Legal Notices

Foothills Communications (“Foothills”) has adopted this Acceptable Use Policy (“AUP”) to outline the acceptable use of Foothills’ Broadband Internet service (“Broadband Service”). This AUP is in addition to any restrictions contained in the Foothills Agreement for Residential Broadband Services (the “Subscriber Agreement”) available at www.foothills.net. Please refer to the Frequently Asked Questions (“FAQs”) at www.foothills.net which includes explanations of how Foothills implements and applies many of the provisions contained in this AUP.All capitalized terms used in this AUP that are not defined here have the meanings given to them in the Subscriber Agreement. You, the customer, must comply with this AUP. Your failure to do so could result in the suspension or termination of your Broadband Service account. If you do not agree to comply with this AUP, you must immediately stop all use ofthe Broadband Service and notify Foothills so that it can close your account. Foothills may revise this AUP from time to time by posting a new version on the Web site at www.foothills.net (the “Foothills website”). Foothills will use reasonable efforts to make customers aware of any changes to this AUP, which may include sending e-mail announcements or posting information on the Foothills website. Revised versions of this AUP are effective immediately upon posting. Accordingly, customers of the Foothills Communications Internet Broadband Service should read any Foothills announcements they receive and regularly visit the Foothills web site and review this AUP to ensure that their activities conform to the most recent version. If you have questions regarding this AUP, or to report violations of it, you can contact Foothills at ww.foothills.net. To report illegal content on the Internet go to www.ftc.gov.

I. Prohibited Uses and Activities

In general, this AUP prohibits uses and activities involving the Broadband Service that are illegal, infringe the rights of others, or interfere with or diminish the use and enjoyment of the Broadband Service by others.

A. Network and Usage Restrictions

No user of the Broadband Service, Customer Equipment, or Foothills Equipment may, individually or in combination with another:

1. restrict, inhibit, or otherwise interfere with the ability of any other person, regardless of intent, purpose or knowledge, to use or enjoy the Broadband Service (except for safety and security functions such as parental controls, for example), including, without limitation, posting or transmitting any information or software which contains a worm, virus, or other harmful feature, or generating levels of traffic sufficient to impede others’ ability to use, send, or retrieve information;
2. restrict, inhibit, interfere with, or otherwise disrupt performance of the Broadband Service or cause a performance degradation regardless of intent, purpose or knowledge, to the Broadband Service or any Foothills (or Foothills supplier) host, server, backbone network, node or service, or otherwise cause a performance degradation to any Foothills (or Foothills supplier) facilities used to deliver the Broadband Service;
3. resell the Broadband Service or otherwise make available to anyone outside the Premises the ability to use the Broadband Service (for example, through wi-fi or other methods of networking), in whole or in part, directly or indirectly. The Broadband Service is for personal and non-commercial residential use only and you agree not to use the Broadband Service for operation as an Internet service provider or for any business enterprise or purpose (whether or not for profit);
4. connect the Foothills Equipment to any computer outside of your Premises;
5. interfere with computer networking or telecommunications service to any user, host or network, including, without limitation, denial of service attacks, flooding of a network, overloading a service, improper seizing and abusing operator privileges, and attempts to “crash” a host; and
6. accessing and using the Broadband Service with anything other than a dynamic Internet Protocol (“IP”) address that adheres to the dynamic host configuration protocol (“DHCP”). You may not configure the Broadband Service or any related equipment to access or use a static IP address or use any protocol other than DHCP unless you are subject to a Broadband Service plan that expressly permits you to do so.
7. B. Conduct and Information Restrictions

No user of the Broadband Service, Customer Equipment, or Foothills’ Equipment may, individually or in combination with another:

1. avoid incurring charges for or otherwise being required to pay for usage of the Broadband Service;
2. invade another person’s privacy, stalk, harass, or otherwise violate the rights of other persons;
3. undertake or accomplish any unlawful purpose. This includes, but is not limited to, posting, storing, transmitting or disseminating information, data or material which is libelous, obscene, unlawful, threatening or defamatory, or which infringes the intellectual property rights of any person or entity, or which in any way constitutes or encourages conduct that would constitute a criminal offense, or otherwise violate any local, state, federal, or non-U.S. law, order, or regulation;
4. post, store, send, transmit, or disseminate any information or material which a reasonable person could deem to be unlawful;
5. upload, post, publish, transmit, reproduce, create derivative works of, or distribute in any way information, software or other material obtained through the Broadband Service or otherwise that is protected by copyright or other proprietary right, without obtaining any required permission of the owner;
6. collect, or attempt to collect, personal information about third parties without their consent;
7. transmit unsolicited bulk or commercial messages commonly known as “spam;”
8. send voluminous copies of the same or substantially similar messages, empty messages, or messages which contain no substantive content, or send very large messages or files that disrupts a server, account, blog, newsgroup, chat, or similar service;
9. initiate, perpetuate, or in any way participate in any pyramid or other illegal scheme;
10. participate in the collection of voluminous amounts of e-mail addresses, screen names, or other identifiers of others (without their prior consent), a practice sometimes known as spidering or harvesting, or participate in the use of software (including “spyware”) designed to facilitate this activity;
11. collect responses from unsolicited bulk messages;
12. falsify, alter, or remove message headers;
13. falsify references to Foothills or its network, by name or other identifier, in messages;
14. impersonate any person or entity, engage in sender address falsification, forge anyone else’s digital or manual signature, or perform any other similar fraudulent activity (for example, “phishing”);
15. violate the rules, regulations, terms of service, or policies applicable to any network, server, computer database, service, application, system, or Web site that you access or use.

