Rules and Policies

1.1 Access to Eagan Television (here after referred to as ETV) facilities and equipment shall be on a first-come, first-served basis, except for exceptions found in these guidelines.

1.2 Access to equipment, studio facilities, training sessions, and cablecasting of programs shall not be withheld, prohibited, or restricted in any way because of race, color, creed, religion, political beliefs, sexual orientation, disability, national origin, marital status, status with regard to public assistance, age or gender.

1.3 Access to ETV facilities and equipment is intended for residents of Eagan. Non-residents may utilize facilities and equipment if they are working on behalf of area organization(s), upon approval from the ETV Studio Manager. Area organizations include religious organizations, schools, and non-profit organizations.

1.3.1 Proof of residency in the form of a Drivers License, Utility Bill or Cable Bill will be required.

1.4 Access to ETV facilities and equipment is reserved for the production of programs and videos for airing on an ETV access channel.  Any other use of the equipment or facilities is strictly prohibited. 

1.5 ACCESS TO EQUIPMENT: All equipment users will have to attend an ETV sponsored training session or apply for a CLASS WAIVER at the discretion of the Executive Director. Users of equipment/facilities will also be required to sign the RESPONSIBILITY FORM for equipment use.

1.6 ACCESS TO CABLECASTING: Program producer(s) must sign a STATEMENT OF COMPLIANCE form for completed programs. The producer(s) are responsible for insuring that all persons appearing in completed programming have signed an ETV RELEASE FORM (available at
www.Eagan-tv.com), and that any applicable copyright permissions have been obtained.  Producers may be asked to provide proof of said permissions.

1.7 ACCESS TO TRAINING SESSIONS: Any individual, resident or non-resident may attend an ETV sponsored training session. A fee may be charged.

1.8 All Producers, crew, guests, audience and any other visitor to the ETV facilities must also adhere to the policies of our partner Thomson Reuters as outlined in the Eagan Television brochure Available at ETV or the front desk at the Thomson Reuters Main Entrance at 610 Opperman Drive in Eagan.

2.1 Liabilities and Indemnification:  The producer has total responsibility to know and understand the ETV policies and procedures. As such, producers assume complete financial and legal liability for their activities during the utilization of ETV services, equipment and facilities. ETV and the City of Eagan assume no responsibility for producer actions and will be indemnified and held harmless for any claims for damages resulting from producer utilization of ETV services, equipment and facilities.

2.2 The ETV user/producer is responsible for ensuring that programming or use of equipment does not result in:

2.2.1 OBSCENE OR INDECENT MATERIAL OR LANGUAGE shall not be cablecast, nor programs that promote illegal acts.

2.2.2  DEFAMATION:  Programming containing defamation is prohibited.  Defamation shall mean any material in a program and/or presentation that would be deemed defamation slander or libel by local community standards or by standards established by any federal, state, or local regulation or law. 

2.2.3 LOTTERY INFORMATION: Neither lotteries nor lottery information will be cablecast.

2.2.4 COPYRIGHTED MATERIALS: The producer of the program shall be held responsible for any disputes arising from unauthorized use of copyrighted materials.

2.2.5 ADVERTISING Unless in connection with sponsored programming accepted and approved by the ETV Executive Director, no advertising material will be cablecast.  The display of commercial logos, products and services shall be avoided whenever and wherever possible.

2.2.6 SELLING OF PROGRAMS: The producer shall be held responsible for reimbursing ETV for the actual cost(s) for any program or program portion produced with ETV equipment that is sold or otherwise receives remuneration of a monetary nature. Production costs are the sole determination of ETV.

2.3 The user is responsible for adhering to booking times and reservations.

2.3.1 Being late for a booking time or reservation may result in the time being booked for another producer that requests the time. 3 such instances may result in a suspension of reservation rights for up to 6 months.    

2.3.2 The user is responsible for informing the ETV staff if equipment or facilities previously booked will not be utilized or if there is a change in the pick-up or return time. Staff reserves the right to re-assign use of facilities or equipment if the user is more than thirty (30) minutes late.

2.3.3 Users utilizing production equipment are under the supervision of the ETV Executive Director or his designee.

2.3.4 It is the user's responsibility to identify himself/herself to the person(s) being recorded, especially if the subject is not aware of the recording. At no time may an access user identify themselves as an employee or agent of ETV or the City of Eagan.

