An Act To Establish Consistent Consumer Protections for Cable and Video Programming Customers
Maine Legislature, Session 123, LD 2133
Committee Amendment CA_A_H777 (House)
Amends: 30-A MRSA §3008, 30-A MRSA §3010

COMMITTEE AMENDMENT ,,/1 " to H.P. 1515, L.D. 2133, Bill, "An Act To 
Establish Consistent Consumer Protections for Cable and Video Programming 
Customers" 
Amend the bill by striking out the title and substituting the following: 
'An Act To Amend the Cable Television Laws and Establish a Model Cable 
Franchise Agreement' 
Amend the bill by striking out everything after the title and before the summary and 
inserting the following: 
'Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows: 
Sec. 1. 30-A MRSA §3008, as enacted by PL 1987, c. 737, Pt. A, §2 and Pt. C, 
§ 1 06 and amended by PL 1989, c. 6; c. 9, §2; and c. 104, Pt. C, §§8 and 10, is further 
amended to read: 
§300S. Ordinances relating to cable television systems 
1. State policy. It is the policy of this State, with respect to cable television systems: 
A. 
To affirm the importance of municipal control of franchising and regulation in 
order to ensure that the needs and interests of local citizens are adequately met; 
B. 
That each municipality, when acting to displace competition with regulation ffi 
the area of cable television systems, shall proceed according to the judgment of the 
municipal officers as to the type and degree of regulatory activity considered to be in 
the best interests of its citizens; and 
C. 
To provide adequate statutory authority to municipalities to make franchising 
and regulatory decisions to implement this policy and to avoid the costs and 
uncertainty of lawsuits challenging that authority~; and 
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D. 
To ensure that all cable television operators receive the same treatment with 
respect to franchising and regulatory processes and to encourage new providers to 
provide competitive pressure on the pricing of such services. 
I-A. Definitions. For purposes of this section. unless the context otherwise indicates, 
the following terms have the following meanings: 
A. "Cable system operator" has the same meaning as "cable operator," as that term is 
defined in 47 United States Code, Section 522(5), as in effect on January I, 2008; 
B. "Cable television service" has the same meaning as "cable service," as that term is 
defined in 47 United States Code, Section 522(6), as in effect on January 1, 2008; and 
C. "Cable television system" has the same meaning as "cable system," as that term is 
defined in 47 United States Code, Section 522(7), as in effect on January I, 2008. 
2. Ordinances. A municipality may enact any ordinances, not contrary to this 
chapter, governing franchising and regulation of cable television systems using public 
ways. Systems located in accordance with those ordinances, franchises and regulations 
are not defects in public ways. 
The municipal officers of municipalities have the exclusive power to enact all ordinances 
authorized by this section. They shall give 7 days' notice of the meeting at which those 
ordinances are to be proposed in the manner provided for town meetings. 
Those 
ordinances take effect immediately. 
3. General reqnirements. The following requirements apply generally to cable 
television systems governed by this section. 
A. 
Any cable television system must be constructed and operated in accordance 
with Federal Communications Commission regulations. 
B. 
Notwithstanding any provision in a franchise, 00 f! cable tele>lision company 
system operator may not abandon service or a portion of that service without having 
given 6 months' prior written notice to the franchising municipality, if any, and to the 
municipalities affected by that abandonment. When abandonment of any service is 
prohibited by a municipal franchise, 00 f! cable television company system operator 
may not abandon that service without written consent of the municipal officers. Any 
cable television company '.vhieh system operator that violates this paragraph commits 
a civil violation for which a fine of $50 a day for each day that the violation continues 
may be adjudged. 
C. 
Neither the cable television company system operator whose facilities are used 
to transmit a program produced by a person other than the cable tele>lision company 
that operator, under Federal Communications Commission regulations or municipal 
ordinance, nor the officers, directors or employees of any such cable television 
comp~' system operator are liable for damages arising from any obscene or 
defamatory statements or actions or invasion of privacy occurring during any 
program when that company cable system operator does not originate or produce the 
program. 
D. 
NotwitRstanding any other provisions of this chapter, any permit to provide a 
cable television system issued before July 1, 1965, vt'ithout a fixed termination date, 
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COMMITTEE AMENDMENT .. ~" to H.P. 1515, L.D. 2133 
is deemed to expire Oft September 18, 1996, Hftless aft earlier expiratioft date is 
mHtHally agreed HpOft b)' the mHftieipality aftd the permit holder. 
