| Hartford Area Cable TV Advisory Council |
HACTAC Meeting Minutes Most recent - October 15 and Sep 30 Special Meeting |
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Minutes of the HACTAC Meeting of September 30, 2008 The meeting was called to order at 6:10 pm A special meeting was held on September 30, 2008 to set goals to carry out cable law changes. The following items were discussed. Dick opened the meeting by outlining the goals of the meeting and what he feels needs to be done. It also needs to be clarified who is going to do the work, the timeline to do it and what the goals will be. Dick discussed the challenges people will face to get to their PEG stations. DPUC stated that there are different rules for different players. AT & T is not a cable provider. Why is AT & T not a cable provider? The reason he was given is because they do not supply their service through the cable. Dick feels the Board of Selectmen and the PEG stations need to be notified of the concerns and the differences between the two so that the public is aware of what is going on. Leo brought up for discussion user fees to fund local access stations. Dick advised there are various techniques for funding. We can only speak to our concerns and not say it should be statewide. West Hartford advised that they have a section for frequently asked questions to help the public understand the difference between AT & T and Comcast. Mike suggested the following goals to help with the lobby for change. First get PEG stations involved and educated. Next the Town Government educated. Third educate the State Legislators and also try to produce a show to educate the general public. Steve from WinTV was introduced at this time. He has expertise in producing the informational programs that HACTAC is referring to. All felt there should be two (2) versions; one directed to the general public and one for the governments in Town. Message needs to be understandable and quick. The goals of the programs are: Peter discussed the original statute 16-33 that addressed all of the above issues but it was overwritten when AT & T came into the picture. A motion was made by Peter to have Steve from WinTV develop two (2) programs to educate the public and the legislators. Motion was second by Zena and approved by the members. Steve was asked to have a quote and brief description of what will be in each program by the Oct. 15 meeting. Dick asked that if it was at all possible to have it earlier, it would be appreciated. He would then send it to all members and try to get everyone's go ahead approval before the meeting so that things can continue to move along. Steve quickly gave a few thoughts concerning the programming stating that they will need to say the only way these changes can happen is for specific steps to happen both by the public as well as the Town officials. A motion was made by Peter to adjourn the meeting and second by Leo. Meeting was adjourned at 7:08 pm. Schedule 2008-2009: Sept. 17, 2008 Simsbury Next Meeting and Location: October 15, 2008, East Hartford Town Hall |
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