Cable Transparency Act
Bill: H.R.1064 | Sponsor: Rep. Mullin, Markwayne (R-OK)
Policy area: Science, Technology, Communications

Summary:
Cable Transparency Act
This bill modifies the term and termination of cable franchises.
Specifically, the bill provides that a cable franchise shall continue without any requirement for an operator to renew such franchise until the date the franchise is revoked or terminated. Under current law, a cable operator must submit a proposal for renewal of the franchise to the franchising authority.
The bill prohibits generally (1) a franchising authority from revoking a franchise, (2) a cable operator from terminating a franchise, or (3) the revocation or termination of a franchise by operation of law. However, a cable operator may terminate a franchise by submitting a written request to the franchising authority for the revocation of such franchise, and a franchising authority may revoke a franchise if it (1) finds that the cable operator has knowingly and willfully failed to meet a material requirement of the franchise, (2) provides the cable operator an opportunity to cure such failure, and (3) does not waive or acquiesce to the failure to meet the requirement.
Further, during a franchise period, a cable operator may obtain the elimination or modification of a franchise requirement by submitting a request for such elimination or modification to the franchising authority. The franchising authority shall grant such request if the cable operator demonstrates good cause and shows that the services required by the franchise will be maintained.

To amend the Communications Act of 1934 to amend provisions relating to 
     franchise term and termination and provisions relating to the 
  elimination or modification of requirements in franchises, and for 
                            other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Cable Transparency Act''.

SEC. 2. CABLE FRANCHISE TERM AND TERMINATION.

    (a) In General.--Section 626 of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 
U.S.C. 546) is amended to read as follows:

``SEC. 626. FRANCHISE TERM AND TERMINATION.

    ``(a) Franchise Term.--A franchise shall continue in effect 
(without any requirement for renewal) until the date on which the 
franchise is revoked or terminated in accordance with subsection (b).
    ``(b) Limits.--
            ``(1) Prohibition against revocation; termination.--Except 
        as provided in paragraph (2), a franchise may not be--
                    ``(A) revoked by a franchising authority;
                    ``(B) terminated by a cable operator; or
                    ``(C) revoked or terminated by operation of law, 
                including by a term in a franchise that revokes or 
                terminates such franchise on a specific date, after a 
                period of time, or upon the occurrence of an event.
            ``(2) When termination or revocation of franchise 
        permitted.--
                    ``(A) Termination by cable operator.--
                            ``(i) In general.--A cable operator may 
                        terminate a franchise by submitting to the 
                        franchising authority a written request for the 
                        franchising authority to revoke such franchise.
                            ``(ii) Time of revocation.--If the cable 
                        operator submits a complete request under 
                        clause (i), the franchising authority shall 
                        revoke the franchise on the date that is 90 
                        days after the franchising authority receives 
                        such request.
                            ``(iii) Deemed to be revoked.--If a 
                        franchising authority does not approve a 
                        request by the date required under clause (ii), 
                        the franchise is deemed revoked on the day 
                        after such date.
                    ``(B) Termination by franchising authority.--A 
                franchising authority may revoke a franchise if the 
                franchising authority--
                            ``(i) finds that the cable operator has 
                        knowingly and willfully failed to substantially 
                        meet a material requirement imposed by the 
                        franchise;
                            ``(ii) provides the cable operator a 
                        reasonable opportunity to cure such failure, 
                        after which the cable operator fails to cure 
                        such failure; and
                            ``(iii) does not waive the material 
                        requirement or acquiesce with the failure to 
                        substantially meet such requirement.
                    ``(C) When request considered complete; received.--
                            ``(i) When request considered complete.--
                                    ``(I) In general.--For the purposes 
                                of this paragraph, a request to a 
                                franchising authority shall be 
                                considered complete if the cable 
                                operator has not received a written 
                                notice from the franchising authority 
                                within 10 business days after the date 
                                on which the request is received by the 
                                franchising authority--
                                            ``(aa) stating that all the 
                                        information (including any form 
                                        or other document) required by 
                                        the franchising authority to be 
                                        submitted for the request to be 
                                        considered complete has not 
                                        been submitted; and
                                            ``(bb) identifying the 
                                        information required to be 
                                        submitted that was not 
                                        submitted.
                                    ``(II) Definition.--In this clause, 
                                the term `received by the franchising 
                                authority' means--
                                            ``(aa) in the case of a 
                                        request submitted 
                                        electronically, on the date on 
                                        which the request is 
                                        transmitted;
                                            ``(bb) in the case of a 
                                        request submitted in person, on 
                                        the date on which the request 
                                        is delivered to the individual 
                                        or at the location specified by 
                                        the franchising authority for 
                                        in-person submission; and
                                            ``(cc) in the case of a 
                                        request submitted in any other 
                                        manner, on the date determined 
                                        under regulations promulgated 
                                        by the Commission for the 
                                        manner in which the request is 
                                        submitted.
                            ``(ii) When complete request considered 
                        received.--For the purposes of this paragraph, 
                        a complete request shall be considered received 
                        on the date on which the cable operator submits 
                        to the franchising authority all information 
                        (including any form or other document) required 
                        by the franchising authority to be submitted 
                        for the request to be considered complete.
    ``(c) Review by Commission.--
            ``(1) Petition.--A cable operator may petition the 
        Commission for review of a determination by a franchising 
        authority to revoke a franchise under subsection (b)(2)(B).
            ``(2) Review.--The Commission shall review the 
        determination de novo.
            ``(3) Order.--If, based on the evidence presented during 
        the review, the Commission determines that the franchising 
        authority has not demonstrated by a preponderance of the 
        evidence that the franchising authority revoked the franchise 
        in accordance with subsection (b)(2)(B), the Commission shall 
        order the franchising authority to reinstate the franchise.''.
    (b) Elimination or Modification of Requirement in Franchise.--
Section 625 of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 545) is 
amended to read as follows:

``SEC. 625. ELIMINATION OR MODIFICATION OF REQUIREMENT IN FRANCHISE.

