The Comcast Franchise Renewal, Explained: The Application, the Dec. 8, 2025 Hearing and What Comes Next

The short version

Comcast of Central New Jersey II, LLC applied for renewal of its municipal consent to own, operate, extend and maintain Branchburg’s cable television and cable communications system; the Township Document Center labels the public-copy application September 2025.
The Township noticed a municipal consent hearing for Dec. 8, 2025 at 8:00 p.m. at the Municipal Complex, under N.J.S.A. 48:5A-23 and N.J.A.C. 14:18-11.6.
The Township Committee held the hearing on Dec. 8, 2025. Comcast’s Robert Clifton gave an overview and answered members’ questions; Township Attorney William Willard said the next step is the adoption of an ordinance defining the terms of the renewal agreement.
That ordinance has not yet been introduced: none appears in the Committee’s minutes through Oct. 12, 2026 or on its Oct. 26, 2026 agenda.

What the application states

The public-copy application is a scanned Comcast filing; its readable portions state:

The applicant is Comcast of Central New Jersey II, LLC, with the same system name and an address at 279 Amwell Road, Hillsborough, New Jersey.
It is a corporation organized in Delaware on June 26, 1985, and states it is a wholly owned subsidiary of Comcast Cable Communications, itself wholly owned by Comcast Corporation.
On coverage: “service is currently available to the entirety of the municipality,” and Comcast “will apply the Office of Cable Television’s (OCTV) Line Extension Policy (LEP) should any future situations warrant,” with “a density threshold of 25 homes per mile (HPM).”
The rates section refers to appendices; the detailed rates, channel line-up, reliability measurements, complaint history, renewal period and requested consent conditions are not summarized here.

These are the applicant’s own statements in its filing — a proposal, not adopted terms, and not an independent survey of service availability. The number of Branchburg subscribers is not stated.

What the notice set

The public-hearing notice, signed by Township Clerk Maggie Schmitt, RMC:

Sets a municipal consent hearing for Monday, December 8, 2025 at 8:00 p.m. at the Township of Branchburg Municipal Complex, 1077 U.S. Highway 202 North, “or at any such other time or place to which said public hearing may be adjourned.”
States the hearing’s purpose: evaluating Comcast’s application for renewal of its municipal consent to own, operate, extend and maintain a cable television and cable communications system in the Township, “in accordance with N.J.S.A. 48:5A-23, and N.J.A.C. 14:18-11.6, and all other applicable statutory and regulatory provisions.”
Invites “all interested parties … to attend and be heard.”
Says copies of the application would be on file with the Clerk, reviewable Monday through Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., at the Municipal Complex.
States the notice “will be published again between the fourteenth (14th) and seventh (7th) day prior to the hearing.”

The December 8, 2025 hearing

The Township Committee held the hearing at its December 8, 2025 regular meeting, called to order at 8:00 p.m. by Mayor Thomas Young with all five members present (Mayor Young, Mr. Brendon Beatrice, Mr. James Schworn, Mrs. Anna Columbus and Mr. David Owens). The minutes record the item as “Public Hearing — Application — Renewal of Comcast Cable Franchise Agreement”:

Robert Clifton, Comcast’s Senior Director for Government & Regulatory Affairs, attended to discuss the renewal. He gave an overview of the process and answered questions from the Committee.
Township Attorney William Willard outlined the next steps, “which would be the adoption of an ordinance defining the terms of the renewal agreement.”

The minutes record no public speakers at the meeting and no vote on the renewal. The meeting video is in the Township’s Granicus archive.

What comes next

The step the Township Attorney described is an ordinance defining the terms of the renewal agreement. Like any ordinance, it would be introduced at one Committee meeting and adopted, if at all, after a public hearing at a later one. No such ordinance appears in the Committee’s minutes from December 22, 2025 through October 12, 2026, or on its October 26, 2026 agenda. The renewed terms (service obligations, fees, complaint process and renewal period) will be set out in that ordinance.

What residents can do

Read the filings: the application and the hearing notice are in the Township Document Center; paper copies remain on file with the Clerk.
Read the hearing minutes: the Dec. 8, 2025 minutes are on the Township’s Agendas/Minutes page, which links the Documents-On-Demand portal; the video is in the Granicus archive.
Watch Committee agendas for the renewal ordinance and its public hearing.
Raise cable matters at a Township Committee meeting (second and fourth Monday, 7:00 p.m., Municipal Building courtroom).