C. Technical Restrictions

No user of the Broadband Service, Customer Equipment, or the Foothills Equipment may, individually or in combination with another:

1. use the Internet service or facilities for web-hosting, e-mail hosting, or other unusually high-bandwidth consumption unless you have made special subscription arrangements with Foothills and the usage does not otherwise violate law or regulation;
2. access any other person’s computer or computer system, network, software, or data without his or her knowledge and consent; breach the security of another user or system; or attempt to circumvent the user authentication or security of any host, network, or account. This includes, but is not limited to, accessing data not intended for you, logging into or making use of a server or account you are not expressly authorized to access, or probing the security of other hosts, networks, or accounts without express permission to do so;
3. use or distribute tools or devices designed or used for compromising security or whose use is otherwise unauthorized, such as password guessing programs, decoders, password gatherers, keystroke loggers, analyzers, cracking tools, packet sniffers, encryption circumvention devices, or Trojan Horse programs. Unauthorized port scanning is strictly prohibited;
4. copy, distribute, or sublicense any proprietary software provided in connection with the Broadband Service by Foothills or any third party, except that you may make one copy of each software program for back-up purposes only;
5. distribute programs that make unauthorized changes to software (cracks);
6. use or run dedicated, stand-alone equipment or servers from the Premises that provide network content or any other services to anyone outside of your Premises local area network (“Premises LAN”), also commonly referred to as public services or servers. Examples of prohibited equipment and servers include, but are not limited to, e-mail, Web hosting, file sharing, and proxy services and servers;
7. use or run programs from the Premises that provide network content or any other services to anyone outside of your Premises LAN, except for personal and non-commercial residential use;
8. service, alter, modify, or tamper with Foothills Equipment or Broadband Service or permit any other person to do the same who is not authorized by Foothills.

II. Customer Conduct and Features of the Broadband Service

A. Customer Obligations

In addition to being responsible for your own compliance with this AUP, you are also responsible for any use or misuse of the Broadband Service that violates this AUP, even if it was committed by a friend, family member, or guest with access to your Broadband Service account. Therefore, you must take steps to ensure that others do not use your account to gain unauthorized access to the Broadband Service by, for example, strictly maintaining the confidentiality of your Broadband Service login and password. In all cases, you are solely responsible for the security of any device you choose to connect to the Broadband Service, including any data stored or shared on that device. It is also your responsibility to secure the Customer Equipment and any other Premises equipment or programs not provided by Foothills that connect to the Broadband Service from external threats such as viruses, spam, bot nets, and other methods of intrusion.

B. Foothills’ Rights

Foothills reserves the right to refuse to transmit or post, and to remove or block, any information or materials, in whole or in part, that it, in its sole discretion, deems to be in violation of Sections I or II of this AUP, or otherwise harmful to Foothills’ network or customers using the Broadband Service, regardless of whether this material or its dissemination is lawful so long as it violates this AUP. Neither Foothills nor any of its affiliates, suppliers, or agents have any obligation to monitor transmissions or postings (including, but not limited to, e-mail, file transfer, blog, newsgroup, and instant message transmissions) made on the Broadband Service. However, Foothills and its affiliates, suppliers, and agents have the right to monitor these transmissions and postings from time to time for violations of this AUP and to disclose, block, or remove them in accordance with this AUP, the Subscriber Agreement, and applicable law.

C. Service Restrictions

All of Foothills’ network and system services are provided according to scheduled fees for each type of service. You agree to use such services in accordance with the terms set forth below. 1. Email and Web-Hosting Services (i) Unsolicited Email Prohibited – You may not use Foothills-hosted email addresses for the purpose of sending unsolicited email. You may not use or cause to be used Foothills’ equipment, network connectivity, or other resources to originate, deliver, relay or otherwise transmit unsolicited email messages. You may not engage in any of the foregoing prohibited activities by using the service of any other provider, third-party agent, re-mailing service or address forwarding service, in such a way that Foothills’ network addresses or Foothills-hosted web or email services are in any way identified as being associated with the sending of unsolicited email. (ii) Unauthorized use, or forging, of mail header information (e.g. “spoofing”) is prohibited. (iii) Fraudulent Activity Prohibited – You may not use the Foothills email and web-hosting services to make fraudulent offers to sell or buy products, items, services, or to advance any type of financial scam such as “pyramid schemes”, “Ponzi schemes”, or “chain letters.” You may not use techniques to hide or obscure the source of any e-mail or other communications. (iv) Foothills reserves the right to suspend or delay delivery of email to Customer utilizing Foothills email services and/or the virtual domain email if the volume of email being redirected, stored, or delivered on the Customer’s behalf is deemed excessive. Excessive traffic is defined as any amount of email that consumes more than 10MB of disk storage space per individual mailbox or any volume of email traffic that noticeably degrades performance on the server in question, in the sole discretion of Foothills. Stored mail exceeding these limits may be transferred to a compressed file at Foothills’ discretion.