2.3.5 The user assumes full responsibility for use of ETV production equipment when the equipment is signed out for their use, other than normal wear and tear. Should damage occur to the equipment, the user is responsible for informing the ETV staff as soon as possible, but no later than upon return of the equipment. The Executive Director will review each equipment/facility damage and/or loss and determine the extent that the user is responsible for reimbursement, up to and including full reimbursement for repair and replacement.

2.4 Productions using any ETV equipment must fully credit ETV at the end of a program for facilities use and assistance. The credit, "Production Facilities Provided by ETV Eagan Community Television," should appear on the screen for a time equal to the other production credits and must be on the master and all copies. This credit must be shown at all public screenings.

2.5 The access user is responsible for having read and understood these guidelines.

2.6 Users are required to fill out a Program Production Proposal in writing prior to booking studio, editing or equipment usage.  Upon completion of their Program Production Proposal, users will work with ETV staff to complete a Production Plan and Schedule.  Users should address any questions or concerns to the ETV Executive Director.

2.7 A producer may petition the ETV Executive Director for a waiver of these rules in order to accommodate productions with special requirements by submitting a request in writing. A decision on the issuing of such a waiver will be made within 3 working days after its submission of the written request.

2.8 A user who appears to be under the influence of alcohol or drugs, or whose conduct endangers the safety of people or facilities, or who engages in any illegal activity while using access equipment or facilities or on ETV property, will be prohibited from using the access channels and facilities.

2.9 Smoking, drinking and eating is prohibited in the ETV facilities and around ETV equipment.

2.10 Any misuse, negligence or carelessness with the equipment or facilities may result in suspension of any or all of these rights.

2.11 The content of any video produced is the sole responsibility of the access producer. Further, the producer is the sole owner of the content of the video and said content may not be altered or censored in any way without the permission of the producer.

3.1 Prior to reserving facilities or equipment use, individual users and/or groups MUST be trained and certified in an ETV sponsored training session.  The producer of the show must also complete a Program Production Proposal and work with ETV staff to complete a Production Plan and Schedule

3.2 Access facilities and equipment are available to Eagan residents as outlined in Section 1.3  and approved by the Executive Director or staff designee.

3.3 Use of equipment or facilities must result in programming for one of the ETV channels.

3.3.1 ETV requires that any program made with ETV equipment receive its premiere cablecast in the Eagan service area.

3.4 Use of ETV facilities and equipment by volunteers are for non-commercial uses only. The use of equipment or channel time for profit-making or revenue-generating functions is strictly prohibited. If interested in renting ETV studio space, equipment or hiring ETV Staff for video production, please contact the Executive Director or Client Services Coordinator for more information.

3.5 If the person requesting equipment or facility use is not eighteen (18) years of age or older, a parent or guardian must sign the appropriate responsibility forms required for the facility and equipment use or check-out.

3.5.1 Parents or guardians of equipment or facility users that are between fourteen (14) years of age and eighteen (18) years of age must sign blanket responsibility forms, allowing the minor to check out equipment, or use equipment in the facility, without being accompanied by an adult. Blanket responsibility forms must be updated by the parent or guardian with each calendar year.

3.5.2 Minors aged thirteen (13) years and under must be accompanied by an adult in all cases, including training seminars.

3.6 Each person or group requesting use of equipment or facilities other than the mobile studio may:

3.6.1 Reserve up to one (1) month in advance. Example: On February 29, bookings will be taken up to March 29. On March 1, bookings will be taken up to April 1.

3.6.2 Reserve up to four (4) hours of studio production time per week. For live studio programming, please refer to Section 5.4 for reserving the studio.

3.6.3 Reserve up to four (4) hours of editing time per week per editing facility.

3.6.4 Reserve up to one (1) twenty-four (24) hour block for portable check-out per week. Saturday to Monday time periods and time periods that include holidays will be counted as one (1) booking.

3.6.5 Not reserve more than one weekend checkout per month without permission of the ETV Executive Director.

3.7 Time in excess of the above may be obtained on a day-to-day basis or case by case basis from the ETV Executive Director.

3.8 Failure to return equipment on or before the return time on your check out form will result in a $5 per hour charge.  3 instances of late returns may result in a suspension of check out privileges.

3.9 In the case of portable equipment, policy 2.3.2 still applies. Please call ETV early to check on the possibility of extending your time so as to allow enough time to return the equipment in case other bookings have been made.

