Lebanon City Council approves Comcast 10-year cable franchise agreement

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Lebanon City Council approved a 10-year cable franchise agreement with Comcast at the April 27 meeting, based on the recommendation to enter into the shortest-term contract because of the ever-changing industry.

During last week’s pre-council planning meeting, Mayor Sherry Capello said the past two cable agreements were 15 years long.

Under federal law, she said, municipalities are entitled to assess a franchise fee of up to 5% of gross revenue for cable services, and the city is already at that maximum. The changes in this agreement include the timeframe, language, and protections for both parties.

“Because of everyone cutting the cord and streaming, our revenue from this cable franchise fee has greatly diminished over the years,” Capello said. “But in this particular agreement, they have expanded the definition of gross revenue to include items, 25 separate revenue sources that will really maximize this revenue.”

The mayor said the contract also includes a “catch-all item” to cover future revenue sources not included in the contract.

Another protection in the agreement addresses bundled services, where a customer can get a discount when purchasing multiple plans, such as cable, phone, and internet. The contract requires this discount to be applied evenly between each plan rather than applying entirely to cable and limiting the city’s 5% revenue cut.

There will be customer service standards, such as time requirements for phone calls, surveys, and time limits for various repair work. Comcast will also have to provide credits for service interruptions of six or more hours if the person requests it, Capello said.

“None of this would be enforceable unless it’s in your franchise agreement, which is kind of ridiculous,” she said.

Comcast also agreed to repair any damage to the city’s public right-of-way or private property within 20 business days.

The city agreed to hold any other cable franchises to the same 5% of gross revenue to provide a “level playing field.” Capello said the city is also negotiating with Verizon.

In other business, council:

• Heard from Capello that Eric Ellis was appointed to the City of Lebanon Planning Commission for a term expiring July 26, 2029.
• Received information that finance officer Chele Gibble and director of administration-assistant to the mayor Janelle Groh were appointed as representative and alternate, respectively, to the Lebanon County Tax Collection Committee.

City council’s next pre-council planning meeting will be on Thursday, May 21, at 4:45 p.m. The next regular monthly council meeting will be on Tuesday, May 26, at 6:30 p.m.

All meetings are open to the public and are held in the City Hall multi-purpose room, 735 Cumberland St., first floor, Lebanon. Meetings are streamed live on the city council’s YouTube page.