Foothills will attempt to notify the account holder via the account contact information on record; however, Foothills reserves the right to delete the contents of such email boxes upon thirty (30) days after attempted notification. The Broadband Service may not be used to communicate or distribute e-mail or other forms of communications in violation of Section I of this AUP. As described below in Section III of this AUP. Foothills uses reasonable network management tools and techniques to protect customers from receiving spam and from sending spam (often without their knowledge over an infected computer). Foothills is not responsible for deleting or forwarding any e-mail sent to the wrong e-mail address by you or by someone else trying to send e-mail to you. Foothills is also not responsible for forwarding e-mail sent to any account that has been suspended or terminated. This e-mail will be returned to the sender, ignored, deleted, or stored temporarily at Foothills’ sole discretion.

In the event that Foothills believes in its sole discretion that any subscriber name, account name, or e-mail address (collectively, an “identifier”) on the Broadband Service may be used for, or is being used for, any misleading, fraudulent, or other improper or illegal purpose,Foothills (i) reserves the right to block access to and prevent the use of any of these identifiers and (ii) may at any time require any customer to change his or her identifier. In addition, Foothills may at any time reserve any identifiers on the Broadband Service forFoothills’ own purposes. In the event that a Broadband Service account is terminated for any reason, all e-mail associated with that account (and any secondary accounts) will be permanently deleted as well. 2. Instant, Video, and Audio Messages Each user is responsible for the contents of his or her instant, video, and audio messages and the consequences of any of these messages. Foothills assumes no responsibility for the timeliness, misdelivery, deletion, or failure to store these messages. In the event that a Broadband Service account is terminated for any reason, all instant, video, and audio messages associated with that account (and any secondary accounts) will be permanently deleted as well. 3. Personal Web Pages and File Storage As part of the Broadband Service, Foothills provides access to personal Web pages and storage space through the Personal Web Pages and Online Storage features (collectively, the “Personal Web Features”). You are solely responsible for any information that you or others publish or store on the Personal Web Features. You are also responsible for ensuring that all content made available through the Personal Web Features is appropriate for those who may have access to it. For example, you must take appropriate precautions to prevent minors from receiving or accessing inappropriate content. Foothills reserves the right to remove, block, or refuse to post or store any information or materials, in whole or in part, that it, in its sole discretion, deems to be in violation of Section I of this AUP. For purposes of this AUP, “material” refers to all forms of communications including text, graphics (including photographs, illustrations, images, drawings, logos), executable programs and scripts, video recordings, and audio recordings.
Foothills may remove or block content contained on your Personal Web Features and terminate your Personal Web Features and/or your use of the Broadband Service if we determine that you have violated the terms of this AUP. III. Network Management and Limitations on Data Consumption Foothills manages its network with the goal of delivering a fast, safe and uncompromised broadband Internet experience to all of its customers. But, high-speed bandwidth and network resources are not unlimited. Managing the network is essential for the promotion of best possible Broadband Internet experience by all of Foothills’ customers.

The company uses reasonable network management practices that are consistent with industry standards. Foothills tries to use tools and technologies that are minimally intrusive and, in its independent judgment guided by industry experience, among the best in class. Of course, the company’s network management practices will change and evolve along with the uses of the Internet and the challenges and threats on the Internet. All broadband Internet service providers manage their networks. Many of them use the same or similar tools thatFoothills does. If the company didn’t manage its network, its customers would be subject to the negative effects of spam, viruses, security attacks, network congestion, and other risks and degradations of service. By engaging in responsible network management including enforcement of this AUP, Foothills can deliver the best possible broadband Internet experience to all of its customers. Visit Foothills’ website at https://www.foothills.net for more information.

III. Network Management

Foothills uses various tools and techniques to manage its network, deliver the Broadband Service, and ensure compliance with this AUP and the Subscriber Agreement. These tools and techniques are dynamic, like the network and its usage, and can and do change frequently. Foothills’ network management practices may include (i) identifying spam and preventing its delivery to customer e-mail accounts, (ii) detecting malicious Internet traffic and preventing the distribution of viruses or other harmful code or content, (iii) temporarily lowering the priority of traffic for users who are the top contributors to current network congestion, and (iv) using other tools and techniques that Foothills may be required to implement in order to meet its goal of delivering the best possible broadband Internet experience to all of its customers.