3.10 One portable camera system is allowed per person or group per check-out.

3.11 Consecutive, back to back bookings by members of the same group (group being defined as people working on the same production defined in a Program Production Proposal) will not be accepted.

4.1 It is recognized by ETV that community event coverage must be balanced between entities in the community, and that ETV exists not only because of volunteer involvement but because of viewer support.

4.1.1 To this end, ETV will generate a community event production schedule on a periodic basis that identifies events for which coverage is a high priority and identifies and reserves the appropriate equipment.

4.1.2 ETV will work with volunteer producers to fill crew positions on priority events.

4.1.3 The needs of the community or City event production schedule will supersede any other guidelines found in the ETV Operational Use Policies.

4.2  Following the completion of the priority production schedule for a given period of time, booking requests for the mobile studio will then be taken from volunteer producers for that same given period of time.

4.3 The producer of the community television event will be considered the person responsible for the planning, execution and completion of the production.

4.3.1 The producer and crew must be certified in Mobile Studio Production System.

4.3.2 The producer is responsible for assembling a set-up crew certified in Mobile Studio Production. Certain crew positions such as announcers, cg operators, etc., may not need to be certified at the discretion of the ETV Executive Director or his designee.

4.3.3 The producer may be required to supply a completed Remote Production Proposal as deemed necessary by the ETV Executive Director, or his designee, because of special production requirements or because of staff non-familiarity with the producer or crew.

4.3.4 A Crew List and Premises Release Form must be submitted one (1) week prior to the production, unless the gathering of this information has been arranged by a staff member.

4.4 All volunteer remote event productions, crews and equipment are subject to the approval of the ETV Executive Director. Event production requests may not be granted, or may be cancelled based on factors such as location, staffing, equipment considerations, weather and safety issues.

5.1 Completion and submission of a Statement of Compliance form will constitute a formal request for cablecast time. A Statement of Compliance form is required for any video to be cablecast, whether locally produced, dropped off, or mailed to ETV.

5.1.1 Programs submitted for playback that are not facilitated or produced by an ETV producer must be sponsored by a resident of the Eagan cable service territory. The resident sponsoring the program must sign the Statement of Compliance, and that sponsor acts as the party of responsibility and of record in the franchise territory for that program.

5.2 The person signing the Statement of Compliance will be considered responsible for the content of the program.

5.2.1 The Statement of Compliance must include the responsible party's full name and legal street address.  P.O. boxes are not acceptable.

5.2.2 Proof of residency in the form of a Drivers License, Utility Bill or Cable Bill will be required.

5.2.2 Blanket Statement of Compliance is acceptable for series programs. The responsible party will be required to fill out a new Statement of Compliance for each series program for every 3 months.

5.3 Programming will be scheduled at the discretion of the ETV Executive Director.

5.3.1 No standard or regular cablecasting time slots are available.

5.4 A live programming slot/time may be requested for up to 6 consecutive week increments and scheduled with the approval of the ETV Executive Director. This includes the use of the production studio.

5.5 It will be assumed that any video mailed to ETV for playback without a SASE(Stamped Self Addressed Envelope) for return mail becomes the property of ETV after thirty (30) days.

5.6 It will be assumed that any video dropped off at ETV for playback and not picked up within thirty (30) days will become property of ETV.

5.7 All programs must be accurately timed and labeled.

5.8 Upon determination by the ETV Executive Director that a program contains material for a mature audience, and/or unsuitable for children, the program will be scheduled in time slots no earlier than 11:00 p.m.

5.9 The ETV Executive Director or his designee reserves the right to suspend or cancel the cablecasting of any program that either contains poor technical quality and/or due to the physical conditions of the video.

5.10 The scheduling of ETV Access programming is up to the ETV Executive Director or his designee.

5.11 All submitted programming that is accepted by ETV will be guaranteed one cablecast, but may be selected for multiple airings at the discretion of the ETV Supervisor or his staff designee.

6.1 All tapes, discs or files owned by ETV must be stored in the ETV library.

6.1.1 Edited or unedited tapes may be checked out by the producer for a twenty-four (24) hour period, or from Saturday to Monday.

6.2 Edited and/or unedited tapes or footage will be held in the tape library for sixty (60) days from the day they are entered in the tape library and or data storage.

6.2.1 Access producers may request that their unedited tapes or footage be retained for another sixty (60) day period if their project cannot be finished in the sixty day time frame.

