An Act Providing for Regulation of the Cable Television Industry by the Public Utilities Commission
Maine Legislature, Session 123, LD 0420
Committee: Utilities and Energy
Sponsors: GERZOFSKY, STRIMLING, ADAMS, BLANCHETTE, BLISS, FLETCHER, KOFFMAN, RAND, RINES
Amends: 35-A MRSA §8303, 35-A MRSA §8304, 35-A MRSA §8305, 35-A MRSA §8306

Legislative Document 
No. 420 
H.P.336 
House of Representatives, January 29, 2007 
An Act Providing for Regulation of the Cable Television Industry by 
the Public Utilities Commission 
Reference to the Committee on Utilities and Energy suggested and ordered printed. 
Presented by Representative GERZOFSKY of Brunswick. 
Cosponsored by Senator STRIMLING of Cumberland and 
'17/~ /?1. 7IldC~ 
MILLICENT M. MacFARLAND 
Clerk 
Representatives: ADAMS of Portland, BLANCHETTE of Bangor, BLISS of South Portland, 
CANA V AN of Waterville, FLETCHER of Winslow, KOFFMAN of Bar Harbor, RAND of 
Portland, RINES of Wiscasset. 
Printed on recycled paper 
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows: 
Sec. 1. 35-A MRS A §8301, as enacted by PL 1987, c. 141, Pt. A, §6, is amended 
to read: 
§8301. Public Utilities Commission regulation 
Cable television companies, to the extent they offer services like those of telephone 
utilities subject to regulation by the commission, shall be are subject to the commission's 
jurisdiction over rates, charges and practices, as provided in this Title. 
In accordance with 47 United States Code, Sections 532 and 543, the commission 
shall regulate basic service tier rates and services provided by any cable television system 
that is not subject to effective competition. The commission by rule shall establish 
appropriate procedures for conducting the regulation. 
Sec. 2. 35-A MRSA §8303 is enacted to read: 
§8303. Service. product or rate change; hearing; complaint 
1. Hearing and opportunity to comment. Prior to increasing a rate or changing a 
service or product, whether proposed by the cable television system operator or by a 
municipality, a cable television system operator shall: 
A. Notify all affected customers of the proposed increase or change at least 120 days 
prior to the effective date of the proposed increase or change to allow customers to 
provide comments; 
B. Hold a public hearing in accordance with this paragraph and any rules adopted by 
the commission. The public hearing must be held at a time and location convenient 
to the customers affected by the proposed increase or change, and notice of the 
hearing must be sent to all customers affected by the proposed increase or change at 
least 5 business days prior to the date of the hearing; 
C. Within 10 days following the public hearing, respond in writing to all affected 
customers to any complaints, criticisms or proposals raised during the public hearing 
and explain any changes the cable television system operator will make as a result of 
the complaints, criticisms or proposals; and 
D. After the hearing but no less than 90 days prior to the effective date of any 
increase or change, notify all affected customers of the final proposed increase or 
change. 
Sec. 3. 35-A MRSA §8304 is enacted to read: 
§8304. Petition; regulation 
1. Petition and review. Within 60 days of receiving notice of a final proposed 
increase in a rate or change in a product or service pursuant to section 8303, subsection 1, 
paragraph D, 10 or more customers affected by the increase or change may file a petition 
with the commission to review the increase or change. In response to the petition, the 
Page I - 123LRI320(OI)-1 
commiSSIOn may review the increase or change to assess its reasonableness. 
If the 
petition is signed by 25 or more customers, the commission shall review the increase or 
change. 
2. Commission review. If the commission, in its review under subsection 1 of a 
final proposed increase in a rate or change in a product or service, finds that the increase 
or change is unreasonable or poses an unreasonable hardship on customers, the 
commission shall petition the Federal Communications Commission: 
A. 
To stay the unreasonable increase or change pending review by the Federal 
Communications Commission; and 
B. To evaluate the commission's findings and recommendations on the matter and to 
direct the cable television system operator and, as applicable, the franchising 
authority to revise the increase or change in accordance with the commission's 
recommendations. 
Sec. 4. 35-A MRSA §8305 is enacted to read: 
§8305. Commission rules 
The commission may adopt rules necessary to implement this chapter. Rules adopted 
pursuant to this chapter are routine technical rules as defined in Title 5, chapter 375, 
subchapter 2-A. 
Sec. 5. 35-A MRSA §8306 is enacted to read: 
§8306. Cable television system assessment; fund; distribution 
The Cable Regulation Reimbursement Fund is established as a nonlapsing fund to 
provide funds to pay the costs incurred by the commission and municipalities in 
regulating the rates, products and services of cable television systems. The commission 
shall assess cable television system operators in an equitable manner to provide necessary 
funds for the Cable Regulation Reimbursement Fund. The commission shall by January 
st of each year provide an accounting of its assessments under this section and the 
amounts spent by the commission and distributed to municipalities. The commission by 
rule shall establish the standards and procedures for the disbursement of funds to 
municipalities under this section. 
SUMMARY 
1 
This bill subjects basic tier service rates and services of cable television systems to 
regulation by the Public Utilities Commission. 
The bill also establishes hearing and 
complaint procedures for 
rate increases or product or service changes by a cable 
television system operator and directs the Public Utilities Commission, on petition of 25 
or more customers, to petition the Federal Communications Commission to address any 
increases or changes if the Public Utilities Commission finds them to be unreasonable.