Sacramento Metropolitan Cable Television Commission

The Sacramento Metropolitan Cable Television Commission is the joint powers agency responsible for regulating the cable television franchises and licenses in Sacramento County, California. The Commission's Board of Directors is composed of members of the constituent jurisdictions: Sacramento County, Sacramento, Citrus Heights, Elk Grove, Rancho Cordova, Folsom, and Galt.

Formal responsibilities

The Commission is responsible for:

Administering the cable television franchises and licenses in Sacramento County
Assisting consumers in resolving their cable and non-cable video concerns
Monitoring community programming and grantee funding
Operating the local Government-access television (GATV) cable TV channel, Metro Cable

Franchises

The Commission currently licenses four cable television providers:

Comcast throughout Sacramento County
Frontier Communications in Elk Grove
Strategic Technologies in Natomas
SureWest in Natomas, Arden, Carmichael, Fair Oaks, Sacramento, Citrus Heights, Oak Park, Antelope, Elk Grove, and LandPark.

Late fees case

On March 23, 1993, Sacramento Cable instituted a $5 late fee on cable bills. These fees soon became the most common subject of complaint received by the Commission.^[1]

On July 25, 1994 a major class action suit (Selnick v. Sacramento Cable) was initiated over the legality of these late fees, which it was contended violated California law.^[2]^[3] This suit grew out of the Commission's investigation into the issue. The case was settled, and new legislation on late fees was drafted.^[4]

Notes

^ Slater, Pam (6 August 1994). "Cable TV Firm Under Fire for Late Charges". Sacramento Bee. p. B1.
^ Complaint for Damages, Restitution, and Injunctive Relief for Violation of the Liquidated Damages Statute and Unfair Trade Practices Act (July 25, 1994)
^ Swett, Clint (24 September 1994). "Judge OKs Pact to Settle Cable Suit". Sacramento Bee. p. B1.
^ Deborah R. Hensler; Nicholas M. Pace; Bonnie Dombey-Moore; Elizabeth Giddens; Jennifer Gross; Erik Moller (1999). Chapter 8 -- Cable TV Late Fee Litigation: Selnick V. Sacramento Cable (PDF). Class Action Dilemmas: Pursuing Public Goals for Private Gain. RAND Corporation. ISBN 0-8330-2604-6. Retrieved 2007-06-25.

External links

[Bee1-1] Slater, Pam (6 August 1994). "Cable TV Firm Under Fire for Late Charges". Sacramento Bee. p. B1.

[2] Complaint for Damages, Restitution, and Injunctive Relief for Violation of the Liquidated Damages Statute and Unfair Trade Practices Act (July 25, 1994)

[3] Swett, Clint (24 September 1994). "Judge OKs Pact to Settle Cable Suit". Sacramento Bee. p. B1.

[4] Deborah R. Hensler; Nicholas M. Pace; Bonnie Dombey-Moore; Elizabeth Giddens; Jennifer Gross; Erik Moller (1999). Chapter 8 -- Cable TV Late Fee Litigation: Selnick V. Sacramento Cable (PDF). Class Action Dilemmas: Pursuing Public Goals for Private Gain. RAND Corporation. ISBN 0-8330-2604-6. Retrieved 2007-06-25.

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