Lobbying efforts need to be beefed up. We don't have the money that the industries have but we do have some serious numbers that can't be ignored and are significant at the FCC, Capitol Hill and at the state level. Attorney Nick Miller pointed out that there is a lot of room for optimism for cities and towns in the current and future telecommunications era. Miller also noted that he believes that all cable rates should be controlled on the local level. There has been growing concern about the cable industry delineating commercial rates from residential rates.
Commercial rates are generally higher nationwide than our the residential consumer rates.
Attorneys said that nothing in the FCC rules gives a cable company the authority to charge a separate rate for these commercial accounts. Many are concerned about the transfer process and the review of unresolved cable compliance issues with TCI before local authority on any given transfer is approved. Much of the direction depends heavily on the approval of SBC taking over Ameritech and the direction that SBC will take if and when the takeover is approved. Rick also was responsible for setting up and moderating a session at the conference titled The Changing Face of the Local Telecommunications Market .