A. Network Usage and Data Consumption Restrictions

You acknowledge that all of the Foothills Internet services are intended for periodic, active use of email, user newsgroups, transfers via FTP, Internet chat, Internet games, and browsing of the Internet. You must comply with all current bandwidth, data storage, and other limitations on Foothills’ Internet Services established by Foothills and Foothills suppliers. You agree not to intentionally use Foothills’ Internet Services on a standby or inactive basis in order to maintain a connection. The excessive use or abuse of Foothills’ network resources by one Customer may have a negative impact on all other Customers. Accordingly, you may not use Foothills’ Internet Service or take any action, directly or indirectly, that will result in excessive consumption or utilization of the system or network resources, or which may weaken network performance, as determined by Foothills’ sole discretion.

Such prohibited actions include, but are not limited to: using Foothills’ Internet Service to host a web server site which attracts excessive traffic at your location, continuously uploading or downloading streaming video or audio, use net hosting, continuous FTP uploading or downloading, or acting in a manner that negatively effects other users’ ability to engage in real time exchanges and use of Foothills’ Internet Service. The broadband service is for personal and non-commercial residential use only. Therefore, Foothills reserves the right to suspend or terminate broadband service accounts where data consumption is not characteristic of a typical residential user of the broadband service as determined by Foothills in its sole discretion. Common activities that may cause excessive data consumption in violation of this AUP include, but are not limited to, numerous or continuous bulk transfers of files and other high capacity traffic using (i) file transfer protocol (“FTP”), and (ii) newsgroups. You must also ensure that your use of the Broadband Service does not restrict, inhibit, interfere with, or degrade any other person’s use of the Broadband Service, nor represent (as determined by Foothills in its sole discretion) an overly large burden on the network. In addition, you must ensure that your use of the Broadband Service does not limit or interfere with Foothills’ ability to deliver and monitor the broadband service or any part of its network. If you use the broadband service in violation of the restrictions referenced above, that is a violation of this AUP. In these cases, Foothills may, in its sole discretion, suspend or terminate your broadband service account or request that you subscribe to a version of broadband service (such as a commercial grade Internet service, if appropriate) if you wish to continue to use the broadband service at higher data consumption levels.

Foothills may also provide versions of the Broadband Service with different speed and data consumption limitations, among other characteristics, subject to applicable broadband service plans. Foothills’ determination of the data consumption for broadband service accounts is final.

IV. Violation of AUP

Foothills reserves the right to immediately suspend or terminate your broadband service account and terminate the Subscriber Agreement if you violate the terms of this AUP or the Subscriber Agreement. Foothills does not routinely monitor the activity of individual broadband service accounts for violations of this AUP, except for determining aggregate data consumption in connection with the data consumption provisions of this AUP. However, in the company’s efforts to promote good citizenship within the Internet community, it will respond appropriately if it becomes aware of inappropriate use of the broadband service. Foothills has no obligation to monitor the broadband service and/or the network. However, Foothills and its suppliers reserve the right at any time to monitor bandwidth, usage, transmissions, and content in order to, among other things, operate the broadband service; identify violations of this AUP; and/or protect the network, the broadband service and Foothills users. Foothills prefers to inform customers of inappropriate activities and give them a reasonable period of time in which to take corrective action. Foothills also prefers to have customers directly resolve any disputes or disagreements they may have with others, whether customers or not, without Foothills’ intervention.
However, if the broadband service is used in a way that Foothills or its suppliers, in their sole discretion, believe violates this AUP, Foothills or its suppliers may take any responsive actions they deem appropriate under the circumstances with or without notice. These actions include, but are not limited to, temporary or permanent removal of content, cancellation of newsgroup posts, filtering of Internet transmissions, and the immediate suspension or termination of all or any portion of the broadband service (including but not limited to newsgroups). Neither Foothills nor its affiliates, suppliers, nor agents will have any liability for any of these responsive actions. These actions are not Foothills’ exclusive remedies and Foothills may take any other legal or technical actions it deems appropriate with or without notice. Foothills reserves the right to investigate suspected violations of this AUP, including the gathering of information from the user or users involved and the complaining party, if any, and examination of material on Foothills’ servers and network. During an investigation, Foothills may suspend the account or accounts involved and/or remove or block material that potentially violates this AUP.

You expressly authorize and consent to Foothills and its suppliers cooperating with (i) law enforcement authorities in the investigation of suspected legal violations, and (ii) and system administrators at other Internet service providers or other network or computing facilities in order to enforce this AUP. Upon termination of your broadband service account, Foothills is authorized to delete any files, programs, data, e-mail and other messages associated with your account (and any secondary accounts). The failure of Foothills or its suppliers to enforce this AUP, for whatever reason, shall not be construed as a waiver of any right to do so at any time. You agree that if any portion of this AUP is held invalid or unenforceable, that portion will be construed consistent with applicable law as nearly as possible, and the remaining portions will remain in full force and effect. You agree to indemnify, defend and hold harmless Foothills and its affiliates, suppliers, and agents against all claims and expenses (including reasonable attorney fees) resulting from any violation of this AUP. Your indemnification will survive any termination of the Subscriber Agreement.

