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501
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<br />governmental, educational or health care communications.
<br /> For these purposes, the following goals underlie the regulations
<br />contained herein:
<br /> a) Cable services should be provided to the maximum number of County
<br /> residents.
<br /> b) The system should be capable of accommodating both the present and
<br /> reasonably foreseeable future communications needs of the County.
<br /> c) The system should be improved and upgraded during the Franchise
<br /> term.
<br /> d) The cable system authorized by this Ordinance shall be responsive
<br /> to the needs and interests of the local community, and shall
<br /> provide the widest possible diversity of information sources and
<br /> services to the public.
<br /> e) That the public, educational and governmental needs for access to
<br /> the Cable Television System are met.
<br /> II. TITLE OF ORDINANCE
<br /> This Ordinance shall be known and may be cited as "Cabarrus County
<br /> Cable Television Ordinance," and it shall become a part of the ordinances of
<br /> the County. This Ordinance shall take effect and be in force from and after
<br /> its adoption. All ordinances or parts of ordinances in conflict with the
<br /> provisions of this Ordinance are hereby repealed.
<br /> III. DEFINITIONS
<br /> For the purpose of this Ordinance the following terms, phrases, words
<br /> and their derivations shall have the meaning given herein. When not
<br /> inconsistent with the context, words used in the present tense include the
<br /> future, words in the plural number include the singular number. The word
<br /> "shall" is mandatory and the word "may" is permissive. Words not defined
<br /> shall be given their common and ordinary meaning.
<br /> 3.1 BASIC SERVICE means a separately available tier to which
<br /> subscription is required for access to any other tier of service. Such tier
<br /> shall, at a minimum, consist of the following: all signals carried in
<br /> fulfillment of Cable Act, Sections 614 and 615; any public, educational, and
<br /> governmental access programming required in this Ordinance or the Franchise;
<br /> any signal of any television broadcast station that is provided by the cable
<br /> operator to any subscriber, except a signal which is secondarily transmitted
<br /> by a satellite carrier beyond the local service area of such station.
<br /> Additional signals may be added to the basic tier by the Grantee. 3.2 BOARD means the Board of County Commissioners
<br /> 3.3 Cable Television System, also referred to as "system," means the
<br /> Cable Television System constructed for use within the County, without
<br /> limitation, the headend, antennae, cables, wires, lines, towers, amplifiers,
<br /> converters, health and property security systems, equipment or facilities
<br /> located within the corporate limits of the County designed, constructed or
<br /> wired for the purpose of producing, receiving, amplifying and distributing by
<br /> coaxial cable, fiber optics, microwave or other means, audio and visual
<br /> radio, television and electronic signals to and from subscribers in the
<br /> County, and any other equipment or facilities located within the corporate
<br /> limits of the County intended for the use of the system; provided, however,
<br /> such system facility excludes buildings, contracts, facilities, and equipment
<br /> where primary use is for providing service to other systems located outside
<br /> the County limits. Such term does not include (A) a facility that serves
<br /> only to re-transmit the television signals of one or more television
<br /> broadcast stations; (B) a facility that serves only subscribers in one or
<br /> more multiple unit dwellings under common ownership, control, or management,
<br /> unless such facility or facilities uses any Public Rights-of-Way; (C) a
<br /> facility of a common carrier which is subject, in whole or in part, to the
<br /> provision of Title II of the Cable Act, except that such facility shall be
<br /> considered a cable system to the extent such facility is used in the
<br /> transmission of video programming directly to subscribers; or (D) any
<br /> facilities of any electric utility used solely for operating its electric
<br /> utility systems.
<br /> 3.4 CABLECAST SIGNAL means a non-broadcast signal that originates
<br /> within the facilities of the Cable Television System.
<br /> 3.5 CHANNEL means a six Megahertz (MHz) frequency band, which is
<br /> capable of carrying either one standard video signal, a number of audio,
<br /> digital or other non-video signals or some combination of such signals. One
<br /> channel of High Definition Television will utilize more than 6 MHz.
<br /> 3.6 COMMERCIAL SUBSCRIBER means a subscriber who receives a service
<br /> in a place of business where the service may be utilized in connection with a
<br /> business, trade or profession.
<br /> 3.7 COMMUNICATIONS POLICY ACT or CABLE ACT means the Communications
<br /> Act of 1934; Communications Policy Act of 1984; the Cable Television Consumer
<br /> Protection and Competition Act of 1992; and the Telecommunications Act of
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