53088.5. The Legislature hereby finds and declares as follows:(a) It is a common practice in the sale or lease of cable television services for a fee to be imposed upon a consumer’s failure to make full and timely payment of periodic charges for those services.(b) It is desirable to establish certain reasonable minimum standards to prevent abuse or overcharges.(c) Complicated and expensive accounting determinations are required to fairly assess the exact costs which are incurred for collection and accounting for delinquent payments.(d) Currently, the Federal Communications Commission excludes late fees from inclusion when setting benchmark rates.(e) It is desirable to encourage the practice of extending services and avoiding the immediate termination of services notwithstanding a short-term delinquency.(Added by Stats. 1996, Ch. 666, Sec. 1. Effective January 1, 1997.)