
From the U.S. Code Online via GPO Access
[wais.access.gpo.gov]
[Laws in effect as of January 23, 2000]
[Document not affected by Public Laws enacted between
  January 23, 2000 and December 4, 2001]
[CITE: 47USC545]

 
          TITLE 47--TELEGRAPHS, TELEPHONES, AND RADIOTELEGRAPHS
 
                 CHAPTER 5--WIRE OR RADIO COMMUNICATION
 
                  SUBCHAPTER V-A--CABLE COMMUNICATIONS
 
                  Part III--Franchising and Regulation
 
Sec. 545. Modification of franchise obligations


(a) Grounds for modification by franchising authority; public 
        proceeding; time of decision

    (1) During the period a franchise is in effect, the cable operator 
may obtain from the franchising authority modifications of the 
requirements in such franchise--
        (A) in the case of any such requirement for facilities or 
    equipment, including public, educational, or governmental access 
    facilities or equipment, if the cable operator demonstrates that (i) 
    it is commercially impracticable for the operator to comply with 
    such requirement, and (ii) the proposal by the cable operator for 
    modification of such requirement is appropriate because of 
    commercial impracticability; or
        (B) in the case of any such requirement for services, if the 
    cable operator demonstrates that the mix, quality, and level of 
    services required by the franchise at the time it was granted will 
    be maintained after such modification.

    (2) Any final decision by a franchising authority under this 
subsection shall be made in a public proceeding. Such decision shall be 
made within 120 days after receipt of such request by the franchising 
authority, unless such 120 day period is extended by mutual agreement of 
the cable operator and the franchising authority.

(b) Judicial proceedings; grounds for modification by court

    (1) Any cable operator whose request for modification under 
subsection (a) of this section has been denied by a final decision of a 
franchising authority may obtain modification of such franchise 
requirements pursuant to the provisions of section 555 of this title.
    (2) In the case of any proposed modification of a requirement for 
facilities or equipment, the court shall grant such modification only if 
the cable operator demonstrates to the court that--
        (A) it is commercially impracticable for the operator to comply 
    with such requirement; and
        (B) the terms of the modification requested are appropriate 
    because of commercial impracticability.

    (3) In the case of any proposed modification of a requirement for 
services, the court shall grant such modification only if the cable 
operator demonstrates to the court that the mix, quality, and level of 
services required by the franchise at the time it was granted will be 
maintained after such modification.

(c) Rearrangement, replacement, or removal of service

    Notwithstanding subsections (a) and (b) of this section, a cable 
operator may, upon 30 days' advance notice to the franchising authority, 
rearrange, replace, or remove a particular cable service required by the 
franchise if--
        (1) such service is no longer available to the operator; or
        (2) such service is available to the operator only upon the 
    payment of a royalty required under section 801(b)(2) of title 17, 
    which the cable operator can document--
            (A) is substantially in excess of the amount of such payment 
        required on the date of the operator's offer to provide such 
        service, and
            (B) has not been specifically compensated for through a rate 
        increase or other adjustment.

(d) Rearrangement of particular services from one service tier to 
        another or other offering of service

    Notwithstanding subsections (a) and (b) of this section, a cable 
operator may take such actions to rearrange a particular service from 
one service tier to another, or otherwise offer the service, if the 
rates for all of the service tiers involved in such actions are not 
subject to regulation under section 543 of this title.

(e) Requirements for services relating to public, educational, or 
        governmental access

    A cable operator may not obtain modification under this section of 
any requirement for services relating to public, educational, or 
governmental access.

(f) ``Commercially impracticable'' defined

    For purposes of this section, the term ``commercially 
impracticable'' means, with respect to any requirement applicable to a 
cable operator, that it is commercially impracticable for the operator 
to comply with such requirement as a result of a change in conditions 
which is beyond the control of the operator and the nonoccurrence of 
which was a basic assumption on which the requirement was based.

(June 19, 1934, ch. 652, title VI, Sec. 625, as added Pub. L. 98-549, 
Sec. 2, Oct. 30, 1984, 98 Stat. 2790.)


                             Effective Date

    Section effective 60 days after Oct. 30, 1984, except where 
otherwise expressly provided, see section 9(a) of Pub. L. 98-549, set 
out as a note under section 521 of this title.

                  Section Referred to in Other Sections

    This section is referred to in sections 544, 555 of this title.
