Who We Are
The MHCRC is an intergovernmental Commission consisting of eight dedicated community members who are appointed by the six MHCRC Member Jurisdictions and supported by a professional staff.
The MHCRC was formed through an agreement by the 6 MHCRC Member Jurisdictions (Multnomah County and the cities of Fairview, Gresham, Portland, Troutdale, and Wood Village) to:
- Administer cable franchise agreements across jurisdictional boundaries which do not necessarily coincide with the service areas of the cable providers,
- Provide enhanced public benefits in franchising and regulation, and economies of scale in operations,
- Advise Member Jurisdictions on subjects relating to cable communications, and
- Function as the Jurisdictions’ representative for regional, state, and national cable communications policy matters.
What We Do
- Provide consumer protection for cable subscribers, including complaint resolution
- Enforce cable company compliance with franchise agreements
- Conduct franchise negotiations, renewals, and transfers of ownership
- Participate in communications policy and legislative advocacy efforts to protect local control of the public right-of-way
- Oversee community media organizations serving Portland and East Multnomah County
- Promote digital equity and inclusion
- Administer Community Technology Grants Program, a competitive grant program which allocates about $1.5 million annually to libraries, schools, local governments, and non-profit community organizations
The Commission is comprised of eight volunteer community members appointed by the 5 city councils and the county commission (Jurisdictions). An Intergovernmental Agreement (IGA) among the Jurisdictions grants the Commission the authority to regulate cable services franchise agreements with Comcast (serving county-wide) and Ziply (serving east county). Collectively the cable companies serve about 140,000 cable subscribers. As a result of the cable services franchise agreements, the Commission oversees an annual fund budget of about $8 million.
Primary Responsibilities of Commissioners:
- Provide direction to MHCRC staff on financial and policy objectives (MHCRC contracts with the City of Portland Office for Community Technology for staff services)
- Oversee financial matters of the Commission, including developing and presenting an annual budget for recommendation to the member jurisdictions
- Attend Commission meetings (about 8 per year) and participate on at least one committee (about 4 per year)
- Attend annual, one-day Commission planning retreat (usually a Saturday in the Spring)
- Provide regular reports and serve as liaison to elected officials of appointing jurisdiction
- Keep informed and educated about issues related to Commission activities.”