SLtv 16 - Use of the Municipal Channel
RESOLUTION NO. 10-27
A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SUGAR LAND, TEXAS, AMENDING THE CITY COUNCIL POLICY GOVERNING THE USE OF THE MUNICIPAL CHANNEL.
WHEREAS, the City Council wishes to amend the policy governing the use of the City’s municipal channel to delete the administrative fees for the use of the Bulletin
Board; NOW, THEREFORE,
BE IT RESOLVED BY THE CITY COUNCIL
OF THE CITY OF SUGAR LAND, TEXAS:
Section l. That the City Council adopts the following amended policy:
USE OF THE MUNICIPAL CHANNEL
PURPOSE
The purpose of this policy is to provide guidance on the use of the City’s municipal channel which is made available to the City by the local franchised cable provider for governmental use only as allowed by federal law (47 USCS § 531). The franchise agreement restricts the governmental access channel to non-commercial government uses under rules and procedures established by the City.
The policy applies to material aired on the municipal channel.
OBJECTIVES
The municipal channel offers a communication medium to deliver information provided by the City to citizens, enhancing and complementing the communication tools currently utilized by the City of Sugar Land.
POLICY
All information aired on the municipal channel is considered information provided by the City for the benefit of the public to serve the following public purposes:
- Educate Sugar Land residents on City services, policies, and programs;
- Improve accessibility of City Council deliberations by providing broadcast of meetings;
- Inform residents about events, meetings and City job listings;
- Provide, in a timely manner, crucial information to citizens before, during and after emergencies;
- Inform residents about meeting and event notices of government and property association groups in Sugar Land; and
- Inform residents about meeting and event notices of non-profit organizations that benefit Sugar Land.
The City Manager or designees have the authority to control the information aired on the municipal channel and may exercise the discretion to accept, reject, or edit any information submitted to the City for broadcast on the municipal channel under the guidelines of this policy, including:
- Obscene, libelous, slanderous material or content that violates federal, state, or local laws;
- The solicitation of funds or promoting the sale of products or services or promotions and endorsements for individuals seeking public office;
- The unauthorized use of copyrighted information or trademarks;
- Religious content if it does not (1) primarily serve a secular (non-religious) purpose; and 2) its primary effect is intended to advance or inhibit religion.
- Information that advocates or encourages discrimination on a status protected under Federal or State law (race, color, creed, religion, etc.).
BROADCASTS OF MEETINGS OF GOVERNMENTAL ENTITIES
Videos of the meetings of governing boards of local governmental entities will be considered for broadcast on the municipal channel.
BULLETIN BOARD NOTICES
Local Governmental Entities. The City may accept text slides containing notices of meetings and events of local governmental entities for broadcast on the municipal channel’s bulletin board.
Property Owners’ Associations/Homeowner Associations (POAs/HOAs). The City may accept text slides of notices of the meetings and events held by POAs/HOAs located within the City for broadcast on the municipal channel bulletin board. All information submitted will be considered for broadcast based on relevance, subject matter, and compliance with this policy.
Other Non-Profit Organizations. The City may accept text slides containing information from non-profit organizations for broadcast on the municipal channel’s bulletin board if the information might be of general benefit to the citizens of the City. All information submitted will be considered for broadcast based on relevance, subject matter, and compliance with this policy.
Request Deadlines: To allow for proper production, scheduling and publicity, community bulletin board requests must be received 15 business days in advance of the scheduled event. Information that is not date specific will be aired at the discretion of the Communications Department staff.
Quantity of Community Content: Meeting and event notices for the community bulletin board will be limited to no more than one notice/event announcement per organization per week. Items are eligible to begin airing 30 days before event. Bulletin board content will run for 30 days or until the event or program is complete, whichever comes first.
Content Requests: Requests for meeting and event notices on the community bulletin board should be submitted to pubinfo@sugarlandtx.gov or they may be delivered in person to the Sugar Land Communications Department at City Hall, 2700 Town Center Blvd. North. Updates will be posted each Friday.
Section 2. That Resolution No. 10-04 is repealed.