Bill Callahan provides an appraisal of the recent Senate hearing in Columbus by opponents of Ohio’s AT&T-sponsored telco legislation SB 117. Included on his post are links to his testimony to the committee, as well as some of the very likely negative ramifications of the bill, if passed.

There is this posting as well, Lawmakers Beat Partial Retreat On Statewide Video Franchising, on the Cleveland Plain Dealer political blog site regarding the opponents hearing on SB 117 and some of the effect of that round of testimony.

After getting an earful from local mayors as well as the public access crowd, state lawmakers retreated Tuesday on several of the more controversial elements of a bill setting up a statewide franchising agreement for video service providers.

The bill, known as Senate Bill 117, which is being pushed primarily by telecommunications giant AT&T, would wipe out the local agreements that individual communities negotiate with cable companies and other video service providers in favor of a single, statewide agreement.

A telling line from this piece is regarding this statement from Sen. Jeff Jacobson to the crowd in attendance concerning a challenge over local control over rates for use of the right of way…

“We’re going to let that be a local decision”

Thank you, Senator, for your kind tolerance of the idea of local sovereignty, and for your generous allowance for the sustainment of just a portion of the idea of local governing authority. The tone of the entire affair was perfumed with the imperious air of somewhat smug self-assurance on the behalf of the Senator of his ability to dictate what rights citizens are to have or not have in governing their own shared public property and municipal business.

Another interesting point regarding the hearing was the fact that often the Senators on the committee responsible for this issue and who should have been in attenedance were often not there, coming in and out, and rarely (barely?) even holding a quorum. Some actually never even showed up, and the last part of the hearing there were only three left. Often times they were talking amongst themselves and showing no real attentive interest in the process. Yet the week before, when the much smaller crowd in attendance for the bill were testifying (dominated by a quite slick presentation by a PR lobbyist for AT&T as well as other high powered corporate interests), they were all there and quite attentive for the entire event. Mayor Dick Church of Miamisburg, Ohio brought up a good point in that if he showed the same lack of respect for his contsituents that these ‘representatives’ were showing for them at this hearing, he’d be run out of office on a rail in no time flat.

Perhaps these Senators have simply become bored with the idea of having to undergo the public theater of half-pretending to care about the opponents arguments, since they have already long made up their minds they want this bill and are going to get it. They are certainly determined that *that* decision NOT be a locally-based one.

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