    ``(a) In General.--During the period in which a franchise is in 
effect, the cable operator may obtain the elimination or modification 
of any requirement in the franchise by submitting to the franchising 
authority a request for the elimination or modification of such 
requirement.
    ``(b) Elimination or Modification of Requirement in Franchise.--The 
franchising authority shall eliminate or modify a requirement in 
accordance with a complete request submitted under subsection (a) not 
later than 120 days after receiving such request if the cable operator 
demonstrates in the request--
            ``(1) good cause for the elimination or modification of the 
        requirement; and
            ``(2) that the mix, quality, and level of services required 
        by the franchise at the time the franchise was granted will be 
        maintained after the elimination or modification of the 
        requirement.
    ``(c) Deemed Elimination or Modification.--Except in the case of a 
request for the elimination or modification of a requirement for 
services relating to public, educational, or governmental access, if 
the franchising authority fails to approve or deny the complete request 
submitted under subsection (a) by the date described under subsection 
(b), the requirement shall be deemed eliminated or modified in 
accordance with the request on the day after such date.
    ``(d) Appeal.--
            ``(1) In general.--Any cable operator whose request for 
        elimination or modification of a requirement in a franchise 
        under subsection (a) has been denied by a final decision of a 
        franchising authority may obtain the elimination or 
        modification of such franchise requirements pursuant to the 
        provisions of section 635.
            ``(2) Grant of request.--In the case of any proposed 
        elimination or modification of a requirement in a franchise 
        under subsection (a), the court shall grant such elimination or 
        modification only if the cable operator demonstrates to the 
        court--
                    ``(A) good cause for the elimination or 
                modification of the requirement; and
                    ``(B) that the mix, quality, and level of services 
                required by the franchise at the time the franchise was 
                granted will be maintained after the elimination or 
                modification of the requirement.
    ``(e) When Request Considered Complete; Received.--
            ``(1) When request considered complete.--
                    ``(A) In general.--For the purposes of this 
                section, a request to a franchising authority shall be 
                considered complete if the cable operator has not 
                received a written notice from the franchising 
                authority within 10 business days after the date on 
                which the request is received by the franchising 
                authority--
                            ``(i) stating that all the information 
                        (including any form or other document) required 
                        by the franchising authority to be submitted 
                        for the request to be considered complete has 
                        not been submitted; and
                            ``(ii) identifying the information required 
                        to be submitted that was not submitted.
                    ``(B) Definition.--In this paragraph, the term 
                `received by the franchising authority' means--
                            ``(i) in the case of a request submitted 
                        electronically, on the date on which the 
                        request is transmitted;
                            ``(ii) in the case of a request submitted 
                        in person, on the date on which the request is 
                        delivered to the individual or at the location 
                        specified by the franchising authority for in-
                        person submission; and
                            ``(iii) in the case of a request submitted 
                        in any other manner, on the date determined 
                        under regulations promulgated by the Commission 
                        for the manner in which the request is 
                        submitted.
            ``(2) When complete request considered received.--For the 
        purposes of this section, a complete request shall be 
        considered received on the date on which the cable operator 
        submits to the franchising authority all information (including 
        any form or other document) required by the franchising 
        authority to be submitted for the request to be considered 
        complete.''.
    (c) Technical and Conforming Amendments.--The Communications Act of 
1934 (47 U.S.C. 151 et seq.) is amended--
            (1) in section 601--
                    (A) in paragraph (4), by striking the semicolon at 
                the end and inserting ``; and'';
                    (B) by striking paragraph (5); and
                    (C) by redesignating paragraph (6) as paragraph 
                (5);
            (2) in section 602(9)--
                    (A) by striking ``initial''; and
                    (B) by striking ``, or renewal thereof (including a 
                renewal of an authorization which has been granted 
                subject to section 626),'';
            (3) in section 611(b), by striking ``and may require as 
        part of a cable operator's proposal for a franchise renewal, 
        subject to section 626'';
            (4) in section 612(b)(3)--
                    (A) by striking ``or as part of a proposal for 
                renewal, subject to section 626,''; and
                    (B) by striking ``, or proposal for renewal 
                thereof,'';
            (5) in section 621(b)(3)--
                    (A) in subparagraph (C)(ii), by striking ``or 
                franchise renewal''; and
                    (B) in subparagraph (D)--
                            (i) by striking ``initial''; and
                            (ii) by striking ``, a franchise 
                        renewal,'';
            (6) in section 624--
                    (A) in subsection (b)(1), by striking ``(including 
                requests for renewal proposals, subject to section 
                626)''; and
                    (B) in subsection (d)(1), by striking ``or renewal 
                thereof'';
            (7) in section 627--
                    (A) by striking subsection (a);
                    (B) in subsection (b), by inserting ``, as 
                described in section 626(b)(2)(B),'' after ``for 
                cause''; and
                    (C) by striking ``(b) If'' and inserting ``If''; 
                and
            (8) in section 635A(a), by striking ``renewal,''.
    (d) Effective Date; Application.--
            (1) Effective date.--This section, and the amendments made 
        by this section, shall take effect 6 months after the date of 
        the enactment of this Act.
            (2) Application.--This section, and the amendments made by 
        this section, shall apply to a franchise granted--
                    (A) on or after the effective date established by 
                paragraph (1); or
                    (B) before such date, if such franchise (including, 
                notwithstanding the amendment made by subsection 
                (c)(2)(B), any renewal thereof) is in effect on such 
                date.
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