The Select Board is holding TWO formal public hearings on the renewal of licensing for Comcast cable services in the Town of Amherst. We encourage residents to offer testimony on current cable operations on Thurs., Sept. 24, 2015 at 6:30 p.m. in the Town Room of Town Hall or Wed., Sept. 30, 2015 at 11:30 a.m. in Room 101 of the Bangs Center. The formal term for the process is called Ascertainment. Ascertainment is a series of actions taken by the Issuing Authority (the Select Board) for review of the cable operator’s performance under the existing license and identifing the cable-related needs and interests of the community.
The purpose of the public hearing is to inform the Select Board's negotiation of the decennial cable contract with Comcast. The contract does not cover cable pricing or programming or internet or telephone services.
We encourage residents to offer testimony on current cable operations including performance (customer service, cable service interruptions) as well as future build out needs (cable coverage area for non-internet services, and Public Education and Government (PEG) Access fees).
PEG Access provides any combination of television production equipment, training and airtime on a local cable system to enable members of the public, educational institutions, and government to produce their own shows and televise them to a mass audience. Amherst PEG Access is managed by Amherst Media and shown on channels are 12, 15 & 17.