Agenda - 05-05-2009 - 4q - Laserfiche WebLink

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0 -----Forwarded Message---- From: Renee Boyette Sent: Apr 27, 2009 12:51 PM To: Region J Managers , Region J Assistant Managers ,Board of Delegates ,Alternate Delegates Subject: Anti-MUNI BEND Bill - TJCOG Call to Action? Hi all, Kirby asked me to forward this request. Thanks, Renee Please consider adopting the attached NCLM resolution in opposition to the S61004 and H61252 -the "Anti-Muni Broadband Bills". After adoption, send a copy of the resolution to the House Public Utility Committee members (list attached) as well as to your local legislative delegation. The PU Committee members need to hear from the local communities as the cable industry has a has a lot of folks in Raleigh on this right now. From Action Audits---Wednesday's Committee Action update The House and Science Committee voted on H1252, the so-called "The Level Playing Field" bill today, but reported it out, not with a favorable report, but to the Public Utilities Committee and "without prejudice," which apparently is code for the legislators that this is a bill very much in trouble. This is a small victory, but our battle continues, now in the Public Utilities Committee. Perhaps this will be a day remembered again for when North Carolina refused to be a captive of Time Wamer Cable. Time Warner Cable demonstrated it was the obvious sponsor of H1252 when the Committee Chair (and bill's legislative sponsor) was asked various questions by Committee members, and asked Time Warner Cable's Director of Government Affairs, Brad Phillips, and outside attorney, Marc Trathen, to the podium to answer what the bill meant. Stirring that debate was Rep. Haire (D-Haywood, Jackson, Mason, Swaine) a particular champion of the people, who successfully obtained the elimination of injunctive relief language which one of the Committee members argued created a presumption favoring TWC if it chose to sue a community for providing bbnd, with Rep. Dan Blue (D-Wake) and Rep Jones (D-Guilford) asking good questions at Haire's side. While this discusssion was going on, one of the bill's sponsors Thom Tillis (R- Mecklenburg) was passed a note by Time Warner Cable's Brad Phillips. Tillis raised his hand and told the Committee Chair he had no problem with the amendment and it passed on voice vote. As part of the bill's presentation, the crowd learned that changes had been made to the original version of the bill by the bill's sponsor, one allegedly removing any threat on the use of federal grant money to build municipal systems, and the other allegedly grandfathering existing systems. Neither change does that in reality. The emotional tenor of the meeting was raised in fact when Mr. Phillips, who described these changes, then characterized them as having been approved by the cities, naming Mi-CONNECTION and Salisbury specifically. But the individual Cities had not met with the industry, nor approved any such changes. Directly before the final vote, NCLM's representative, Kelli Kukura, spoke in powerful and direct opposition to the bill and deferred the remainder of her time to the Mayors of Salisbury and Wilson, the former who clarified they had not approved any changes to the bill, and the latter who made an impassioned plea that this bill was nothing other than an "incumbents" bill and a series of burdens on municipalities who dared to bring the level of bbnd infrastructure to their residents that will keep them globally competitive. Alcatel- Lucent, through Kevin Krufsky, then came to the podium and provided an elegant and pressured argument about why the bill was bad for North Carolina's economic development and would create anything BUT a level playing field, but would have the effect of denying North Carolina access to next generation broadband systems. The Bill's sponsor, Ty Harrell, then acted on Rep. Tillis' motion to report the bill out favorably to the Utility Committee; Rep. Haire interrrupted and made a substitute motion that the bill be reported out to the Public Utility Committee without prejudice. Ty Harrell objected saying it should be reported out favorably. A vote was taken on Haire's motion of voice vote, and Rep. Tolson called the vote in favor of Haire's substitute amendment, that it report out without prejudice. Next Steps: A list of Public Utility Committee members is attached. Bill sponsors on the Committee are noted in red. Cities, towns and counties are strongly encouraged to adopt the NCLM resolution and send it to their representatives and to Committee members, to make it clear to legislators on the Public Utility committee that this is a bill that will only harm North Carolina's future. There is nothing "level" about it. It is merely the act by a $17.2 billion/year cable company to stop local NC communities from building their own broadband infrastructures.