Limits on Municipal Use of Public, Education, and Government Fees
________________________________________________
Balancing a local government’s budget to ensure funding for important services can be a difficult task. Some types of revenue and funding sources carry no restrictions regarding how they may be spent and are designated for the general fund to be used anywhere needed. The use of other funds, however, is restricted; this includes public, education, and government (“PEG”) fees paid by cable operators under the federal Cable Communications Policy Act of 1984 (the “Act”) to support local government PEG channels. If you are a cable customer, you may have even noticed PEG fees as a separate line item on your cable bill.
David S. Johnson, an assistant city attorney for the City of Arlington, has explored these issues extensively and drafted a useful Frequently Asked Questions article for the March-April 2022 issue of Municipal Lawyer Magazine. You can download the FAQ article here.
________________________________________________
TCCFUI has republished Mr. Johnson’s article with permission of the International Municipal Lawyers Association (IMLA) from the March-April 2022 issue of Municipal Lawyer, an IMLA publication. Copyright © 2022 IMLA.