Have you been paying attention to new and pending legislation that could affect our industry? Well JAG has, especially our legislative committee. That committee, under the leadership of Dave Garb, has been working with our partners at NATOA and the ACM to keep track of such legislation and are informing not only our members, but leadership throughout the state and the New Jersey League of Municipalities. I urge you to read our special legislative newsletter that has been sent out. You can also find it on the JAG website, or click on this link: https://jagonline.org/2023-newsletters/
On the 33rd Anniversary of ADA,
The Biden-Harris Administration is working to make it easier for people with disabilities to access public services. They are taking new steps to strengthen the ADA and improve online accessibility to state and local services for those with vision, hearing, cognitive, and dexterity disabilities.
There are times when running a station, you will find you may need additional support and information. How do you get that information? Who is available to give you that added help? With JAG as a resource, you will find there are many places you can get the information and help you need.
Resolution Opposing American Broadband Deployment Act As was reported in the recent Special Legislative Update, the American Broadband Deployment Act of 2023 (H.R. 3557) was passed by the Congressional House Energy and Commerce Committee. If enacted, it would impose new restrictions on local authorities’ ability to regulate a variety of state and local land use and zoning issues pertaining to the deployment of the telecommunications infrastructure. This would include wireless and wireline deployment, as well as new limits on requirements and renewals of cable franchise agreements.
Myself and two others of the C-NET staff were fortunate enough to be able to attend the 2023 JAG Conference in Edison, New Jersey. This was, for all practical purposes, the return to in-person conferences for JAG, after a fully remote conference in 2021 and a “hybrid” conference in 2022. Gathering together in person was as exciting and satisfying as I had hoped.
Community Recognition Award The Jersey Access Group presents to the West Milford Town Council, and in particular Mayor Michele Dale and council liaisons Ada Erik and Marilyn Lichtenberg, for their continued support of their municipal channel WM77. West Milford launched its channel just 10 years ago, but since the beginning, the council, the mayor and …
Up here in the highlands of New Jersey, we at WM77 have been lucky to win two JAG “awards of excellence” in the past two years, one in the category of “Fairs, Festivals, Car Shows and Arts and Crafts,” and one for single camera coverage of our Town Council meetings. While it’s always nice to be recognized for outstanding work by your peers, for a small station like WM77 it has meant a lot more than just a pat on the back and a trophy for Town Hall.
A bill was recently passed out of the Congressional House Energy and Commerce Committee, titled the American Broadband Deployment Act of 2023 (H.R. 3557). We at JAG, along with our national partners, believe this bill would be a serious detriment to every municipality in our state and everyone needs to be aware of it and why it must be stopped.
This bill imposes new restrictions on local authorities regarding their ability to regulate a variety of state and local land use and zoning issues that pertain to the deployment of telecommunications infrastructure, including wireless and wireline deployment, as well as new limits on requirements and renewals of cable franchise agreements.
I have had the chance over these last few weeks to speak to a lot of our JAG Members and the one thing I keep hearing is how busy they are, especially this time of year. The first thing I say is… I know exactly what you mean. The second thing I always say is, I’m glad. I am glad to be busy and I am glad you are. That means we are all out there covering the things that need to be brought to attention in our communities and making a big difference. So, with that in mind, I am going to give you a few excerpts from past articles and links to them for you to read the entire article. I believe the things I have mentioned and talked about cannot be stressed enough. So enjoy being busy, enjoy the summer and when you get a chance, however brief as it may be, relax and wind down!
Every Great Video we produce has to have a story. My name is Caz. Bielen, Chief Creative Officer of Premiere Media and CazTV. I immigrated to the US when I was 8 years old. I never had a TV in Poland. My first TV was a black and white set, where I learned English watching Magilla Gorilla, The Adventures of Superman, Little Rascals and I Love Lucy reruns There were also the annual viewings of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang and The Wizard of Oz. I did not know it was in color till I was in my late teens. But I loved the stories and the lighting, the effect that made these characters come to life.
Posted: August 15, 2023 by Doug Seidel
Change is Coming to Support ADA
by Dave Garb, Legislative Committee Chair
On the 33rd Anniversary of ADA,
The Biden-Harris Administration is working to make it easier for people with disabilities to access public services. They are taking new steps to strengthen the ADA and improve online accessibility to state and local services for those with vision, hearing, cognitive, and dexterity disabilities.
Posted: July 13, 2023 by Doug Seidel
Broadband Update: July 2023
by Dave Garb, Legislative Committee Chair
Resolution Opposing American Broadband Deployment Act As was reported in the recent Special Legislative Update, the American Broadband Deployment Act of 2023 (H.R. 3557) was passed by the Congressional House Energy and Commerce Committee. If enacted, it would impose new restrictions on local authorities’ ability to regulate a variety of state and local land use and zoning issues pertaining to the deployment of the telecommunications infrastructure. This would include wireless and wireline deployment, as well as new limits on requirements and renewals of cable franchise agreements.
Posted: July 13, 2023 by Doug Seidel
The Success of JAG Conference
by Cynthia Hahn, C-NET Executive Director
Myself and two others of the C-NET staff were fortunate enough to be able to attend the 2023 JAG Conference in Edison, New Jersey. This was, for all practical purposes, the return to in-person conferences for JAG, after a fully remote conference in 2021 and a “hybrid” conference in 2022. Gathering together in person was as exciting and satisfying as I had hoped.
Posted: July 13, 2023 by Doug Seidel
JAG Recognition Awards 2023
Community Recognition Award The Jersey Access Group presents to the West Milford Town Council, and in particular Mayor Michele Dale and council liaisons Ada Erik and Marilyn Lichtenberg, for their continued support of their municipal channel WM77. West Milford launched its channel just 10 years ago, but since the beginning, the council, the mayor and …
Posted: July 13, 2023 by Doug Seidel
The Unexpected Benefits of the JAG Awards
by Geoffery Belinfante, West Milford
Up here in the highlands of New Jersey, we at WM77 have been lucky to win two JAG “awards of excellence” in the past two years, one in the category of “Fairs, Festivals, Car Shows and Arts and Crafts,” and one for single camera coverage of our Town Council meetings. While it’s always nice to be recognized for outstanding work by your peers, for a small station like WM77 it has meant a lot more than just a pat on the back and a trophy for Town Hall.
Posted: June 23, 2023 by Doug Seidel
Opposition to HR 3557: The American Broadband Deployment Act
by Dave Garb, Legislative Committee Chair
A bill was recently passed out of the Congressional House Energy and Commerce Committee, titled the American Broadband Deployment Act of 2023 (H.R. 3557). We at JAG, along with our national partners, believe this bill would be a serious detriment to every municipality in our state and everyone needs to be aware of it and why it must be stopped.
This bill imposes new restrictions on local authorities regarding their ability to regulate a variety of state and local land use and zoning issues that pertain to the deployment of telecommunications infrastructure, including wireless and wireline deployment, as well as new limits on requirements and renewals of cable franchise agreements.
Posted: June 20, 2023 by Doug Seidel
Building a TV Series and Finding JAG
by Caz. Bielen, Premiere Media
Every Great Video we produce has to have a story. My name is Caz. Bielen, Chief Creative Officer of Premiere Media and CazTV. I immigrated to the US when I was 8 years old. I never had a TV in Poland. My first TV was a black and white set, where I learned English watching Magilla Gorilla, The Adventures of Superman, Little Rascals and I Love Lucy reruns There were also the annual viewings of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang and The Wizard of Oz. I did not know it was in color till I was in my late teens. But I loved the stories and the lighting, the effect that made these characters come to life.