AGENDA #5e
TO: Mayor and Town Council
FROM: W. Calvin Horton, Town Manager
SUBJECT: The Peoples Channel 2003 Annual Report
DATE: June 14, 2004
The purpose of this memorandum is to present summary information from The Peoples Channel’s Annual Report 2003. The Annual Report is included as Attachment 1.
The Peoples Channel has submitted its Annual Report to the Town of Chapel Hill for Calendar Year 2003. The Peoples Channel is a non-profit corporation organized by area citizens to provide community access television in Chapel Hill. The Channel is a tax-exempt, non-profit 501(c)(3) corporation.
The Peoples Channel receives funding from several sources, primarily public access fees collected by Time Warner from cable customers under the Franchise Agreement. The cable television franchise approved by the Council and accepted by Time Warner in July 1996 allows the Town to have cable customers billed a public access fee.
On November 24, 2003, the Council approved an increase in the monthly subscriber public access fee from 71 cents to 72 cents, based on inflation. Under the Performance Agreement with The Peoples Channel, the Town allocates to The Peoples Channel these public access fees, which are collected by Time Warner in customer bills. The Channel received approximately $109,000 in public access fees from the Town in 2002-03.
The Peoples Channel’s Audited Financial Statements for the 2002-03 Fiscal Year are included as Attachment 2. Figures in the Financial Statements will not entirely match those found in the Annual Report because the audited statements are based on calculations for the fiscal year, while the Annual Report covers the 2003 calendar year.
We believe that The Peoples Channel 2003 Annual Report meets the requirements of the performance agreement with the Town. We recommend that the Council received the attached Annual Report.