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LOBBYING REPORT |
Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 (Section 5) - All Filers Are Required to Complete This Page
2. Address
Address1 | ONE PARKWAY CENTER, #212 |
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City | PITTSBURGH |
State | PA |
Zip Code | 15220 |
Country | USA |
3. Principal place of business (if different than line 2)
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5. Senate ID# 54528-12
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6. House ID# 349900000
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TYPE OF REPORT | 8. Year | 2009 |
Q1 (1/1 - 3/31) | Q2 (4/1 - 6/30) | Q3 (7/1 - 9/30) | Q4 (10/1 - 12/31) |
9. Check if this filing amends a previously filed version of this report
10. Check if this is a Termination Report | Termination Date | |
11. No Lobbying Issue Activity |
INCOME OR EXPENSES - YOU MUST complete either Line 12 or Line 13 | |||||||||
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12. Lobbying | 13. Organizations | ||||||||
INCOME relating to lobbying activities for this reporting period was: | EXPENSE relating to lobbying activities for this reporting period were: | ||||||||
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Provide a good faith estimate, rounded to the nearest $10,000, of all lobbying related income for the client (including all payments to the registrant by any other entity for lobbying activities on behalf of the client). | 14. REPORTING Check box to indicate expense accounting method. See instructions for description of options. | ||||||||
Method A.
Reporting amounts using LDA definitions only
Method B. Reporting amounts under section 6033(b)(8) of the Internal Revenue Code Method C. Reporting amounts under section 162(e) of the Internal Revenue Code |
Signature | Digitally Signed By: Matthew M. Polka, President and CEO |
Date | 04/20/2009 |
LOBBYING ACTIVITY. Select as many codes as necessary to reflect the general issue areas in which the registrant engaged in lobbying on behalf of the client during the reporting period. Using a separate page for each code, provide information as requested. Add additional page(s) as needed.
15. General issue area code COM
16. Specific lobbying issues
Please see the addendum attached for the full text of COM issues covered.
COM - Communications/Broadcasting/Radio/TV
The ACA urged members of Congress to include federal, grants, loans, and loan guarantees to build high capacity middle mile infrastructure to small towns and rural areas in H.R. 1, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009(ARRA), and to ensure funding for this purpose is made available when the Department of Commerce's National Telecommunications & Information Administration (RUS) and the Department of Agriculture's Rural Utilities Service issues rules for its program to improve broadband deployment.
The ACA lobbied Congress in support of legislation which would ensure that consumers may receive access to in-state broadcast signals that they may not currently receive from their cable and satellite providers due to retransmission consent and exclusivity rules.
With respect to the 2009 reauthorization of the Satellite Home Viewer Act, ACA urged Congress to ensure that any new rights granted to satellite TV operators to provide consumers with additional local broadcast choices must all be granted to cable TV operators.
The ACA alerted Congress that it filed comments with the FCC regarding the 70/70 cable subscribership survey (MB Docket No. 07-269) urging the Commission to consider less onerous obligations for small cable operators, and with the OMB regarding the survey (Control Number 3060-XXXX) urging the agency to find the FCCs proposed survey violates the Paperwork Reduction Act.
The American Cable Association spoke with Members of Congress about how broadcasters use their market power to discriminate against small and medium-sized operators during retransmission consent negotiations by extracting higher fees than those paid by larger distributors in the same market, and also pull their signals from cable customers when these smaller operators refuse to their unreasonable demands.
The ACA alerted members of Congress to the issue of how upcoming retransmission consent negotiations could cause significant consumer confusion around the digital television transition, and its support for the establishment of a broadcast carriage quiet period between broadcasters and cable operators in advance of the transition date.
17. House(s) of Congress and Federal agencies Check if None
U.S. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, U.S. SENATE, Federal Communications Commission (FCC),
18. Name of each individual who acted as a lobbyist in this issue area
First Name | Last Name | Suffix | Covered Official Position (if applicable) | New |
Ross |
Lieberman |
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Matthew |
Polka |
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19. Interest of each foreign entity in the specific issues listed on line 16 above Check if None
LOBBYING ACTIVITY. Select as many codes as necessary to reflect the general issue areas in which the registrant engaged in lobbying on behalf of the client during the reporting period. Using a separate page for each code, provide information as requested. Add additional page(s) as needed.
15. General issue area code CPT
16. Specific lobbying issues
Please see the addendum attached for the full text of CPT issues covered.
COPYRIGHT
As part of the 2009 reauthorization of the Satellite Home Viewer Act, the ACA urged members of Congress to consider adopting the following changes to the Cable Compulsory Copyright License (17 USC 111) in lieu of making more substantive changes that could result in consumers paying higher rates for cable television service.
*Eliminate the use of outdated FCC market quota rules
*Eliminate "phantom signal" payments
*Clarify that FOX stations are "network signals"
*Maintain the short form Statement of Account for very small cable systems.
The ACA lobbied Congress in support of legislation which would ensure that consumers may receive access to in-state broadcast signals that they may not currently receive from their cable and satellite providers due to retransmission consent and exclusivity rules.
17. House(s) of Congress and Federal agencies Check if None
U.S. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, U.S. SENATE
18. Name of each individual who acted as a lobbyist in this issue area
First Name | Last Name | Suffix | Covered Official Position (if applicable) | New |
Ross |
Lieberman |
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Matthew |
Polka |
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19. Interest of each foreign entity in the specific issues listed on line 16 above Check if None
Information Update Page - Complete ONLY where registration information has changed.
20. Client new address
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21. Client new principal place of business (if different than line 20)
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22. New General description of client’s business or activities
LOBBYIST UPDATE
23. Name of each previously reported individual who is no longer expected to act as a lobbyist for the client
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ISSUE UPDATE
24. General lobbying issue that no longer pertains
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AFFILIATED ORGANIZATIONS
25. Add the following affiliated organization(s)
Internet Address:
Name | Address |
Principal Place of Business (city and state or country) |
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26. Name of each previously reported organization that is no longer affiliated with the registrant or client
1 | 3 | 5 |
2 | 4 | 6 |
FOREIGN ENTITIES
27. Add the following foreign entities:
Name | Address |
Principal place of business (city and state or country) |
Amount of contribution for lobbying activities | Ownership percentage in client | ||||||||||
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28. Name of each previously reported foreign entity that no longer owns, or controls, or is affiliated with the registrant, client or affiliated organization
1 | 5 | 9 |
2 | 6 | 10 |
3 | 7 | 11 |
4 | 8 | 12 |