from: Badger Herald [1]

Mayor dislikes cable proposal

by Cara Harshman
Tuesday, November 13, 2007

Mayor Dave Cieslewicz released a statement Friday expressing his concerns with the newly passed video franchise bill — a bill that would transfer the power to grant video franchises from local municipalities to state government.

Under current law, local governments handle revenue-sharing agreements and local municipalities control video franchises through revenue sharing agreements that require cable companies to pay certain franchise fees and provide citywide access.

The video franchise bill, passed by the state Senate last Thursday, would redistribute this power to the state.

In the release, Cieslewicz said the bill “is bad for Wisconsin consumers, school districts and municipalities.”

The bill phases out funding for public educational and government television programming over the next three years.

“[Public access programming] is a good example of open government. Constituents can watch Assembly meetings on TV,” said George Twigg, communications director for Cieslewicz. “The bill undermines that.”

In his release, Cieslewicz also commended Senate President Fred Risser, D-Madison, for voting against the bill.

“I think the bill is bad public policy because it does not support governmental and educational stations,” Risser said.

The video franchise bill aims to increase competition and give consumers lower prices. Risser and Cieslewicz have expressed concern about how “consumer friendly” the bill is.

“In my opinion, it does not help competition,” Risser said. “It does not require [cable companies] to go into service areas that are not profitable.”

Risser said AT&T hired full-time lobbyists to push the bill because they “don’t want to be bothered by local franchises.”

“The bill is really unnecessary,” Twigg said. “There is nothing preventing AT&T from entering Wisconsin service areas.”

Cieslewicz said the bill “hampers the ability of local communities to control their rights of way and provides no meaningful consumer protection.”

With video franchising power in the hands of local governments, Twigg said constituents have a local resource to contact if problems arise with their cable company.

“If your cable went out and you are trying to get a credit with the cable company, you would try to talk to someone local,” Twigg said. “In the state government, getting help might be harder.”

Last spring, the video franchise bill passed in the Assembly. The Democratic-controlled Senate passed the bill with a 23-9 vote Thursday. The Assembly will soon discuss the Senate’s amendments to the bill.