BYLAWS
of
Foothills Rural Telephone Cooperative Corporation, Inc.

ARTICLE I
MEMBERSHIP

SECTION 1.1. Eligibility. Any person, firm, association, limited liability company, corporation, body politic or other legally organized entity is eligible to become a member of Foothills Rural Telephone Cooperative Corporation, Inc. (hereinafter called the “Cooperative”) upon receipt of telecommunications and information services (hereinafter referred to simply as “services”) from the Cooperative at a premise within its established area and the execution of a membership application in the form prescribed by the Board of Trustees (hereinafter the “Board”).

(1)        Such application shall include an agreement:

(a)        to purchase service from the Cooperative as an end user of such services, in accordance with the rates, terms and conditions specified by the Cooperative; and

(b)        to comply with, and be bound by, the Articles of Incorporation and Bylaws of the Cooperative and any rules and regulations adopted by the Board; and

(c)        to pay any membership fee established by the Board.

(2)        Purchasers of the Cooperative’s services at wholesale, or otherwise for resale shall not be eligible for membership or patronage credits with respect to such wholesale services.

(3)        Upon acceptance of the application by the Board, membership shall become effective upon the date of commencement of service. Membership eligibility terminates upon disconnection of service; however, the Board may provide for suspension of service during periods of temporary absence of a member.

Each member shall be assigned a member number and the status of all memberships shall be as reflected upon the books of the Cooperative. A membership certificate may be issued at the discretion of the Board.

SECTION 1.2. Definition and Classifications.

(1)        Effective March 1, 1999, the Cooperative membership shall be comprised of two distinct classes in recognition of the differences of contribution by each respective membership class.

(a)        Class A members shall be all members who procure the Cooperative’s central office dial tone and reside in the Cooperative’s designated service area. Class A members shall have all voting rights and privileges. Class A members shall be eligible, if qualified, to serve as a Trustee of the Cooperative.

(b)        Class B members shall be all members who receive telecommunication services but do not procure the Cooperative’s Central office dial tone. Class B members may or may not reside in the Cooperative’s designated service area. Class B members shall not be entitled to vote and shall not be eligible to serve as a Trustee of the Cooperative. Effective March 1, 1999, Class B members may be eligible for capital credit allocation in a form and manner prescribed by the Board in its sole discretion.

(2)        The Board will determine under rules of general application the types and amounts of revenue streams for the types and amount of patronage that give rise to the privileges and obligations of membership.

(3)        Exchange and interexchange carriers who participate with the Cooperative in the provision of telecommunications services to members are neither members nor patrons by virtue of division of revenue contracts.

(4)        Each time sharing or interval ownership premise is considered as a single corporate member. The owner of seasonal, recreational and short-interval rental properties will be deemed to hold the membership.

(5)        No member may hold more than one membership of each class in the                                 Cooperative. No membership in the Cooperative shall be transferable.

All memberships in the Cooperative are extended only to individual persons (natural or corporate) who meet the requirements of 1.1. Memberships formerly issued to husbands and wives, previously referred to as joint memberships, will be allowed to continue. However, no new joint memberships will be established. Thus, the term “member” as used in these Bylaws shall refer to an individual but can, on a grandfathered basis, be deemed to include a husband and wife still holding a joint membership and any provisions relating to the rights and liabilities of member shall apply equally with respect to the holders of a joint membership. Without limiting the generality of the foregoing, the effect of the hereinafter specified actions by or in respect of the holders of a joint membership shall be as follows:

(1)        The presence at a meeting of either or both shall be regarded as the presence of one member and shall constitute a joint waiver of notice of the meeting;

(2)        The vote of either separately or both jointly shall constitute one joint vote;

(3)        A waiver of notice signed by either or both shall constitute a joint waiver;

(4)        Notice to either shall constitute notice to both;

(5)        Expulsion of either shall terminate the joint membership;

(6)        Withdrawal of either shall terminate the joint membership;

(7)        Either, but not both, may be elected or appointed as an officer or board member if individually qualified;

(8)        Upon the death of either spouse who is a party to the joint membership, such membership shall be converted to an individual membership. However, the estate of the deceased shall not be released from any debts due the cooperative.

SECTION 1.3. Membership Fees. The Board, at its discretion, may determine to require a membership fee which shall be uniform for each class of membership.

