropriate persons in the preparation of the plan or any amendments to it.

Except as provided in subsection (f), the cable communications plan is subject to County Council approval. If the Council does not act on the plan within 75 days after receiving the plan, the plan is approved as submitted. The Council by resolution may extend the time for action on the plan for up to 15 days. The Council may approve, disapprove, or amend any plan that is subject to Council approval. The Council should consider a plan at a level of detail and according to procedures similar to the detail and procedures the Council uses to adopt the County budget. Any reference in this subsection to a cable communications plan also includes any amendment to a plan.

Upon approval of the cable communications plan or plan amendment by the Council, it must be delivered to the County Executive, who, within 10 days, may disapprove or reduce any item of expenditure. Upon disapproval or reduction of any item, the County Executive must return the plan or plan amendment to the Council with the reasons for the disapproval or reduction stated in writing. The Council may, within 30 days of receipt of the stated reasons for disapproval or reduction, approve any item by 6 affirmative votes notwithstanding the County Executive's objections.

The County Executive may amend the cable communications plan without Council approval to transfer up to 10% of a grant from one major activity to another or between activities within the plan.

The County may administer and enforce a cable television franchise and franchise agreement on behalf of a municipality that adopts this Chapter and enters into an agreement with the County governing administration and enforcement. The County must consult with and coordinate its actions on major regulatory or administrative matters with the affected participating municipalities.

The County Executive must administer and enforce this Chapter and any franchise agreement, including:

Actions by the County Executive in the following matters are subject to approval and modification by the Council:

Any action by the County Executive that requires approval of the Council is deemed approved by the Council unless disapproved within 60 days after the Council receives the County Executive's recommended action. The 60-day period does not include any week when the Council does not meet in regular session. The Council by resolution may extend the deadline for action for no more than one additional 60-day period.

The County Executive must transmit a copy of all amendments to a franchise agreement considered not to substantially alter material provisions of the franchise to the Council and each participating municipality for their information within 15 days of their execution.

This Act applies to each current or future franchise, franchisee, subscriber, or other person subject to the requirements of the County Cable Communications Act, as amended by this and any future Act, and supersedes any contrary regulation, franchise, franchise agreement, subscriber agreement, or other agreement. The complaint adjudication provisions in Chapter 8A of the Code, as amended by this Act, apply to any complaint pending on, or filed on or after, the date this Act takes effect [March 6, 2003]. Section 8A-31A(i) applies to any subscriber agreement modified or entered into after this Act becomes law [December 5, 2002].

The County Executive must designate the initial term of 2 members of the Cable Compliance Commission as 2 years. Any later term of these 2 members, and the terms of all other members, mut be 3 years.

On behalf of the participating municipalities, the County must assure that:

Any cable advisory committee or board created by the County must include a voting representative designated by the Montgomery County Chapter of the Maryland Municipal League, the City of Rockville and the City of Takoma Park, if the advisory committee or board to be concerned with franchises or cable operations in which those entities, or their members, are participating municipalities.

Established. The Cable and Communications Advisory Committee may provide advice and recommendations to the County Executive, County Council, and the Department of Technology and Enterprise Business Solutions on all telecommunications issues, including the administration of this Chapter and any franchise agreement or application. The Committee must not engage in any advocacy activity at the State or federal levels unless that activity is approved by the Office of Intergovernmental Relations.

The Advisory Committee should meet quarterly or more frequently if requested by the County Executive or County Council or if the Chair or Committee finds it necessary.

The Advisory Committee must have 9 voting members appointed by the Executive and confirmed by the Council for 3-year terms. The members should broadly represent technology areas.

The Executive must appoint one representative selected by the Montgomery County Chapter of the Maryland Municipal League, one representative selected by the City of Rockville, and one representative selected by the City of Takoma Park. However, if any of these organizations do not provide a representative, the representative may be selected from the public at large.

The Executive must appoint 6 members selected from the public at large.

The members annually must elect the chairperson and vice chairperson of the Committee. A person must not serve more than 2 consecutive terms as chairperson.

Members are subject to Chapter 19A.

This Act applies to each current or future franchise, franchisee, subscriber, or other person subject to the requirements of the County Cable Communications Act, as amended by this and any future Act, and supersedes any contrary regulation, franchise, franchise agreement, subscriber agreement, or other agreement. The complaint adjudication provisions in Chapter 8A of the Code, as amended by this Act, apply to any complaint pending on, or filed on or after, the date this Act takes effect [March 6, 2003]. Section 8A-31A(i) applies to any subscriber agreement modified or entered into after this Act becomes law [December 5, 2002].

