From: tweek@netcom.com (Michael D. Maxfield)
Subject: S-12 (part 6/?)
Date: Tue, 01 Sep 92 04:50:22 GMT
Organization: Movement to Ban or Re-Regulate the CABLE MONOPOLIES
Distribution: usa


(PART 6 of ?)

REQUIREMENT FOR CERTAIN EQUIPMENT ON TELEVISION
SETS

SEC. 12. Section 303(s) of the Communications Act
of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 303(s)) is amended---

(1) by inserting ", and be equiped with an
electronic switch permitting users of the apparatus
to change readily among all video distribution
media," immediately after "television broadcasting";
and

(2) by inserting immediately before the period
at the end the following: ", except that such electronic 
switch shall be required only if the Commission 
determines that the installation of the switch is
technically and economically feasible".

LIMITATION OF FRANCHISING AUTHORITY LIABILITY

SEC. 13. Part III of title IV of the Communications
Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 621 et seq.) is amended by adding
at the end the following new section:

"LIMITATION OF LIABILITY

"SEC. 628. (a) In any court proceeding pending on
the date of enactment of this section, or initiated after
such date, involving any claim under the Civil Rights Acts
asserting a violation of First Amendment constitutional
rights by a franchising authority or other governmental
entity or by any official, member, employee, or agent of
such authority or entity, arising from actions expressly
authorized or required by this title, any relief shall be limited
to injunctive relief, declaratory relief, and attorney's fees
and legal costs, except as provided in subsection (b).

"(b) The limitation required by subsection (a) shall
not apply to actions that, prior to such violation, have been
determined by a final order of a court of binding juristiction,
no longer subject to appeal, to be in violation of
constitutional rights under the First Amendment or of the
Civil Rights Acts.".

MINIMUM TECHNICAL STANDARDS

SEC. 14. Section 624(e) of the Communications Act
of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 544(e)) is amended to read as follows:
"(e)(1) The Commisiion shall, within one year after
the date of enactment of the Cable Television Consumer
Protection Act of 1992, establish minimun technical
standards to ensure adequate signal quality for all classes
of video programming signals provided over a cable system,
and thereafter shall periodically update such minimum
standards to reflect improvements in technology.

"(2) The Commission may establish standards for
technical operation and other signals provided over a cable
system including but not limited to high-definition
television (HDTV).

"(3) The Commission may require compliance with
and enforce any standard established under this subsection, 
adjusted as appropriate for the particular circumstances
of the local cable system and cable community.

"(4) The Commission shall establish procedures for
complaints or petitions asserting the failure of a cable
operator to meet the technical standards and seeking an
order compelling compliance; except that nothing in this
subsection shall be construed to limit tha ability of a
complaint or petitioner to seek any other remedy that may
be available under the franchise agreement or State or
Federal law or regulation.

"(5) After the establishment of technical standards
by the commission pursuant to this section, neither a
State or political subdivision thereof, nor a franchising
authority or other governmental entity of a State or political
subdivision thereof, shall---

"(A) establish any technical standards described
in this subsection;

"(B) enforce any such standards that have not
been established by the Commission; or

"(C) enforce any such standards that are 
inconsistent with the standards established by the
Commission.".

RETRANSMISSION CONSENT FOR CABLE SYSTEMS

SEC. 15.(a) Section 325 of the Communications Act
of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 325) is amended by redesignating
subsections (b) and (c) as subsections (c) and (d), 
respectively, and by inserting immediately after subsection (a)
the following subsection:

"(b)(1) Following the date that is one year after the
date of enactment of this subsection, no cable system or
other multichannel video programming distributor shall
retransmit the signal of a broadcasting station, or any
part thereof, without the express authority of the
originating station, except as permitted by section 614.

"(2) The provisions of this section shall not apply
to---

"(A) retransmission of the signal of a noncommercial
broadcasting station;

"(B) retransmission directly to a home satellite
antenna of the signal of a broadcast station that
is not owned or operated by, or affiliated with, a
broadcast network, if such signal was
retransmitted by a satellite carrier on May 1, 1991;

"(C) retransmission of the signal of a broadcasting
station that is owned ot operated by, or affiliated
with, a broadcasting network directly to a
home satellite antenna, if the household receiving
the signal is an unserved household; or

"(D) retransmission by a cable operator or
other multichannel video programming distributor of
the signal of a superstation if such signal was
obtained from a satellite carrier and the originating
station was a superstation on May 1, 1991.

For purposes of this paragraph, the terms `satellite
carrier', `superstation', and `unserved household' have the
meanings given those terms, respectively, in section 119(d)
of title 17, United States Code, as in effect on the date
of enactment of this subsection.

