PSC tells Spectrum it missed milestones, demands $1 million payment

ALBANY, N.Y. — Charter Communications, the parent of Spectrum, has asked the state Public Service Commission (PSC) for more time to respond to its demand for a $1 million penalty.

In 2016, the PSC OK’d Charter’s purchase of Time Warner Cable, stipulating that the company had to expand high-speed internet access. That was updated last fall, the PSC said in a release, and required the cable company to extend its network by passing another 145,000 houses or businesses in the next four years, 36,771 by the end of 2017.

According to the PSC, its own audit found Charter was claiming credit for thousands of houses and businesses that its lines did not pass, opening the company to a $1 million penalty. “A detailed audit by commission staff found more than 14,000 passings claimed by Charter for its December milestone were ineligible, causing Charter to fall short of the milestone by more than 8,000 passings,” the PSC said.

Spectrum spokesman Andrew Russell denied that. “We exceeded our last buildout commitment by thousands of homes and businesses,” he said in a statement. “We’ve also raised our speeds to deliver faster broadband statewide. We are in full compliance with our merger order and the New York City franchise, and we will fight these baseless and legally suspect actions vigorously.”

An attorney for Spectrum requested more time to look over the list of homes and businesses that the PSC says were not passed by Spectrum’s high-speed lines. “Charter will need to investigate each address and assemble information regarding the basis for its continued inclusion in Charter’s completed or planned passings,” wrote attorney Maureen Helmer. She asked the PSC for 45 days to complete the task.

 The PSC also told Spectrum to explain why its franchise fees to New York City have “allegedly declined.”

Contact McChesney at cmcchesney@cnybj.com.