These eable 
televisioft systems, as a eOftditioft of fraHehise, shall be operated ift SH6h a maftfter as 
to provide a safe, adeqHate aftd reliable serviee to sHbseribers. 
E. 
A municipality is entitled to injunctive relief in addition to any other remedies 
available by law to protect any rights conferred upon the municipality by this section 
or any ordinances enacted under this section or section 3010. 
4. 
Franchise procedures. 
Pursuant to subsection 2, a municipality may enact 
ordinances governing the procedures for granting franchises to cable television ffaHehises 
system operators. These ordinances must be enacted before granting any such franchise 
or franchises and shall must be designed to ensure that the terms and conditions of a 
franchise will adequately protect the needs and interests of the municipality. 
The 
ordinances shall must include, but are not limited to, provisions for the following: 
A. 
A mechanism for determining special local needs or interests before issuing a 
request for proposals, whether by actively seeking to determine those needs or 
interests or by allowing a period for public comment on a proposed request for 
proposals; 
B. 
The filing of franchise applications and related documents as public records, 
with reasonable notice to the public that the records are open to inspection during 
reasonable hours; 
C. 
A reasonable opportunity for public input before granting franchises; and 
D. 
The assessment of reasonable fees to defray the costs of public notice, 
advertising and other expenses incurred by the municipality in acting upon 
applications. 
5. Franchise agreements or contracts. The State specifically authorizes municipal 
officers pursuant to ordinances to contract on such terms and conditions and impose such 
fees as are in the best interests of the municipality, including the grant of exclusive or 
nonexclusive franchises for a period not to exceed 15 years, for the placing and 
maintenance of cable television systems and appurtenances, or parts thereof, along public 
ways and including contracts with cable televisioft eompafties whieh system operators 
that receive the services of television signal transmission offered by any public utilities 
using public ways for such transmission. We A public utility may not be required to 
contract with the municipal officers under this subsection. Each franchise must contain 
the following provisions: 
A. 
The area or areas to be served; 
B. 
A line extension policy; 
C. 
A provision for renewal, the term of which may not exceed 15 years; 
D. 
Procedures for the investigation and resolution of complaints by the cable 
televisioft eompaHy system operator; and 
E. 
Any other terms and conditions that are in the best interests ofthe municipality. 
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COMMI1TEE AMENDMENT "~" to M.P. ISIS, LD. 2l3J 
9. Current ordinanees and agreemeBts. This seetion shall not be eonstrued to 
iE'/alidate llRy ordinanee, fraaehise or agreemeR-t in effeet or uader eoasideration on July 
25, 1984. 
7. Model franchise agreement. The Department of Administrative and Financial 
Services, Office ofInforrnation Technology, referred to in this subsection as "the office," 
shall develop a model franchise agreement for use by any municipality and any cable 
system operator that mutually choose to adopt the model franchise agreement or any of its 
provisions. The office shall make the model franchise agreement available on its publicly 
accessible website. In the development of the model franchise agreement, the office 
shall, at a minimum, consider the following issues: 
A. Franchise fees; 
B. Build-out requirements; 
C. 
Public, educational and governmental access channels and reasonable facility 
support for such channels; 
D. Customer service standards; 
E. The disparate needs of the diverse municipalities in this State; and 
F. 
The policy goal of promoting competition in the delivery of cable television 
service. 
This subsection does not allow the office to establish prices for any cable television 
service or to regulate the content of cable television service. 
Sec. 2. 30-A MRSA §3010, as amended by PL 2007, c. 104, §1, is further 
amended to read: 
§3010. Consumer rights and protection relating to cable television service 
Every franehisee shall agree to the following This section applies to every franchisee. 
For pumoses of this section, "franchisee" means a cable system operator that is granted a 
franchise by a municipality in accordance with section 3008. 
For purposes of this 
section, "cable system operator" and "cable television service" have the same meanings as 
in section 3008. 
1. 
Credits and refunds for interruption of service 
Credits and refunds for 
interruption of cable television service shall of a franchisee must be as follows. 
A. 
In the event service to any subscriber is interrupted for 6 or more consecutive 
hours in a 30-day period, it the franchisee will, upon request, grant that subscriber a 
pro rata credit or rebate. 
B. 
An office ~ 
of the franchisee must be open during usual business hours, have 
a listed toll-free telephone and be capable of receiving complaints, requests for 
adjustments and service calls. 