"(3)(A) Within 45 days after the date of enactment
of this subsection, the Commission shall commence a 
rulemaking proceeding to establish regulations to govern the
exercise by television broadcast stations of the right to
grant retransmission consent under this subsection and of
the right to signal carriage under section 614, and such
other regulations as are necessary to administer the 
limitations contained in paragraph (2).  The Commisiion shall
consider in such proceeding the impact that the grant of
retransmission consent by television stations may have on
the rates for basic cable service, and shall ensure that rates
for basic cable service are reasonable.  Such rulemaking
proceeding shall be completed within six months after its
commencement.

"(B) The regulations required by subparagraph (A)
shall require that television stations, within one year after
the the date of enactment of this subsection and every three
years thereafter, make an election between the right to
grant retransmission consent under this subsection and
the right of signal carriage under section 614.  If there 
is more than one cable system which services the same
geographic area, a station's election shall apply to all such
cable systems.

"(4) If an originating television station elects under
paragraph (3)(B) to exercise its right to grant
retransmission consent under this subsection with respect
to a cable system, the provisions of section 614 shall not
apply to the carriage of the signal of such station by such
cable system.

"(5) The exercise by a television broadcast station of
the right to grant retransmission consent under this 
subsection shall not interfere with or supercede the rights
under section 614 or 615 of any station electing to assert
the right to signal carriage under that section.

"(6) Nothing in this section shall be construed as
modifying the compulsory copyright license established in
section 111 of title 17, United States Code, or as affecting
existing or future video programming licensing agreements
between broadcasting stations and video programmers.".

SEC. 16. Part II of title VI of the Communications
Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 531 et seq.) is amended by inserting
immediately after section 613 the following new
sections:

"CARRIAGE OF LOCAL COMMERCIAL TELEVISION SIGNALS

"SEC. 614. (a) Each cable operator shall carry, on
the cable system of that operator, the signals of local
commercial television stations and qualified low power stations
as provided by this section.  Carriage of additional broadcast
television signals on such system shall be at the discretion
of such operator, subject to section 325(b).

"(b)(1)(A) A cable operator of a cable system with
12 or fewer usable activated channels shall carry the signals 
of at least three local commercial television stations,
except that if such a system has 300 or fewer subscribers,
it shall not be subject to any requirements under this section
so long as such system does not delete from carriage
by that system any signal of a broadcast television station.

"(B) A cable operator of a cable system with more
than 12 usable activated channels shall carry the signals
of local commercial television stations, up to a maximum
of one-third of the aggregate number of usable activated
channels of such system.

"(2) Whenever the number of local commercial television
stations exceeds the maximum number of signals
a cable system is required to carry under paragraph (1),
the cable operator shall have discretion in selecting which
such signals shall be carried on it's cable system, except
that---

"(A) under no circumstances shall a cable operator
carry a qualified low power station in lieu of a
local commercial television station; and

"(B) if the cable operator elects to carry an affiliate
of a broadcast network (as suchterm is defined
by the Commission by regulation), such cable
operator shall carry the affiliate of such broadcast
network whose city of license reference point, as
defined under section 76.53 of title 47, Code of
Federal Regulations (as in effect on January 1, 1991),
or any successor regulation thereto, is closest to the
principal headend of the cable system.

"(3)(A) A cable operator shall carry in its entirety,
on the cable system of that operator, the primary video,
accompanying audio, and Line 21 closed caption transmission
of each of the local commercial television stations
carried on the cable system and, to the extent technically
feasible, program-related material carried in the vertical
blanking interval, or on the subcarriers.  Retransmission of
other material in the vertical blanking interval or other
non-program-related material (including teletext and othe
subscription and advertiser-supported information services)
shall be at the discretion of the cable operator.  Where
appropriate and feasible, the operator may delete signal
enhancements, such as ghost-canceling, from the broadcast
signal and employ such enhancements at the system
headend or headends.

"(B) The cable operator shall carry the entirety of
the program schedule of any television station carried on
the cable system unless carriage of specific programming
is prohibited, and other programming authorized to be
substituted, under section 76.67 or subpart F of part 76
of title 47, Code of Federal Regulations (as in effect on
January 1, 1991), or any successor regulations thereto.

"(4)(A) The signals of local commercial television
stations that a cable operator carries shall be carried 
without material degradation.  The Commission shall adopt
carriage standards to ensure that, to the extent technically
feasible, the quality of signal processing and carriage provided
by a cable system for the carriage of local commercial
television stations will be no less than that provided
by the system for carriage of any other type of signal.

*********************END PART 6 of ? *******************

(Boy am I a slow typist)