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Before the
Federal Communications Commission
Washington, D.C. 20554
In the Matter of )
)
Carson Communications, L.L.C. ) File No. EB-02-TS-079
)
Operator of Cable Systems in: )
)
Axtell, Kansas )
Baileyville, Kansas )
Bern, Kansas )
Centralia, Kansas )
Denison, Kansas )
Effingham, Kansas )
Emmett, Kansas )
Fairview, Kansas )
Frankfort, Kansas )
Goff, Kansas )
Lake Dabinawa, Kansas )
Lakewood Hills, Kansas )
Morrill, Kansas )
Muscotah, Kansas )
Randolph, Kansas )
Reserve, Kansas )
Summerfield, Kansas )
Vermillion, Kansas )
Wetmore, Kansas )
White Cloud, Kansas )
Whiting, Kansas )
)
Request for Waiver of Section 11.11(a) of the )
Commission's Rules )
ORDER
Adopted: May 29, 2002 Released: May 31, 2002
By the Chief, Technical and Public Safety Division, Enforcement
Bureau:
1. In this Order, we grant Carson Communications, L.L.C.
(``Carson'') temporary, 36-month waivers for each of the 21
above-captioned cable television systems of Section 11.11(a)
of the Commission's Rules (``Rules''). Section 11.11(a)
requires cable systems serving fewer than 5,000 subscribers
from a headend to either provide national level Emergency
Alert System (``EAS'') messages on all programmed channels or
install EAS equipment and provide a video interrupt and audio
alert on all programmed channels and EAS audio and video
messages on at least one programmed channel by October 1,
2002.1
2. The Cable Act of 1992 added new Section 624(g) to the
Communications Act of 1934 (``Act''), which requires that
cable systems be capable of providing EAS alerts to their
subscribers.2 In 1994, the Commission adopted rules requiring
cable systems to participate in EAS.3 In 1997, the Commission
amended the EAS rules to provide financial relief for small
cable systems.4 The Commission declined to exempt small cable
systems from the EAS requirements, concluding that such an
exemption would be inconsistent with the statutory mandate of
Section 624(g).5 However, the Commission extended the
deadline for cable systems serving fewer than 10,000
subscribers to begin complying with the EAS rules to October
1, 2002, and provided cable systems serving fewer than 5,000
subscribers the option of either providing national level EAS
messages on all programmed channels or installing EAS
equipment and providing a video interrupt and audio alert on
all programmed channels and EAS audio and video messages on at
least one programmed channel.6 In addition, the Commission
stated that it would grant waivers of the EAS rules to small
cable systems on a case-by-case basis upon a showing of
financial hardship.7 The Commission indicated that waiver
requests must contain at least the following information: (1)
justification for the waiver, with reference to the particular
rule sections for which a waiver is sought; (2) information
about the financial status of the requesting entity, such as a
balance sheet and income statement for the two previous years
(audited, if possible); (3) the number of other entities that
serve the requesting entity's coverage area and that have or
are expected to install EAS equipment; and (4) the likelihood
(such as proximity or frequency) of hazardous risks to the
requesting entity's audience.8
3. Carson filed a request for temporary waiver of Section
11.11(a) for each of the 21 captioned cable systems on
February 27, 2002.9 In support of its waiver request, Carson
states that each of the 21 systems serves small, rural
communities and has few subscribers. Specifically, Carson
indicates that the 21 systems each serve between eight and 260
subscribers, with 16 of the systems serving fewer than 100
subscribers. Based on price quotes provided by EAS equipment
manufacturers, Carson estimates that it would cost
approximately $9,694 to install EAS equipment at each of these
systems for a total cost of $203,574. Carson asserts that
this cost will impose a substantial financial hardship on it
and provides its financial statements for 2000 and 2001 in
support of this assertion. In addition, Carson submits that
its subscribers will continue to have ready access to national
EAS information from other sources, including its cable
systems. In this regard, Carson notes that its subscribers
currently have access to national EAS messages on between 45
and 78 percent of their programmed channels. Carson also
asserts that its subscribers will have access to EAS
information through over-the-air reception of broadcast
television and radio stations. Finally, Carson believes that
it can fund EAS equipment for the 21 systems in the next three
years.