SECTION 1.4. Purchase of Services. Each person who applies for service shall, as soon as service is available, take service from the Cooperative. The member shall pay therefor monthly at rates in accordance with either established tariffs as fixed by the Board, or, for the services rendered by other carriers, at the rates which the Cooperative is obliged to bill and collect by contractual arrangements with other carriers. It is expressly understood that amounts received by the Cooperative for all services in excess of cost are furnished by members from the moment of receipt as capital, and each member shall be credited with the capital so furnished as provided in these Bylaws. However, the Cooperative is not obligated to furnish such credits for services which are not billed and collected by the Cooperative, or other reliable patronage date cannot be reasonably acquired even when such services are partially rendered over the facilities of the Cooperative. Each member shall pay the above amounts owed by him to the Cooperative as and when the same shall become due and payable.

SECTION 1.5. Termination of Membership.

(a)        Any member may withdraw from membership upon compliance with such uniform terms and conditions as the Board may prescribe. The Board may, by the affirmative vote of not less than 2/3 of all the members of the Board, expel any member who fails to comply with any of the provisions of the Articles of Incorporation, Bylaws, or rules and regulations adopted by the Board, but only if such member shall have been given notice by the Cooperative that such failure makes him liable to expulsion and such failure shall have continued for at least ten days after such notice was given. Any expelled member may be reinstated by vote of the Board or by vote of the members at any annual or special meeting.

(b)        Upon the withdrawal, death, cessation of service or expulsion of a member, the membership of such member shall thereupon terminate and will be so recorded on the books of the Cooperative. Termination of membership in any manner shall not release a member or his estate from any debts due the Cooperative nor do unpaid bills release a member from his obligations under these bylaws or rules and regulations approved by the Board.

(c)        In case of withdrawal or termination of membership in any manner, the Cooperative shall repay to the member the amount of any membership fee credited to the member’s account, provided, however, that the Cooperative shall deduct from the amount of the membership fee, the amount of any debts or obligations owed by the member to the Cooperative.

ARTICLE II
RIGHTS AND LIABILITIES OF THE
COOPERATIVE AND THE MEMBERS

SECTION 2.1. Service Obligations.

(a)        The Cooperative will use reasonable diligence to furnish adequate and dependable services, but it cannot and does not guarantee uninterrupted services nor will it always be able to provide every service desired by each individual member.

(b)        The members pledge to purchase all services from the Cooperative to the extent that its services are able to meet the members needs and are competitively priced.

SECTION 2.2. Cooperation of the Members in the Extension of Services. The cooperation of members of the Cooperative is imperative to the successful, efficient and economical operation of the Cooperative. Members who are receiving or who are requesting service shall be deemed to have consented to the reasonable use of their real property to construct, operate, maintain, replace or enlarge telephone and/or communications lines, overhead or underground, including all conduit, cables, wires, surface testing terminals, markers and other appurtenances under, through, across, and upon any real property or interest therein owned or leased or controlled by said member for the furnishing of telephone or communication service to said member, or any other member, at no cost to the Cooperative. When requested by the Cooperative, the member does agree to execute any easement or right-of-way contract on a form to be furnished by the Cooperative.

SECTION 2.3. Nonliability for Debts of The Cooperative. The private property of the members shall be exempt from execution or other liability for the debts of the Cooperative and no member shall be liable or responsible for any debt or liabilities of the Cooperative.

SECTION 2.4. Property Interest of Members. Upon dissolution, or sale of the assets of the Cooperative, after:

(1)        All debts and liabilities of the Cooperative shall have been paid;

(2)        All capital furnished through patronage shall be retired as provided in these Bylaws; and

(3)        All membership fees shall have been repaid, the remaining property and assets of the Cooperative shall be distributed among the members and former members in the proportion which the aggregate patronage of each member and former member bears to the total patronage of all such members and such former members on the date of dissolution or sale, unless otherwise provided by law.

ARTICLE III
MEETINGS OF MEMBERS

SECTION 3.1. Annual Meetings. The annual meeting of the members shall be held at a date and place within the State as selected by the Board and which shall be designated in the Notice of the Meeting for the purpose of electing Board members, passing upon reports for the previous fiscal year and transacting such other business as may come before the meeting. It shall be the responsibility of the Board to make adequate plans and preparations for the annual meeting. Failure to hold the annual meeting at the designated time shall not work a forfeiture or dissolution of the Cooperative nor affect the validity of any corporate action.

SECTION 3.2. Special Meetings. Special meetings of the members may be called by resolution of the Board, or upon a written request signed by any three (3) Board members, by the president, or by not less than two hundred (200) members or by five percent (5%) of all the members, whichever shall be the lesser, and it shall thereupon be the duty of the Secretary to cause notice of such meeting to be given as hereinafter provided. Special meetings of the members may be held at any place within one of the countries served by the Cooperative as designated by the Board and shall be specified in the Notice of the special meeting.

SECTION 3.3. Notice of Members’ Meetings. Written or printed notice stating the place, day and hour of the meeting and, in case of a special meeting or an annual meeting at which business requiring special notice is to be transacted, the purpose or purposes for which the meeting is called, shall be delivered not later than the last billing date nor more than forty-five (45) days before the date of the meeting, either personally or by mail, by or at the direction of the Secretary, or upon a default in duty by the Secretary, by the persons calling the meeting, to each member. If mailed, such notice shall be deemed to be delivered when deposited in the U.S. Mail, addressed to the member at the address appearing on the records of the Cooperative, with postage thereon prepaid. The incidental or unintended failure of any member to receive notice of an annual or special meeting of the members shall not invalidate any action which may be taken by the members at any such meeting.

