County Seeks Input on Local Channels

Stephens and surrounding counties are continuing to work to try to get access for local residents to Atlanta local TV stations on satellite TV, rather than stations from South Carolina.

The STELAR Act of 2014 opened the door for local governments to request satellite market modifications for their communities and the Federal Communications Commission adopted and finalized the rules for making that request last year.

Since then, Stephens, Franklin, Hart, and Elbert counties have been working to follow each step of that required process and collect the information needed for the petition.

The next step is a survey of area residents.

That survey is available online by going to the county’s website, www.stephenscountyga.com.

Stephens County Administrator Phyllis Ayers said it is anticipated that comments from county residents will be considered as part of the petition.

“That is a survey to prove that enough of your citizens are interested,” said Ayers.

Ayers said it is important that while many residents have stated an opinion, those comments need to be formalized for the FCC to consider.

She went on to say that it is just one more step in a very involved process to try and make a case to the FCC.

“We have collected a lot of data,” said Ayers. “This is just another piece of required data that we are trying to collect.”

Besides filling out the survey online at www.stephenscountyga.com, people can also e-mail comments to [email protected] or mail them to Stephens County Board of Commissioners, Attn: FCC Petition, P.O. Box 386, Toccoa, GA, 30577.