C. 
The franchisee shall provide subscribers with 30 days days' advance written 
notice of an increase in rates, changes in billing practices or the deletion of a channel. 
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1-A. 
Service disconnection. A franchisee must discontinue billing a eonSlimer 
subscriber for a service within 10 working days after the eonSlirner subscriber requests 
that service disconnection unless the eonSlimer subscriber unreasonably hinders access by 
the franchisee to equipment of the franchisee on the premises of the eonSlirner subscriber 
to which the franchisee must have access to complete the requested disconnection. 
2. 
Notice to subscribers regarding quality of service. Notice to subscribers 
regarding quality of service sflal.I. must be as follows. 
A. 
F or each new subscriber, and annually thereafter, every franchisee shall cause to 
be mailed to each of its subscribers a notice that: 
(1) Informs subscribers of how to communicate their views and complaints to 
the cable eornp~c system operator, the proper municipal official and the 
Attorney General; 
(2) States the responsibility of the Department of the Attorney General to 
receive consumer complaints concerning matters other than channel selection and 
rates; and 
(3) States the policy regarding and method by which subscribers may request 
rebates or pro rata credits as described in subsection 1, paragraph A-;; and 
(4) Informs subscribers of their right to request basic-tier, non premium 
programming service and the cost of that service. 
B. 
The notice sflal.I. must be in nontechnical language, understandable by the general 
public and in a convenient format. On or before January 30th of each year, the 
franchisee shall certifY to the franchising authority and to the Department of the 
Attorney General that it has distributed the notice during the previous calendar year 
as required by this section. 
2-A. 
Notice on subscriber bills; credits and refunds. Every franchisee shall 
include on each subscriber bill for service a notice regarding the subscriber's right to a pro 
rata credit or rebate for interruption of service upon request in accordance with subsection 
1. 
The notice must include a toll-free telephone number and a telephone number 
accessible by a teletypewriter device or TTY for contacting the franchisee to request the 
pro rata credit or rebate for service interruption. The notice must be in nontechnical 
language, understandable by the general public and printed in a prominent location on the 
bill in boldface type. 
4. Recording subscriber complaints. Recording subscriber complaints shall must 
be as follows. 
A. 
Every franchisee shall keep a record or log of all written complaints received 
regarding quality of service, equipment malfunctions, billing procedure, employee 
attitude and similar matters. These records sflal.I. must be maintained for a period of 2 
years. 
B. 
The record sflal.I. must contain the following information for each complaint 
received: 
( 1) Date, time and nature of the complaint; 
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COMMITIEE AMENDMENT·A .. In H.P. 1515, L.D. 2IlJ 
(2) Name, address and telephone number of the person complaining; 
(3) Investigation ofthe complaint; 
(4) Manner and time of resolution of the complaint; 
(5) If the complaint regards equipment malfunction or the quality of reception, a 
report indicating corrective steps taken, with the nature of the problem stated; and 
(6) 
Consistent with subscriber privacy provisions contained in the Cable 
Communications Policy Act of 1984, Public Law 98-549, every franchisee shall 
make the logs or records of complaints available to any authorized agent of any 
franchising authority having a franchise with that franchisee or any authorized 
agent of a municipality considering a franchise with that franchisee upon request 
during normal business hours for on-site review. 
5. Franchises. All franchises shall must be nonexclusive. All franchises 5IHHl must 
include provision for access to, and facilities to make use of, one or more local public, 
educational and governmental access channels subject to the definitions and requirements 
of the Cable Communications Policy Act of 1984, Public Law 98-549 or related 
requirements or regulations of the Federal Communications Commission. 
6. Rights of individuals. Ne A cable televisioR system operator may not deny 
service, deny access or otherwise discriminate against subscribers, channel users or 
general citizens on the basis of age, race, religion, sex, physical handicap or country of 
natural origin. 
6-A. Subscriber privacy. A cable televisioR system operator may not intrude upon 
the privacy of a subscriber by installing or using any equipment that allows the cable 
system operator to observe or to listen to what is occurring in an individual subscriber's 
household or to monitor the viewing habits of the subscriber without express, prior 
written consent of the subscriber. A cable system operator may not sell, disclose or 
otherwise make available, or permit the use of, lists of the names or addresses of its 
subscribers, or any list or other information that identifies by name or address subscribers 
or subscriber viewing habits, to any person or agency for any purpose whatsoever without 
the prior written consent of the subscriber except that the cable system operator may 
make such lists available to persons performing services for the cable system operator in 
connection with its business or operations, such as a billing service, when the availability 
of such lists is necessary to the performance of such services if, in either case, the persons 
or entity receiving such lists agree in writing that they will not permit them to be made 
available to any other party. 