SECTION 3.4. Postponement of a Meeting of the Members. In the event of inclement weather or the occurrence of a catastrophic event, the meeting of the members may be postponed by the President. Notice of the adjourned meeting shall be given by the President in any media or general circulation or broadcast serving the area.

SECTION 3.5. Quorum. Business may not be transacted at any meeting of the members unless, there are present in person at least fifty (50) members or five percent (5%) of the then total members of the Cooperative, whichever is greater, except that, if less than a quorum is present at any meeting, a majority of those present in person may adjourn the meeting to another time and date. At all meetings of the members, whether a quorum be present or not, the Secretary shall affix to the meeting minutes, or incorporate therein by reference, a list of those members who were registered as present in person.

SECTION 3.6. Credentials And Election Committee. The Board of Trustees shall, at least ten (10) days before any meeting of the members, appoint a credentials and election committee consisting of an uneven number of Cooperative members – not less than five (5), nor more than fifteen (15) who are not existing Cooperative employees, agents, officers, trustees or known candidates for trustee, and who are not close relatives (as hereinafter defined) or members of the same household thereof. In appointing the Committee, the Board shall have regard for the equitable representation of the geographic areas served by the Cooperative. The Committee may elect its own Chairman and Secretary prior to the member meeting. It shall be the responsibility of the Committee to establish or approve the manner of conducting member registration and any ballot or other voting, to pass upon all questions that may arise with respect to the registration of members in person, to count all ballots or other votes cast in any election or in any other matter, to rule upon the effect of any ballots or other vote irregularity or indecisively marked or cast, to rule upon all other questions that may arise relating to member voting and the election of Trustees (including, but not limited to the validity of petitions of nomination or the qualification of candidates and the regularity of the nomination and election of Trustees), and to pass upon any protest or objection filed with respect to any election or to conduct affecting the results of any election. In the exercise of its responsibility, the Committee shall have available to it the advice of counsel provided by the Cooperative. In the event a protest or an objection is filed concerning any election, such protest or objection must be filed during, or within three (3) business days following the adjournment of, the meeting in which the voting is conducted. The Committee shall thereupon be reconvened, upon notice from its Chairman, not less than seven (7) days after such protest or objection is filed. The Committee shall hear such evidence as presented by the protester(s) or objector(s), who may be heard in person, by counsel, or both, and any opposing evidence; and the Committee, by a vote of a majority of those present and voting, shall, within a reasonable time, but not later than thirty (30) days after such hearing, render its decision, the result of which may be to affirm the election, to change the outcome thereof, or to set it aside. The Committee may not affirmatively act on any matter unless the majority of the Committee is present. The Committee’s decision (as reflected by a majority of those actually present and voting) on all matters covered by this section shall be final.

SECTION 3.7. Voting. Each member shall be entitled to only one vote upon each matter submitted to a vote at a meeting of the members. All questions shall be decided by a vote of a majority of the members voting thereon in person except as otherwise provided by law, the articles of incorporation, or these Bylaws.

SECTION 3.8. Order of Business. The order of business at the annual meeting of the members and, so far as possible at all other meetings of the members, shall be conducted under policies established by the Board and under an agenda essentially as follows, except as otherwise determined by the members at such meeting:

(1)        Report on the number of members present in person in order to determine the existence of a quorum.

(2)        Reading of the Notice of the Meeting and proof of the timely publication or mailing thereof, or the waiver or waivers of Notice of Meeting, as the case may be.

(3)        Reading of unapproved minutes of last annual meeting of the members and the taking of necessary action thereon. The President may entertain a motion from the floor to dispense with the reading of such minutes.

(4)        Audit report of outside auditors, or, a summary thereof.

(5)        Election of Board members.

(6)        Presentation and consideration of reports of Officers, Trustees, and Committees.

(7)        Unfinished business.

(8)        New business.

(9)        Adjournment.

Notwithstanding the foregoing, the Board or the members themselves may, from time to time, establish a different order of business for the purpose of assuring the earlier consideration of an action upon any item of business the transaction of which is necessary or desirable in advance of any other item of business; provided, that no business other than adjournment of the meeting to another time and place may be transacted until and unless the existence of a quorum is first established.

ARTICLE IV
BOARD MEMBERS

SECTION 4.1. General Powers. The business and affairs of the Cooperative shall be managed by a Board of five member Trustees which shall exercise all of the powers of the Cooperative except such as are by laws, the Articles of Incorporation, or these Bylaws conferred upon or reserved to the members.

