20.06.060 Application instruction and requirements for competitive cable franchises.
A. Non-CFAR Franchise Applications. Notwithstanding any other provisions, any competitive cable services franchise applicant may elect to submit a cable franchise application to the city and/or engage in cable franchise negotiations without regard to the application of the FCC’s Competitive Franchise Application Rule (CFAR) – the administrative rule that imposes procedures upon local governments for the issuance of competitive cable franchises for areas currently served by an existing cable operator. In such cases, the city will negotiate the terms of a competitive cable franchise without regard to 47 CFR 76.41 and the other provisions of this section. Agreement by any applicant to negotiate a franchise without regard to 47 CFR 76.41 and the other provisions of this section shall not be deemed by the city to effect a waiver of any applicant’s right under applicable law to trigger application of 47 CFR 76.41 and this section, where applicable.
B. Instructions and Definitions.
1. An applicant for a competitive cable franchise (“applicant”) shall include the requisite information set forth below, in writing, in its franchise application, in addition to any information required by 47 CFR 76.41 and applicable state and local laws and the application fee in the amount set forth in the city of Auburn fee schedule.
2. The city shall accept and review only those applications that include complete responses to every requirement of subsections B, C, D and E of this section. Submission of an application that does not include the requisite information set forth in subsections B, C, D and E of this section, and the application fee, shall not commence the time period for granting or denying the application set forth in 47 CFR 76.41(d). The applicant shall submit additional or updated information as necessary to ensure the requisite information provided is complete and accurate throughout the city’s review of the application.
3. Application shall be made to the department of public works.
4. Upon request, the city will promptly provide access to documents or information in its possession or control that are necessary for the completion of this application; provided, that the applicant does not otherwise have access to such documents or information and that such documents or information are subject to disclosure under Washington Public Records Act.
5. For the purposes of the application, the terms, phrases, and their derivations set forth below shall have the meanings given unless the context indicates otherwise. When not inconsistent with the context, words used in the present tense include the future tense, words in the plural number include the singular number, and words in the singular include the plural number. The word “shall” is always mandatory and not merely directory.
a. “Affiliate(s),” when used in relation to any person, means any other person who owns or controls, is owned or controlled by, or is under common ownership or control with, such person.
b. “Applicant” means an applicant for a cable franchise pursuant to the provisions of the Competitive Franchise Application Rule (“CFAR”) set forth in Part 76 of Title 47 of the Code of Federal Regulations, Section 76.41, and includes the parent corporation, its subsidiaries and principals.
c. “Control” is not limited to majority stock ownership, but includes actual working control in whatever manner exercised.
d. “Interest” includes officers, directors and shareholders owning five percent or more of the applicant’s outstanding stock or any equivalent voting interest of a partnership or joint venture.
e. “Parent corporation” includes any entity with ownership or control of the applicant.
f. “Principal” includes any person, firm, corporation, partnership, joint venture, affiliates, or other entity, who or which owns or controls five percent or more of the voting stock (or any equivalent voting interest of a partnership or joint venture) of the applicant.
g. “Regulatory authority” includes any governmental or quasi-governmental organization or entity with jurisdiction over all or any portion of the applicant or its operations.
C. Requisite Information.
1. Identification and Ownership Information. The application shall include the name, address, telephone number and web site (if applicable) of the applicant and the proposed franchisee (if different from applicant), and the name, address, primary telephone number and primary email address of all individual(s) authorized to represent the applicant before the city during its consideration of the franchise(s) requested, including the applicant’s primary contact and any additional authorized contacts.
2. Business Structure.
a. If a corporation, the applicant shall provide: (i) a list all officers and members of the board of directors, their principal affiliations and their addresses; (ii) a certificate of good standing indicating that the applicant is licensed to do business in the state of Washington; and (iii) a statement indicating whether the applicant is directly or indirectly controlled by another corporation or legal entity. If so, applicant shall attach an explanatory statement and respond to this subsection concerning the controlling corporation.
b. If a partnership, the applicant shall describe the structure of the partnership and the interests of general and limited partners; and state whether the applicant is controlled directly or indirectly by any corporation or other legal entity. If so, applicant shall attach an explanatory statement and respond to subsection (C)(2)(a) of this section, as applicable, concerning the controlling entity.
3. Experience.
a. Current Franchises. An applicant shall list all cable systems in which it or any affiliate owns more than five percent of the system; provided, that if the total number of cable systems exceeds 10, the applicant shall list the 10 systems that are the subject to its most recent cable franchises. For each system applicant shall include name of system, address, communities served, number of subscribers, number of homes passed, date of system award, duration (start and end date) of franchise, status of construction, and percent of penetration of homes passed as of the most recent available date (indicate date).
b. Potential Franchises. An applicant shall list communities where it or any affiliate currently has in the state of Washington a formal or informal request pending for an initial franchise, the renewal of a franchise, or the approval of a transfer of ownership. The applicant shall include the name of communities, date of application, and date of expected action.
4. Management Structure. Every application for a competitive franchise shall include a management/organizational chart, showing the management structure of the applicant.
