by Kirk Pinho
April 18, 2007
Spinal Column
http://www.spinalcolumnonline.com/1editorialbody.lasso?-token.folder=2007-04-18&-token.story=52748.113117&-token.subpub=

April 18, 2007 - The West Bloomfield Township Board of Trustees voted 4-1 on Monday, April 16 to determine that AT&T's proposed cable television franchise agreement is incomplete.

The township notified the telecommunications company of its decision yesterday, Tuesday, April 17, the last day under a new state law's 15-business-day window to reply to a proposed agreement.

Supervisor David Flaisher voted against the motion, while Trustees Deborah Macon, Stuart Brickner, Robert Spector, and Robert Sher voted to deem the agreement incomplete.

Treasurer Denise Hammond and Clerk Sharon Law were not at the meeting.

Board members cited various reasons for finding the proposal to be incomplete, including that the agreement didn't state the amount of public, educational and government (PEG) program funding and the franchise fee the company would pay; and that the map of the proposed service coverage area wasn't specific enough. The agreement now goes back to AT&T officials for their response.

Some members of the township board said they were concerned the community's revenues would be negatively altered under the agreement. Comcast, the current cable television provider in West Bloomfield, reportedly paid the township cable board an up-front fee in the ballpark of $900,000 in 2000.

The township board was not permitted to discuss the specific portion of the township which AT&T wants to serve, as those parameters are confidential.

Township Attorney Derk Beckerleg said there really is no precedent about what communities do in such situations. For example, some communities have essentially filled in the blanks on the agreements relative to fees, and deemed the proposals complete.

However, others — using similar reasons the township board cited earlier this week — have also determined the agreements are incomplete.

Flaisher said he wanted to "fill in the blanks" on the agreement and deem it complete, which is why he voted against the motion earlier this week.

"It's under state law, and we are going to accept the agreement, one way or the other," Flaisher said.

Under the METRO Act, which the Legislature approved during its lame duck session late last year, Michigan now has a statewide format for cable service providers to use in negotiating franchise agreements with local governments. The 10-year agreements are renewable for 10 more years. The new took effect on Jan. 1.

Local units of government are now barred from requiring cable television providers to obtain separate franchise agreements, and can't impose any fee or franchise requirement other than those set in the statute's provisions.

"I know there is a lot of demand out there for competition to Comcast," Flaisher said. "Over the years, I've gotten numerous calls from people who wanted to know why they didn't have any other choices, and soon they will."

Kirk Pinho is a staff writer for the Spinal Column Newsweekly