The County Executive must designate the initial term of 2 members of the Cable Compliance Commission as 2 years. Any later term of these 2 members, and the terms of all other members, mut be 3 years.

Established. The Cable Compliance Commission is established to adjudicate subscriber complaints involving customer cable service and other consumer protection claims that arise under this Chapter, any regulation adopted or franchise agreement approved under this Chapter, or Section 11-4A.

Membership. The Commission is comprised of 5 voting members appointed by the County Executive and confirmed by the County Council. Each appointee must be appointed to a 3-year term. The Commission should include:

Officers. The Commissioners annually must elect a chair and vice chair of the Commission. An individual must not serve more than 2 consecutive terms as chair.

Reserved.

Ethics. Each member of the Commission is subject to Chapter 19A.

Authority. The Commission may:

Hearing Procedures.

Legal representation. The County Attorney must provide legal advice and representation to the Commission and must enforce any Commission order. The County Attorney may represent the interests of the County in any proceeding before the Commission, consistent with policies established by the Council.

Conflicting subscriber agreement. Any provision in a subscriber agreement, whether written or oral, that conflicts with this Chapter, a franchise agreement, or any regulation or other legal requirement is unenforceable. An unenforceable provision does not affect other provisions of the subscriber agreement that can be given effect without the unenforceable provision. “Subscriber agreement” includes any agreement that the franchisee requires a subscriber to agree to as a condition of receiving cable service or any other products and services.

Fee. The Executive may issue regulations under method (3) setting a reasonable fee for filing a complaint with the Commission. The filer must pay the fee to the County when filing a complaint. The Commission, cable administrator, or CIO may waive the filing fee upon request if the fee would be a financial hardship for the complainant. If the parties agree to a consent order after mediation, the Commission may refund the filing fee. The Commission may order the losing party to pay another party’s filing fees or other reasonable expenses related to the hearing, including attorney’s fees, in addition to ordering payment of damages.

Staff and other support. The Chief Administrative Officer must provide the services and County facilities that are reasonably necessary for the Commission to perform its duties.

This Act applies to each current or future franchise, franchisee, subscriber, or other person subject to the requirements of the County Cable Communications Act, as amended by this and any future Act, and supersedes any contrary regulation, franchise, franchise agreement, subscriber agreement, or other agreement. The complaint adjudication provisions in Chapter 8A of the Code, as amended by this Act, apply to any complaint pending on, or filed on or after, the date this Act takes effect [March 6, 2003]. Section 8A-31A(i) applies to any subscriber agreement modified or entered into after this Act becomes law [December 5, 2002].

The County Executive must designate the initial term of 2 members of the Cable Compliance Commission as 2 years. Any later term of these 2 members, and the terms of all other members, must be 3 years.

The County may contract with one or more community media organizations using funds from the Cable TV Special Revenue Fund or any other funds the County designates for community media in the approved County budget and under the County cable communications plan. Unless prohibited or otherwise limited under its contract with the County, the cable communications plan, or any executive regulation, a community media organization may also receive revenues from other sources.

The purpose of a community media organization is to provide community media training, equipment, facilities, centers, and community media engagement platforms to enable residents, businesses and community organizations to engage with, connect to, and inform other residents, businesses, community organizations, governments and agencies by using community media. Supporting community engagement, communication, and education through community media and use of community media engagement platforms builds better understanding among a diverse population, increases opportunities for participation in and awareness of local culture and government, and promotes quality of life and economic development.

The County may require a community media organization to perform one or more of the following functions as specified in the contract between the County and the community media organization:

A community media organization must:

Any officer, director, or executive director of a community media organization must annually disclose, confidentially and in writing, any communications-related activity or interest to the governing board of directors for the community media organization.

A community media organization must provide a copy of its current articles of incorporation and bylaws to the County Executive and the County Council before the organization contracts with the County. Any proposed amendments must be submitted to the County Executive and County Council for review and comment at least 60 days before the organization takes final action on the amendment. The organization must submit a copy of all adopted amendments to the Executive and the Council within 5 working days of adoption. The organization’s articles of incorporation and bylaws are subject to all County laws, including those enacted after the County contracts with the organization.

A community media organization must provide the County with regular and complete financial reports as well as all other reports required under its contract with the County.