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ARDEN HILLS CITY COUNCIL - NOVEMBER 29,1999 " j . Mr. Wilson stated that he had met with the Cable Commission to discuss access issues, and has testified before Joint Telecommunication Committees. He indicated that he has been following the bill to rewrite the State Statute for some time and was concerned by the City of Arden Hills standing in opposition to the legislation before the rewrite is complete. He understood that the City does not want to lose its local authority, however, he felt the authority might be best given up in return for other items the legislation may provide. An attorney representing many Cable Commissions has indicated that, due to the activities of the telecommunication and cable industries, he was inclined to agree that it might be worth while for local governments to give up the authority in return for not having to deal with upcoming issues. Litigation cases have begun to arise throughout the country and the concern is that these issues will eventually get down to the individual city level and there will be many lawsuits. Mr. Wilson stated that it was not fair that the telecommunications field was not level. Telecommunication companies that began as telephone companies are subject to certain regulations and taxes. These taxes and regulations are different for wireless and cable companies. At this time, cable companies are providing Internet access and local dial tone in addition to cable services. Additionally, telephone companies are providing Internet access, cable and movies. These companies are all competing within the same market, however, they are not competing under the same rules and are not being taxed equally. Councilmember Malone stated that he understood the Cable Commissions do not want to lose . revenue. However, the City of Arden Hills wants to maintain its local authority over franchised cable companies. During a recent fiber optics npgrade the City had received numerous complaints from local citizens about their yards being dug up. The blame for these problems was placed upon the City and the concern for the City was that it must deal with the infrastructure issues. Councilmember Malone stated that he was not sure that the State of Minnesota would be able to effectively control these issues. Mr. Wilson stated that the proposed Bill did not remove the local control over infrastructure. The proposed legislation prohibits discrimination against telecommunication companies and requires that all fees must be applied evenly. Councilmember Malone noted that these fees camlot be assessed to Northern States Power Company or US West. Mr. Wilson stated that the proposed regulations state that the fees must bc applied evenly across the board. UNFINISHED AND NEW BUSINESS A. Resolution #99-42, A Resolution Opposiug Proposed Legislation to Remove Loeal Authority of Franehised Cable Companies Mayor Probst stated that he supported the proposed Resolution for a number of reasons. In addition to the concerns expressed by Councilmember Malone, Mayor Probst expressed concern abont the continued erosion of community rights as it relates to State Government controls. . Although he may be willing to consider some sort of legislation, he was not supportive of the current proposed legislation on the table.