Amid regulatory changes and a market shifting away from cable television, a committee is discussing how to continue funding Vermont’s public access channels.
In a meeting at the Statehouse Thursday, the PEG (public, educational and government) Access Study Committee homed in on how public TV is currently funded, and how that funding model could change in coming years.
The state has 25 public access organizations that manage 81 channels of commercial-free television that feature city council and selectboard meetings in cities and towns across Vermont.
The service comes at a cost of about $8 million a year — but as it stands, 92% of that cost is funded by cable fees, since federal law mandates that cable companies must provide communities with these channels.
But a new proposal from the Federal Communications Commission suggests that cable companies could place a monetary value on those public services, and deduct the cost from the franchise fees they pay to cities. That change would result in a significant drop in revenue for the PEG stations.
The shift in funding is happening at the same time public access television is being pushed online that’s because far fewer Vermonters are watching cable than they once did. However, the logistics of how the state can make money from online streaming is not as clear as the logistics for making money from cable company fees.
But the combination of the shift toward the internet and new FCC proposal means revenues will continue to decline — until Vermont finds a new way for public access television to stay financially viable.
“It’s a steady threat,” said Lauren-Glenn Davitian, executive director of the Center for Media and Democracy in Burlington. “We have to be positioned as a state to respond if any corners get turned.”
Davitian pointed to a few cities and states that have devised funding sources for public TV. For example, in Chicago an “amusement tax” that was originally intended for things like Ferris wheels and mini golf was recently amended to include everything from video games to Netflix, and other online services.
In Minnesota, a “heritage tax” increases the sales tax to fund organizations that preserve the state’s history and heritage. Several other states have “connection charges” that tax the wires rather than the services themselves, Davitian said.
Davitian also suggested the state could form community information districts, which would have taxing authority to support local media in those areas.
Committee members agreed to research the options on the table on their own time and could come back for the next meeting — the fourth of six total — with thoughts on what might be the best option moving forward.
Davitian said the solution likely isn’t going to be an $8 million funding source, but rather a plan on how to combine state funds, municipal funds, underwriting, philanthropic funds, fees for service, and membership to find a workable solution.
“The pie chart is going to look different than it does today,” she said.
Rep. Michael Yantachka, D-Charlotte, said ultimately they would have to come to some consensus so they can draft legislation.
“But we can’t do nothing,” said Clay Purvis, the director of telecommunications for the state Department of Public Service. “That’s against the law. We have to do something.”
Disclosure: Lauren-Glenn Davitian is the wife of VTDigger editor Mark Johnson.
