The ordinance to fund CAN TV is expected to come up for a vote by the full Council on September 29, 2004. We want to thank those of you who came out for the September 1, 2004 City Council meeting. At that meeting, a vote on the ordinance to fund CAN TV was stalled when 14th Ward Alderman Ed Burke
and 7th Ward Alderman William Beavers "deferred and published," a procedure that allows for two Aldermen to delay a vote. This was the second time the ordinance was delayed. The first time was after the ordinance was passed by the Committee on Finance meeting in June when the administration requested time to seek an alternate funding solution. At present, the administration has not proposed or signed onto any alternate funding solution.

Thanks to your many calls and letters, there is widespread support for the ordinance among the Aldermen. But at the press conference following the meeting, Mayor Daley was questioned by the press about funding CAN TV through the City's cable franchise fee. The Mayor responded that the City doesn't have the money and he suggested that the Aldermen supporting CAN TV can fund it out of their own paychecks. We continue to believe that when the Mayor realizes the importance of this resource to the local community, he will get behind a solution. However, if the ordinance does not pass on September 29th, and an acceptable alternative funding solution isn't found, CAN TV will lose 40% of its cable funding and cuts in staffing and services are inevitable.

It is as important as ever to contact Mayor Daley and your alderman before September 29th to ask that they pass the ordinance to fund CAN TV. A number of Aldermen have said they are hearing from a lot of constituents about this. That can make the difference when the time comes to vote.

To learn how to contact your alderman about this issue, please visit:

www.ci.chi.il.us/CityCouncil/index.html

To contact the Mayor, you can use this form:

tinyurl.com/2n8d7

The City Council meets on Wednesday, September 29, 2004 at 10:00 a.m. at City Hall, 2nd floor -- 121 N. LaSalle, City Council Chambers.

Wear a CAN TV button to show your support. (Pick up buttons at CAN TV facility, 322 S. Green Street.)

We hope to see you on the 29th and will reserve a block of seats for CAN TV constituents. The meeting begins at 10:00 a.m. For more information, give us a call at (312) 738-1400 or go to www.cantv.org for regular updates on the ordinance.