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NOV 141979 BooK 2 PAGE 79 <br />THE CHAIRMAN NOTED THAT WE HAVE RECEIVED A LETTER COM— <br />PLAINING THAT INDIAN RIVER CABLEVISION'S RECENT MONTHLY BILLING WAS <br />SENT OUT AT THE INCREASED RATE WHICH SO FAR HAS NOT BEEN APPROVED. <br />RALPH HAIMOWITZ, GENERAL MANAGER OF INDIAN RIVER CABLEVISION, <br />INFORMED THE BOARD THAT THE LETTER REFERRED TO IS IN REGARD TO THE <br />NOVEMBER BILLING. HE EXPLAINED THAT THEY SUBMITTED THEIR RATE <br />INCREASE REQUEST TO THIS COMMISSION, THE BREVARD COUNTY COMMISSION <br />AND THE SEBASTIAN CITY COUNCIL ALL ON THE SAME DATE, AND THE OTHER <br />TWO BODIES APPROVED THE RATE INCREASE EFFECTIVE AS OF THE 1ST OF <br />OCTOBER. THE HEARING IN INDIAN RIVER COUNTY WAS DELAYED DUE TO <br />SCHEDULING PROBLEMS, AND IT WAS IMPOSSIBLE FOR THEM TO BE HEARD BEFORE <br />OCTOBER 1ST AS THEY HAD REQUESTED. MR. HAIMOWITZ CONTINUED THAT <br />THEY NORMALLY BILL TWICE EVERY OTHER MONTH SO THEY HAD TO SEPARATE <br />THEIR BILLING FOR OCTOBER AND NOVEMBER. THEY DELAYED THE INCREASE <br />ALREADY APPROVED BY THE OTHER TWO BODIES, BUT THE PROBLEM AROSE WHEN <br />THE BILLING, WHICH IS MADE UP IN THE MIDDLE OF THE MONTH, WAS ALL <br />INADVERTENTLY MARKED WITH THE RATE INCREASE APPROVED FOR THE OTHER <br />TWO AREAS. MR. HAIMOWITZ STATED THAT HE HAD NOTIFIED THE COMMISSION <br />THAT THIS HAD BEEN DONE BY ERROR, AND DEPENDING UPON THE OUTCOME <br />OF THE HEARING TONIGHT, THEY WOULD ISSUE CREDITS TO PEOPLE BILLED <br />AT THE NEW RATE. - <br />CHAIRMAN WODTKE NOTED THAT THEY WOULD BE ENTITLED TO A <br />CREDIT REGARDLESS OF THE OUTCOME OF TONIGHT'S HEARING, AND MR. <br />HAIMOWITZ AGREED. <br />MR. HAIMOWITZ THEN GAVE HIS PRESENTATION, NOTING THAT HE <br />HAD SUBMITTED A PACKET OF INFORMATION TO THE BOARD FOR THEIR REVIEW. <br />HE STATED THAT AS MOST BUSINESSES D0, THEY BASE THEIR RATES AND COST <br />OF LIVING ON THE CONSUMER'S PRICE INDEX, AND THIS INDEX SHOWS AN <br />INCREASE OF 30.6% SINCE THEIR LAST RATE HIKE. MR. HAIMOWITZ CONTINUED <br />THAT THEY ARE CONSIDERED AN URBAN CABLE SYSTEM. HE NOTED THAT THEY <br />HAVE ADDED 37.2 MILES OF CABLE IN THE LAST TWO YEARS TO EXPAND TO <br />THOSE SUBSCRIBERS IN THE THREE FRANCHISE AREAS THAT DO NOT HAVE <br />SERVICE AND HAVE EXPANDED TO 15 FULL CHANNELS OF BASIC AND PREMIUM <br />4 <br />