The N.J. legislature passed a bill to shift video franchising fro...
The N.J. legislature passed a bill to shift video franchising from the state’s 526 municipalities to the Board of Public Utilities (BPU). The bill (AB-804/SB- 192) actually passed last month but had to be returned to the Assembly to…
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comply with a parliamentary technicality requiring that any bill to raise taxes must originate in the Assembly. This bill raised technical concerns because it would increase municipal franchise fees to 4% from 2% when competitive cable service is available to 60% of households. But the Assembly quickly approved the measure without change and sailed it back to the Senate for the final 31-5 vote that sent it on to Gov. Jon Corzine (D). The governor didn’t indicate whether he'd sign it; he has until early Aug. to act. The bill requires new BPU-franchised video entrants to offer service within 3 years in all county seats in their service area, plus any municipality with a population density exceeding 7,111 per square mile. If the entrant is a telephone company, its video service area would be the same as its telephone service area. New entrants would have to extend service to all households in a municipality within 6 years from the date they first offered service in that community. The bill also would prohibit income-based redlining at any time. Redlining complaints would be heard by the BPU. The bill’s passage came after long and costly lobbying campaigns by cable companies, municipalities and phone carriers. Phone companies and their supporters said it would lower bills, provide more entertainment choices and better service quality through competition. But cable and municipal interests, along with some southern N.J. lawmakers, contended the bill would raise prices statewide, while leaving many suburban and rural areas in southern counties without any offsetting competitive benefits. Verizon applauded the bill’s passage and urged Corzine to sign it, saying it “brings long-needed updates to the state’s 34-year- old cable franchise laws -- laws that were out of date with technology, out of touch with consumer demands, and served only to delay choice and competition.” Construction interests also hailed the measure, saying they expect an economic boost from what they predict could be up to $1 billion in Verizon network spending on network upgrades for video service.