D. Legal Qualification.
1. Franchise Violations. An applicant shall state whether it or any affiliate has been found in violation by a regulatory authority or franchising authority of any franchise ordinance or agreement, contract or regulation governing a cable system. If so, the applicant shall identify the judicial or administrative proceeding, giving the date, name of tribunal and result or disposition of that proceeding.
2. Other Violations. An applicant shall state whether it has been found in violation by a regulatory authority of any other type (e.g., utility) of franchise, ordinance, agreement, permit, contract or regulation. If so, the applicant shall identify the judicial or administrative proceeding, giving the date, name of tribunal and result or disposition of that proceeding.
E. Financial Qualifications. Unless SEC Forms 10-K and 10-Q are available on the EDGAR database, applicants with existing operations shall provide audited financial statements, including statements of income, balance sheets and cash flow statements, together with any notes necessary to the understanding of the financial statements for the last three fiscal years for the applicant and any parent corporation. Applicants that are new (start-up) entities shall provide pro forma projections for the next five fiscal years, if available, but at a minimum the next three fiscal years from the date of the application.
F. Technical Qualifications, Planned Services and Operations.
1. The application shall describe the applicant’s planned initial and proposed cable services geographic area, including a map of all areas proposed to be served and proposed dates for offering service to each area. The application shall additionally state whether the applicant proposes to provide cable services to the entire franchise area, and if so, a proposed timetable for meeting that goal;
2. If the applicant has or asserts existing authority to access the public right-of-way in any of the initial or proposed service areas, the applicant shall state the basis for such authority or asserted authority and attach the relevant agreements or other documentation of such authority;
3. The applicant shall describe with particularity its planned residential cable services, including basic cable services, other cable programming service tiers, and any additional pay-per-view, on-demand or digital services; and the projected rates for each category or tier or service;
4. The applicant shall describe with particularity its planned system technical design, upstream and downstream capacity and speed, provision for analog or digital services or packages, distribution of fiber, planned count of households per residential node, and any other information necessary to demonstrate that the applicant’s technology will be deployed so as to be able to successfully offer cable services in the proposed locations;
5. The applicant shall describe with particularity its planned nonresidential cable services;
6. The applicant shall describe its planned construction and extension or phase schedule, as applicable, including system extension plans or policy; and describe the current status of the applicant’s existing or proposed arrangements with area utilities, including pole attachments, vault, or conduit sharing agreements as applicable;
7. The applicant shall describe its plan to ensure that the safety, functioning and appearance of property and convenience and safety of other persons not be adversely affected by installation or construction of the applicant’s facilities, and that property owners are justly compensated for any damages caused by the installation, construction, operation or removal of the facilities;
8. The applicant shall describe its plan to comply with the subscriber privacy protections set forth in 47 USC 551, and the privacy protections of the city’s local cable customer service standards.
G. Certification of Applicant. Each application shall be accompanied by a certificate in a form required by the city, and declaring that the applicant’s representations are truthful.
H. Public Records/Confidentiality. Unless otherwise provided by applicable law, information submitted as part of an application is open to public inspection and subject to the Washington Public Records Act.
I. Application Fee. An application fee sufficient to cover the reasonable cost of processing applications under this title will be in the amount set forth in the city of Auburn fee schedule.
J. Review Process.
1. Acceptance of Application. The city shall review the application to ensure all requisite information is included in the application. If the application is not complete, the city will notify the applicant in writing, listing the requisite information that is required to complete the application and notifying the applicant that the time period for granting or denying the application set forth in 47 CFR 76.41(d) will not begin to run until such information is received. If the application is complete, the city will notify the applicant in writing that all requisite information has been received.
2. Staff Review. The city staff shall review all completed applications based on the review criteria set forth herein. If, during the review of an application, staff reasonably requires additional information from the applicant, staff will promptly request the information from the applicant, in writing, along with a notification that the time period for granting or denying the application set forth in 47 CFR 76.41(d) will be tolled until such information is received by the city. After completing the review, staff shall provide an analysis of the application to the city council.
3. Franchise Negotiations. Within the 90-day time period set forth in 47 CFR 76.41(d), the city shall attempt to negotiate a cable franchise agreement with the applicant, and within that time period, schedule the application and any proposed franchise for public hearing as set forth in subsection K of this section.
K. Public Hearing. The city shall hold a public hearing before acting on the application, affording participants a process substantially equivalent to that required by 47 USC 546(c)(2) governing renewal of cable franchises.
L. Review Criteria. The city may deny an application if, based on the information provided in the application, at the public hearing and/or any terms of a proposed franchise agreement:
1. The applicant does not have the financial, technical, or legal qualifications to provide cable service;
2. The applicant will not provide adequate public, educational, and governmental access channel capacity, facilities, or financial support; or
3. The applicant’s proposed terms do not comply with applicable laws and regulations including, but not limited to, local customer service standards, or relevant existing contractual obligations of the city. (Ord. 6798 § 3 (Exh. C), 2020.)