6.2.2 The producer of any completed program made at ETV may book up to the equivalent of time of their completed production to dub one (1) free copy of their production. Additional dubs may be purchased at the fees in effect on ETV’s rate card.

6.3 ETV will not be responsible for any lost footage, tapes or projects resulting from equipment failure or any other unforeseen circumstance.

7.1 Storage of props, sets, backdrops, costumes, etc is not available at the ETV facilities.

7.2 Users may arrange to bring in props, sets, backdrops, costumes, etc. on a limited basis upon the approval of the ETV Executive Director.

7.3 Users will be required to remove any props, sets, backdrops, costumes, etc. upon completion of that day’s shooting. 

7.4 Any props, sets, costumes, etc., will not be the responsibility of ETV should damage or loss occur.

Producers of public access programs through ETV have the right to solicit sponsorships under these guidelines:

8.1 "Sponsorship" is defined as goods, services, or grants in aid of a production provided to a program producer by a third party, not to include salary, pay, per-diem, or any form of profit paid to the producer(s) or crew.

8.2 An acknowledgement of sponsorship may be made, but any acknowledgement of sponsorship shall be made only in the following manners: character generation, display of logo, and/or spoken audio at the beginning and/or end of the program in the same style as the other program credits. The two production methods in which sponsorship may be displayed must follow one and/or the other of these two formats:

8.2.1 Special thanks to (name of sponsor) for (goods, services, or support provided), and/or,

8.2.2 This program made possible (in part) by a grant from (name of sponsor).

8.3 No price, product or service description may be included in the sponsorship credit.

8.4 Individual sponsorship messages shall be no longer than 15 seconds.

8.5 Sponsorship messages must be reviewed by the ETV Executive Director to ensure compliance with ETV sponsorship rules before they are cablecast.

8.6 A maximum of 60 seconds of sponsor acknowledgements will be allowed before or after a single program, along with placement during “natural breaks” in programs.

8.7 ETV will serve as a financial depository for the collection and release of funds for individual producers. Producers obtaining sponsorship funding for programming are required to use the funds within one calendar year.   At the end of one calendar year, the funds revert to ETV and will be considered as ETV revenue.

8.8 Producers must also submit an ETV Access Sponsorship Application prior to the airing of any sponsorship message to ensure the sponsorship rules have been met.

8.9 Additional sponsorship rules and regulations are contained in the ETV Access Sponsorship Rules Supplement.

9.1 Message space is available to the general public on the Community Bulletin Board.

9.1.1 All rules and guidelines that apply to ETV programming content and restrictions also apply to community content messages.

9.1.2 Messages may be submitted up to one (1) month in advance of the event being promoted/advertised, but not less than one (1) week in advance of the event being promoted.

9.1.3 No permanent character generated message pages are available; all message page locations and durations are at the discretion of the ETV Executive Director.

9.1.4 All messages must be submitted to the ETV website here.

9.1.5 ETV reserves the right to edit message content

9.2 City Government Channel 16, and Educational Channels, 14, 18 and 19 are reserved for messages from those respective institutions in the community.

10.1 ETV reserves the right to waive any self-imposed regulation when such waiver is judged to be in the public interest.

10.2 All users of ETV’s facilities should be aware that they may be held accountable for their actions by the same laws that govern any public activity.

10.3 Any person seeking relief against ETV relating to any programming on ETV shall be limited to injunctive relief and declaratory relief.  See 47 U.S.C. § 555a(a); Coplin v. Fairfield Public Access Television Committee, 111 F.3d 1395 (8th Cir. 1997).

11.1 Unless otherwise stipulated in these guidelines, two (2) violations of the above guidelines will result in a loss of all access privileges for up to one (1) year. A single violation of a more serious nature, in the sole discretion and determination of the ETV Executive Director, may result in immediate suspension of all privileges for up to six (6) months. Failure to deal with the access staff in a straight-forward, truthful, and courteous manner will also be considered a violation of the above guidelines.

11.2 Should anyone, including producer, users and the viewing public, dispute any action taken by ETV and its staff, and/or their interpretation of the ETV policies, and/or request the censorship of a public access program(s), the following process shall be followed:

11.2.1 Request a meeting with the ETV Executive Director to discuss the issue(s).

11.2.2 If still unresolved, the matter may be appealed to the Eagan Director of Communications for a hearing and final determination. The Director’s decision is final in all matters pertaining to the interpretation and administration of ETV public access policies and activities.