4. Based upon our review of the financial data and other
information submitted by Carson, we conclude that temporary,
36-month waivers of Section 11.11(a) for these 21 systems are
warranted.10 In particular, we find that the estimated
$203,574 cost of EAS equipment for these very small cable
systems could impose a financial hardship on Carson.
5. We note that the Commission recently amended the EAS
rules to permit cable systems serving fewer than 5,000
subscribers to install FCC-certified decoder-only units,
rather than both encoders and decoders, if such a device
becomes available.11 Based on comments from equipment
manufacturers, we anticipate that such a decoder-only system
could result in significant cost savings to small cable
systems.12
6. Accordingly, IT IS ORDERED that, pursuant to Sections
0.111, 0.204(b) and 0.311 of the Rules,13 Carson
Communications, L.L.C. IS GRANTED a waiver of Section 11.11(a)
of the Rules until October 1, 2005 for each of the 21
captioned cable systems.
7. IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that Carson Communications,
L.L.C. place a copy of this waiver in its system files.
8. IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that a copy of this Order shall
be sent by Certified Mail Return Receipt Requested to counsel
for Carson Communications, L.L.C., Christopher C. Cinnamon,
Esq., Cinnamon Mueller, 307 North Michigan Avenue, Suite 1020,
Chicago, Illinois 60601.
FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION
Joseph P. Casey
Chief, Technical and Public Safety
Division
Enforcement Bureau
_________________________
1 47 C.F.R. § 11.11(a).
2 Cable Television Consumer Protection and Competition Act of
1992, Pub. L. No. 102-385, § 16(b), 106 Stat. 1460, 1490 (1992).
Section 624(g) provides that ``each cable operator shall comply
with such standards as the Commission shall prescribe to ensure
that viewers of video programming on cable systems are afforded
the same emergency information as is afforded by the emergency
broadcasting system pursuant to Commission regulations ....'' 47
U.S.C. § 544(g).
3 Amendment of Part 73, Subpart G, of the Commission's Rules
Regarding the Emergency Broadcast System, Report and Order and
Further Notice of Proposed Rule Making, FO Docket Nos. 91-171/91-
301, 10 FCC Rcd 1786 (1994) (``First Report and Order''),
reconsideration granted in part, denied in part, 10 FCC Rcd 11494
(1995).
4 Amendment of Part 73, Subpart G, of the Commission's Rules
Regarding the Emergency Broadcast System, Second Report and
Order, FO Docket Nos. 91-171/91-301, 12 FCC Rcd 15503 (1997)
(``Second Report and Order'').
5 Id. at 15512-13.
6 Id. at 15516-15518.
7 Id. at 15513.
8 Id. at 15513, n. 59.
9 Carson notes that it also has a cable system in Hiawatha,
Kansas, which serves 3,161 subscribers. Carson states that it
will install EAS equipment at this system by the October 1, 2002
deadline.
10 The waivers will extend 36 months from October 1, 2002,
until October 1, 2005. Carson also specifically requested waiver
of the testing and monitoring requirements of the EAS rules for
the 21 systems. We clarify that the waivers we are granting also
encompass the EAS testing and monitoring requirements.
11 Amendment of Part 11 of the Commission's Rules Regarding
the Emergency Alert System, EB Docket 01-66, FCC 02-64 at ¶ 71
(released February 26, 2002).
12 One manufacturer estimated that an EAS decoder-only system
can reduce the cost by 64% over what a cable operator would spend
for an encoder/decoder unit. Id. at ¶ 70.
13 47 C.F.R. §§ 0.111, 0.204(b) and 0.311.