NY State Senate Bill 2009-S5386

Senate Bill S5386

2009-2010 Legislative Session

Provides for credits for interruption of cable television, internet and telephone service provided through cable or broadband connections

download bill text pdf

Archive: Last Bill Status - In Senate Committee Energy And Telecommunications Committee

Introduced
- In Committee Assembly
- In Committee Senate
- On Floor Calendar Assembly
- On Floor Calendar Senate
- Passed Assembly
- Passed Senate
Delivered to Governor
Signed By Governor

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Actions

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	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
Jan 06, 2010	referred to energy and telecommunications
Apr 27, 2009	referred to energy and telecommunications

2009-S5386 (ACTIVE) - Details

See Assembly Version of this Bill:: A7979
Current Committee:: Senate Energy And Telecommunications
Law Section:: Public Service Law
Laws Affected:: Add §231, Pub Serv L

2009-S5386 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Provides for credits for interruption of cable television, internet and telephone service provided through cable or broadband connections.

2009-S5386 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                 BILL NUMBER:  S5386

 TITLE OF BILL :
An act to amend the public service law, in relation to providing
credits for interruption of cable television, internet and telephone
service provided through cable or broadband connections


 PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL :
To require companies providing cable, internet, and telephone services
through cable and broadband connections to provide an automatic credit
to a customer affected by a service outage lasting more than four
hours.

 SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS :
Adds a new section 231 to the public service law:

- Requires companies providing cable, internet, or telephone services
through a cable or broadband connection to credit a subscriber
affected by a service outage in excess of four continuous hours,
commencing at the time the company becomes aware of the outage;
- Requires that where an outage of four continuous hours occurs
between the hours of 6:00 am and 12:00 am and the company is able to
determine the scope of the outage, the company shall automatically
credit each affected subscriber;
- Requires that where a company is unable to determine all subscribers

affected by a four hour continuous outage, credit shall be give to any
eligible subscriber who gives written or oral notification that they
were affected within ninety days;
- Provides that the minimum credit for a service outage shall be
1/30th times the applicable monthly charge for each twenty-four period
during which a continuous four-hour outage occurred, and that all
credits shall be applied within two billing cycles, shall be reflected
on the billing statement, and that the method of calculation shall be
provided on the statement;
- Act does not apply to situations where service is interrupted for
emergency information as required by the FCC or FEMA;
- Act does not apply to outages resulting form nonpayment of an
account; Provides a definition for "service outage";
- Act taking effect 120 days after it shall become law, authorizes the
Public Service Commission to immediately promulgate rules necessary to
implement the act.

 JUSTIFICATION :

The Public Service Commission currently provides through their rules
that a cable television company must provide an automatic credit
whenever there is an interruption in service that is not the fault
ofthe subscriber. This bill codifies these rules in law and provides
the same treatment to subscribers of telephone and internet services
provided through cable or broadband connections.

 PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY :
None.

 FISCAL IMPLICATIONS :
None are anticipated.

 EFFECTIVE DATE :
This act shall take effect on the one hundred and twentieth day after
it shall have become a law. Provided, that the public service
commission is immediately authorized and directed to take any and all
actions, including but not limited to the promulgation of any
necessary rules, necessary to fully implement the provisions of this
act on its effective date.

2009-S5386 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                            
                    S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
________________________________________________________________________

                                  5386

                       2009-2010 Regular Sessions

                            I N  S E N A T E

                             April 27, 2009
                               ___________

Introduced  by Sen. SQUADRON -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
  printed to be committed to the Committee on  Energy  and  Telecommuni-
  cations

AN ACT to amend the public service law, in relation to providing credits
  for  interruption  of cable television, internet and telephone service
  provided through cable or broadband connections

  THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

  Section  1.  The public service law is amended by adding a new section
231 to read as follows:
  S 231. CREDIT FOR SERVICE OUTAGE. 1. EVERY  CABLE  TELEVISION  COMPANY
PROVIDING  CABLE,  INTERNET  OR  TELEPHONE  SERVICES, OR ANY COMBINATION
THEREOF, THROUGH CABLE OR BROADBAND CONNECTION SHALL PROVIDE  CREDIT  TO
SUBSCRIBERS  AFFECTED BY ANY SERVICE OUTAGE IN EXCESS OF FOUR CONTINUOUS
HOURS IN ACCORDANCE WITH SUBDIVISIONS TWO AND THREE OF THIS SECTION. THE
FOUR-HOUR PERIOD SHALL COMMENCE AT THE TIME THE CABLE TELEVISION COMPANY
FIRST BECOMES AWARE OF THE SERVICE OUTAGE.
  2. WHENEVER A CABLE TELEVISION COMPANY MAY  REASONABLY  DETERMINE  THE
EXISTENCE AND SCOPE OF SERVICE OUTAGE, WHICH SERVICE OUTAGE EXCEEDS FOUR
CONTINUOUS  HOURS  AND SOME PART OF WHICH OCCURS DURING THE HOURS OF SIX
A.M. TO TWELVE A.M., THE CABLE TELEVISION  COMPANY  SHALL  AUTOMATICALLY
CREDIT THE ACCOUNT OF EACH AFFECTED SUBSCRIBER.
  3.  IN  THE  EVENT  A  CABLE  TELEVISION  COMPANY CANNOT DETERMINE ALL
SUBSCRIBERS AFFECTED BY A SERVICE OUTAGE IN EXCESS  OF  FOUR  CONTINUOUS
HOURS  OR  NO PART OF SUCH OUTAGE OCCURS DURING THE HOURS OF SIX A.M. TO
TWELVE A.M., CREDIT SHALL BE GIVEN TO ANY ELIGIBLE SUBSCRIBER WHO  MAKES
APPLICATION THEREFOR BY EITHER WRITTEN OR ORAL NOTICE WITHIN NINETY DAYS
OF SUCH SERVICE OUTAGE.
  4. THE MINIMUM CREDIT FOR A SERVICE OUTAGE SHALL BE EQUAL TO ONE THIR-
TIETH  TIMES  THE  APPLICABLE  MONTHLY  CHARGE FOR EACH TWENTY-FOUR HOUR
PERIOD DURING WHICH A SERVICE OUTAGE CONTINUES FOR AT LEAST FOUR  HOURS.

 EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                      [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                           LBD09405-01-9

S. 5386                             2

ALL  CREDITS SHALL BE APPLIED TO A SUBSCRIBER'S ACCOUNT WITHIN TWO BILL-
ING CYCLES AFTER THE SERVICE OUTAGE OR THE SUBSCRIBERS' REQUEST PURSUANT
TO SUBDIVISION THREE OF  THIS  SECTION,  AS  APPLICABLE,  AND  SHALL  BE
REFLECTED  ON  THE SUBSCRIBER'S BILLING STATEMENT. THE BILLING STATEMENT
SHALL SET FORTH THE METHOD BY WHICH THE CREDIT WAS CALCULATED.
  5. A CABLE TELEVISION COMPANY SHALL BE RESPONSIBLE FOR  EVERY  SERVICE
OUTAGE  EXCEPT  FOR  INTERRUPTION  OF  PROGRAMMING  TO PROVIDE EMERGENCY
INFORMATION TO THE PUBLIC USING THE EMERGENCY ALERT SYSTEM  AS  REQUIRED
BY  THE RULES OF THE FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION AND FEDERAL EMER-
GENCY MANAGEMENT AGENCY.
  6. THIS SECTION SHALL NOT APPLY TO ANY INTERRUPTION  IN  SERVICE  THAT
OCCURS AS A RESULT OF NONPAYMENT OF A PREVIOUSLY DUE ACCOUNT.
  7.  AS  USED  IN  THIS  SECTION  "SERVICE OUTAGE" SHALL MEAN A LOSS OF
PICTURE OR SOUND ON ALL BASIC CHANNELS OR ON ALL  CHANNELS  PROVIDED  ON
ANY  OTHER  SERVICE TIER OR ON ONE OR MORE PREMIUM CHANNELS OR A LOSS OF
INTERNET OR TELEPHONE SERVICE OCCURRING DURING NORMAL  OPERATING  CONDI-
TIONS WHICH IS NOT CAUSED BY THE SUBSCRIBER OR BY THE SUBSCRIBER'S TELE-
VISION RECEIVER, COMPUTER EQUIPMENT OR TELEPHONE.
  S 2. This act shall take effect on the one hundred twentieth day after
it shall have become a law. Provided, that the public service commission
is  immediately  authorized  and  directed  to take any and all actions,
including but not limited to the promulgation of  any  necessary  rules,
necessary to fully implement the provisions of this act on its effective
date.

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