Cable, Modems, Phones, Oh My:
Where To From Here
By GERALD C. SMITH, Administrative Assistant to the Village Manager, Village of Deerfield
The Village of Deerfield is a residential community
located just 21 miles north of the Loop with a population of 17,325 (per the 1990 census). Over the last 15
years, Deerfield has developed a robust and thriving
business presence (corporate headquarters for Walgreens, Nutrasweet, Baxter Health Care, Jim Beam to
list a few) along the Lake-Cook corridor which brings
in some 45,000-50,000 commuting employees each day.
Additionally, current development will most likely increase Deerfield's population to about 18,500 within the
next few years.
Several years ago. Deerfield completed a survey
which was commissioned to assist in the Village's ascertainment process during our cable franchise renewal.
Upon completion, the Village was shocked to find that
72 percent of Village households own a computer, 44
percent own a modem and that 26 percent subscribe to
some form of on-line service. Of the 5,800 households
receiving the survey, over 1,800 were returned representing a 31 percent participation rate (more than
enough for a good representative sample). Clearly, one
can see the potential demand for the various telecommunications gadgetry within a community like Deerfield.
In June and September of 1994, two memorandums
were distributed outlining the need to develop a telecommunications ordinance in an effort to be prepared
prior to the flood of telecommunication entities seeking
access into or through the community. The Village has
been approached by various telecommunication entities over the course of the past several years seeking to
provide some form of telecommunications service to
many of the businesses and some of the residents. Each
of those reports concluded that federal efforts currently
underway resulted in a host of uncertainties as in how to
proceed in drafting a telecommunications ordinance. It
was therefore decided to abandon the drafting of a
telecommunications ordinance until such time as Congress clarified those rights pertaining specifically to
local governments (e.g. the preservation of local authority to manage public right-of-way, to receive fair
and reasonable compensation for their use, and the
protection of local zoning and taxing authority from
federal preemption). In the interim, staff and Village
counsel, under the recommendation of the Cable &
Telecommunications Commission, drafted a telecommunications application process for those telecommunication entities presently seeking access into the community — until such time when a telecommunications
ordinance could be adopted.
Early last month, on February 8, 1996, President
Clinton signed into law the Telecommunications Act of
1996 which represents the most sweeping changes in
the telecommunications industry in its 62-year history.
As remarked in the National League of Cities newsletter, "The telecommunications law will substantially
rewrite U.S. telecommunications law, impacting how
Americans get cable TV, telephone and computer online services and what price they pay for them." Of the
major concerns affecting local government, Congress
has preserved the rights of local authorities to manage
their right-of-way, to receive a fair and reasonable
compensation, and the protection of local zoning and
taxing authority from federal preemption. However, in
the area of wireless direct broadcasting services (DBS),
the federal government retains all regulatory control.
What Does This Mean For Deerfield?
Now that the telecommunications bill has been
signed into law, local governments will be scurrying
about to develop and adopt a telecommunications ordinance governing how telecommunication entities are
to be treated. In early 1994, no one was really clear as to
how this telecommunications technology would be
used, or how the various telecommunication markets
would evolve, but one thing was very certain, for any of
this to be at all successful, the public rights-of-way
would have to be accessible to them. During much of
the legislative fight in Congress, telecommunication
entities sought preferential treatment that would have
removed all state and local barriers (i.e., removal of
franchise fees, and the provision of unlimited access
into public rights-of-way free of charge — in short a
federal preemption from local controls) in order to
quickly deploy their various technologies.
Deerfield has been active through its membership
with the National Association of Telecommunication
Officers and Advisors (NATOA), in lobbying our congressional representatives to fend off those challenges
April 1996 / Illinois Municipal Review / Page 17
from the telecommunications industry over the last two
and a half years. Initially, the White House, and a majority of politicians from both houses of Congress, supported the preemption of State and local jurisdiction
regulatory controls. However, by the intense lobbying
efforts by municipalities such as Deerfield, we were
able to preserve the rights of municipalities which, had
it gone the other way, would have amounted to one of
the biggest government giveaways since the days of the
great railroad land grants during the latter part of the
19th Century. Now that the boundaries have been
drawn (between local jurisdictions and telecommunication entities), municipalities should expect a flood of
requests from a host of telecommunication services
seeking access into their communities (to provide service), and/or through (as pass through operators), from
entities such as Ameritech (seeking to provide long
distance and cable service), AT&T (seeking to provide
local access and possibly cable service), Commonwealth Edison (possibly seeking to provide cable, local
and/or long distance phone service), and the local cable
provider (seeking to provide local and/or long distance
service), not to mention the other telecommunication
entities that will be seeking to provide some type of
proprietary service. In short, over the course of the next
12 months, telecommunication service providers, be
they cable, phone, computer, or electric, will be expanding their respective markets, broadening their
base of service, merging with larger telecommunications service providers, and trying to survive in an industry spun into a virtual state of flux. In the middle of
this mass communication/confusion, local jurisdictions
must provide a framework by which these entities
make application for access into their communities, and
how communities derive revenue from such operations. While the local jurisdictions have retained their
regulatory abilities, the new law prohibits local jurisdictions from refusing access to any telecommunications
entity and requires that they all be treated equally. This
brings us back to the drafting of a telecommunications
ordinance which the Village abandoned a year and a
half ago.
Model Telecommunications Ordinance
Several years ago, the Northwest Municipal Conference, the West Central Municipal Conference, the
DuPage Mayors & Managers Conference, along with
the South Suburban Mayors and Managers, and with
the assistance from the local chapter of NATOA, combined their efforts to develop a Model Telecommunications Ordinance (MTO). The purpose for the development of the MTO was to assist the region in developing
a model telecommunications document for the purpose
of establishing "a level playing field" for those telecommunication entities seeking access within any
community. For those municipalities unaware of the
activities surrounding the telecommunications industry
they should contact one of the above groups for a copy
of the Model ordinances. Municipalities must realize
that telecommunications at the local level is no longer
limited to the franchising and use of cable television to
deliver clearer television reception and more program
services. Advances in cable, telephone and computer
technology have led to a flood of new communications
services and technologies, such as sophisticated personal communications systems and cellular systems,
locally-based cable programming, institutional networks, internet, World Wide Web, and BBS information services. The result is unprecedented services to
citizens, delivery of communication services, and significant improvement in local administration.
At the same time, major changes in the regulatory
environment for both industries give local officials a
tremendous new challenge: effectively integrating cable and telephone technologies into a complete telecommunications infrastructure while preserving local
authority over and revenues from public rights-of-ways. At this year's NATOA conference (scheduled for
June 5, 1996), the local chapter will provide nationally
renowned authorities to provide information on the
impact that the telecommunications act will have on
local governments. Given the sweeping federal legislation recently passed, this year's NATOA conference
committee will expect a much larger than normal participation. For further information on the conference,
contact Dough Kozlowski (e-mail address dkozlow@synet.net), Cable TV Coordinator, Village of Downers
Grove. For more information about Deerfield contact
Gerald C. Smith (gsmith5131@aol.com). •
Page 18 / Illinois Municipal Review / April 1996
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