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                                Before the
                     Federal Communications Commission
                          Washington, D.C. 20554

In the Matter of)
     )
U S Cable of Northern Indiana    )     CUID No. IN0747 (City of Crown Point)
                )        
     )
Benchmark Filing to Support      )        
Cable Programming Service Price  )


MEMORANDUM OPINION AND ORDER
 
   Adopted:  April 8, 1996                    Released:  April 16, 1996 

By the Chief, Financial Analysis and Compliance Division, Cable Services Bureau:

 1.   Here we consider a complaint about the rates the above-captioned operator
("Operator") was charging for its cable programming service ("CPS") tier in the community
referenced above.  Operator's response includes benchmark justifications on FCC Form 1200 and 
multiple FCC Form 1210s, the latest Form 1210 filed for the period ending in the fourth quarter
of 1995.  This Order addresses the reasonableness of Operator's rates only after May 14, 1994. 
We have already issued a separate order addressing the reasonableness of Operator's rate prior
to that date.

  2.  Under the Cable Television Consumer Protection and Competition Act of 1992, and
our rules implementing it, 47 C.F.R. Part 76, Subpart N, the Commission must review CPS rates
upon the filing of a complete and timely complaint.  The filing of a complete and timely
complaint triggers an obligation on behalf of the cable operator to file a justification of its CPS
rates.  Under our rules, an operator may attempt to justify its rates through either a benchmark
showing or a cost-of-service showing.  In either case, the operator has the burden of
demonstrating that its CPS rates are not unreasonable.

  3.  The Commission's original rate regulations took effect on September 1, 1993.  The
Commission subsequently revised its rate regulations effective May 15, 1994.  Operators with
complete and timely CPS complaints filed against them prior to May 15, 1994 must demonstrate
that their CPS rates were in compliance with the Commission's initial rules from the time the
complaint was filed through May 14, 1994, and that their rates were in compliance with the
revised rules from May 15, 1994 forward.  Operators attempting to justify their rates for the
period prior to May 15, 1994 through a benchmark showing must complete and file FCC Form
393.  To justify their rates for the period beginning May 15, 1994 through a benchmark showing,
operators must use the FCC Form 1200 series.  Operators may also justify rate increases based
on the addition and deletion of channels, the changes in certain external costs, and inflation by
filing FCC Form 1210.  Form 1210 must be filed at least 30 days before new rates are
scheduled to go into effect where the Commission has found the cable programming service tier
rate to be unreasonable less than one year prior to the filing, or where there is a pending
complaint against the cable programming service tier rate.

  4.   Operator asserts that its monthly CPS tier rates are justified because the rates are
equal to or lower than the maximum permitted charge.  Upon review of Operator's FCC Form
1200 series filings, we agree.  We found no apparent errors in Operator's calculation of its
maximum permitted CPS rates.  Therefore, Operator's FCC Form 1200 series rates for the period
under review are justified.  

  5.  Accordingly, IT IS ORDERED, pursuant to Section 0.321 of the Commission's Rules,
47 C.F.R.  0.321, that the complaint referenced herein against the cable programming service
rates charged by Operator in the franchise area referenced in the caption during the period
following May 14, 1994 IS DENIED TO THE EXTENT INDICATED HEREIN.

                            FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION 




                            JoAnn Lucanik
                            Chief, Financial Analysis and Compliance Division
                            Cable Services Bureau