CABLE: FINANCIAL REPORTS STALL TALKS WITH CITY

An advisory board assessing Cape Girardeau's cable television franchise agreement with TCI Cablevision of Missouri is becoming impatient with the cable company's failure to disclose certain financial records.

Michael Maguire, chairman of the Cable TV Citizens Committee, said the committee is "unhappy" with TCI's response to repeated requests for specific information that relates to income the company derives from its Cape Girardeau operations.

Maguire sent a letter Monday to Roger Harms, manager of TCI's Cape Girardeau office, that sets an Oct. 7 deadline for providing the information.

The committee in July requested documents related to disclosure requirements in the current franchise that TCI had failed to meet. Maguire said he telephoned Harms "a few days" before the committee's last meeting Thursday and again asked for the documents.

"He said a response would be forthcoming, even though we've given them what I feel is ample time to provide the information," Maguire said.

"It's clear to the committee that they're not now in compliance, and the committee is extremely upset that they are delaying even further."

Maguire said that if TCI fails to provide the information by the deadline, the committee, which was formed last year, would consider it a "major lack of compliance" with the franchise agreement.

But Harms said TCI is cooperating fully with the city and will provide the information the committee is seeking.

"I think we've been cooperative, and we still will be," Harms said. "I think there's just been a little misunderstanding on the financials. They will be produced. It just takes a little time to gather that information."

Harms said he thought negotiations so far have gone smoothly between the city and TCI.

"I think it's going really well, as long as everybody keeps an open mind about it," Harms said. "The city is looking at what they want in a franchise, and they're going to ask for things from us. It's all part of the negotiations with the renewal."

TCI's franchise agreement doesn't expire until Dec. 7, 1992, cut the Federal Cable Communications Policy Act of 1984 requires the city to begin the franchise renewal process within 30 months prior to the expiration of the franchise.

The citizens advisory committee was formed to assess the performance of TCI in terms of meeting the existing franchise provisions, and consider possible changes in regard to any new franchise agreement.

City Attorney Warren Wells said disclosure of financial information on TCI's Cape Girardeau operations not only is required in the current franchise, but is necessary to determine terms of a possible new agreement.

"Our position is that they must provide this information in order to comply with the current franchise, so that's a very important threshold in the negotiations process," Wells said.

Wells said the city also needs profit statements and other financial information to determine whether the city can ask for certain improvements to the cable system here.

"Historically, their response to improvements to the system is that those are dependent on the expense to make those improvements," he said.

"They will not want to make substantial improvements to the system without sufficient time to recoup those costs. That's been their argument in the past, but we can't evaluate their argument without financial information."

Wells said the information also is needed to determine if TCI has paid the city 5 percent of those fees generated locally as mandated in the franchise.

TCI also aroused the committee's ire in August when Dan DeLaney, the company's state manager, maintained that formal franchise negotiations with the city hadn't started.

Wells said the city has stated clearly that formal negotiations started in late 1989. He said that the citizens committee was formed as part of that process.

"I'm not sure if those representatives of the company are sure what they're talking about in terms of formal negotiations," Wells said.

He said the distinction between formal and informal negotiations is more than a question of semantics. "Use of the word formal in this context has special meaning in the framework of the 1984 Cable Act," the city attorney said.

"That law set out that three years prior to the expiration of the franchise, both parties must enter into that formal process during the first six months of that 36-month process."

Wells said cities that waive their formal negotiations rights cannot ultimately have contract disputes settled in the courts.

"Basically, it is a procedural track which the law provides, for that would permit the city to deny a franchise if certain failures occur with regard to compliance with the existing franchise," he said. "If that formal right is waived, then the city loses its right to do that."

Wells said the city last year hired cable TV consultants who assured the city that it has complied with the federal law.

"We've got in on good advice that we've done what we need to do to start that process," he said. "It never was an issue with our experts."

But Harms said he wasn't particularly concerned about the issue of whether negotiations were formal or informal.

"Mr. Maguire said we're in the formal process, so I guess we are," he said. "It's nothing I'm worried about.

"We'll do things informal as well as formal. Whatever you call it, it will probably be combined together."