6-B. Late fees. A cable televisioR system operator may not charge a late fee or other 
penalty or charge for late payment of any bill that exceeds 1.5% per month of the amount 
due in the bill. If the bill includes separate charges for different levels of service, a late 
fee or other penalty or charge must be calculated on the total amount overdue for all 
levels of service and may not be calculated separately for each level of service. A 
payment is not late under this subsection until at least 30 days after those services to 
which the late fee applies have been received by the consumer. 
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COMMITTEE AMENDMENT "A · t. H.P. ISI5, L.D. 2133 
7. Penalty. A violation of any provision of this section is a violation of the UAfair 
Trades Praetiees Aet, Title 5, chapter 10. 
8. 
Filing of franchise agreements. 
A cable system operator that maintains a 
publicly accessible website shall post on that website a copy of the most recently 
executed franchise agreement for each franchise that it has been granted by a 
municipality in the State. 
Sec. 3. Model franchise agreement deadline; report and authority for 
legislation. By December 15, 2008, the Department of Administrative and Financial 
Services, Office of Information Technology shall complete the development of the model 
franchise agreement for cable television service pursuant to the Maine Revised Statutes, 
Title 30-A, section 3008, subsection 7 and submit a report to the joint standing committee 
of the Legislature having jurisdiction over utilities and energy matters regarding the 
model franchise agreement and its development. After receipt and review of the report, 
the committee is authorized to submit legislation regarding cable television service to the 
SUMMARY 
The amendment makes the following changes to the bill. 
1. It adds definitions of "cable television service," "cable television system," and 
"cable system operator" based on definitions in federal law and adopts these terms 
consistently throughout the bill. The addition of these definitions ensures that traditional 
cable companies and other providers of video services that fall within the federal 
definitions are subject to the Maine law, as was intended under the bill. The amendment 
also adds clarifying language to connect the section of law governing consumer rights 
and protections relating to cable television and the section of law governing ordinances 
relating to cable television. 
2. It changes the provision in the bill regarding the model cable franchise agreement 
to direct the Department of Administrative and Financial Services, Office of Information 
Technology, rather than the Public Utilities Commission, to develop the model agreement 
and to require that specific issues be considered by the Office of Information Technology 
in the development of the model franchise agreement. The amendment also establishes a 
deadline of December 15, 2008 for the Office of Information Technology to complete the 
model franchise agreement and submit a report regarding the model franchise agreement 
and its development to the joint standing committee of the Legislature having jurisdiction 
over utilities and energy matters. 
3. It eliminates the provision in the bill that directs the Public Utilities Commission to 
adopt by rule uniform consumer protection standards for cable television customers. It 
also eliminates all other references to the Public Utilities Commission that had been 
added in the bill within the section of law governing consumer protection for cable 
television customers. 
4. It eliminates the provision in the bill that entitles municipalities to collect 
reasonable attorney's fees if successful in any enforcement action against a cable system 
operator. 
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COMMITTEE AMENDMENT~" to H.P. 1515, L.D. 2133 
5. It eliminates the provision in the bill that establishes minimum requirements for 
facilities to make use of local public, educational and governmental access channels. 
6. It changes the provision in the bill regarding the filing of franchise agreements to 
have cable system operators post these agreements on their websites rather than file a 
copy of each agreement with the Secretary of State. 
FISCAL NOTE REQUIRED 
(See attached) 
COMMITTEE AMENDMENT 
Approved: 03116/08 frac 
LD 2133 
LR 2927(02) 
An Act To Establish Consistent Consumer Protections for Cable and Video Programming Customers 
Fiscal Note for Bill as Amended by Committee Amendment "A" 
Committee: Utilities and Energy 
Fiscal Note Required: Yes 
Fiscal Note 
Minor cost increase - General Fund 
Minor cost increase - Other Special Revenue Funds 
Fiscal Detail and Notes 
Costs associated with this legislation can be absorbed by the Office of Information Technology within the Department 
of Administrative and Financial Services and the Public Utilities Commission utilizing existing budgeted resources. 
LR2927(02) - Fiscal Note - Page 1 of 1