SECTION 4.2. Election Process and Tenure of Office. Trustees shall be elected by a secret ballot at each annual meeting when there is competition for the Board seat(s) to be filled. They shall be elected by and from the members to serve a three (3) year term, or until their successors shall have been elected and shall have qualified, and that the terms of the Trustees shall be staggered to ensure continuity.

Trustees shall be nominated and elected as provided hereinafter. The Cooperative is divided into three (3) geographic service areas and from geographic area #1, one (1) Trustee shall be elected to the Board, and from each geographic area #2 and #3, two (2) Trustees shall be elected to the Board. Members shall be eligible to vote for every Trustee. The geographic service areas are set forth as follows:

Geographic Area #1 — Magoffin County

Geographic Area #2 — Johnson County

Geographic Area #3 — Lawrence County

SECTION 4.3. Qualifications to be Nominated, to Become, or Remain a Trustee. Any eligible member may be nominated, elected and remain a Trustee of the Cooperative who:

(1)        Resides in the geographic area from which he or she is elected, and has resided there for more than two hundred and forty (240) days during the last twelve (12) month period. However, residency is not a requirement for members who are not natural persons.

(2)        Is NOT an employee of the Cooperative or in any way financially interested in a competing enterprise or a business engaged in selling communication services or communications supplies or maintaining communications facilities. However, the Board may grant exceptions for “deminimus” competing enterprise.

(3)        Is NOT closely related to an incumbent Trustee or an employee of the Cooperative. As used here, “closely related” means a person who is related to the principal person who is either a spouse, child, grandparent, parent, brother, sister, aunt, uncle, nephew or niece, by blood or in law, of the principal. However, no incumbent Trustee shall lose eligibility to remain a Trustee or to be reelected as a Trustee if he becomes a close relative of another incumbent Trustee or of a Cooperative employee because of a marriage to which he was not a party; neither shall an employee lose eligibility to continue in the employment of the Cooperative if he or she becomes a close relative to a Trustee who does not live in the household of the Trustee to which he or she was not a party. To remain a Trustee, the incumbent must attend two-thirds (2/3) or more of the regular meetings during each twelve (12) month period beginning with the month of his/her election. Upon establishment of the fact that a Trustee or nominee is in violation of any of the provisions of this Section, that office or nomination shall be deemed vacant. Nothing in this section shall affect in any manner whatsoever, the validity of any action taken at any meetings of the Board.

The Cooperative shall adopt a written policy which will govern the application in practice of this by-law section to assure no employee will suffer unjust or unreasonable discrimination because of marital status.

SECTION 4.4. Nominations. It shall be the duty of the Board to appoint, not less than forty (40) days nor more than ninety (90) days before the date of a meeting of the members at which Board members are to be elected, a committee on nominations consisting of five (5) members who shall be selected from different geographic areas so as to ensure equitable representation. At least one (1) member of the Committee shall be selected from each geographic area where a Trustee is to be elected. No member of the Board, close relative of a Board member or employee may serve on such committee. The Committee, keeping in mind the principle of equitable representation, shall prepare and post at the principle office of the Cooperative at least ten (10) days before the meeting, a list of nominations for Board members which shall include as many nominees for each Board position as the Committee deems desirable. The Secretary shall be responsible for mailing with a Notice of the Meeting, or separately, but at least ten (10) days before the date of the meeting, a statement of the number of Board members to be elected and the names and addresses of the candidates nominated by the Committee on nominations. “Any ten percent (10%) or more members acting together may make other nominations by petition and the Secretary shall post such nominations at the same place where the list of nominations made by the Committee is posted.” Nominations made by petition, if any, received at least ten (10) days before the meeting shall be included on the official ballot. Such ballot shall arrange the names of the candidates by geographic areas and shall also designate the candidates nominated by the Committee and those nominated by petition. Later nominations by petition shall be treated as nominations from the floor. The Chairman shall call for additional nominations from the floor and nominations shall not be closed until at least one (1) minute has passed during which no additional nomination has been made. No member may nominate more than one candidate.

SECTION 4.5. Election of Trustees. Contested elections of Trustees shall be by a form of printed ballot. The ballot shall list the names of the candidates nominated by the Committee and by petition with such names arranged by geographic area. Any member desiring to vote for a candidate nominated from the floor at the meeting shall write in the name of such candidate beneath the names of the candidates nominated by the Committee on nominations and by petition of the particular geographic area which such candidate would represent if elected.

Each member of the Cooperative present in person at the meeting shall be entitled to vote for one (1) or two (2) candidate(s) from each geographic area from which a Trustee is to be elected or on any issue before the meeting. The candidate or candidates from each geographic area from which a Trustee is to be elected receiving a plurality of votes cast for that office at such meeting shall be declared elected as a Trustee. Failure of an election for a given year shall allow the incumbent Trustee whose trusteeships would have been voted on to hold over only until the next member meeting at which a quorum is present.

SECTION 4.6. Removal of Board Member by Members and Resignations. Any member may bring charges, relating to the duties and responsibilities of his position, against a Board member and, by filing with the Secretary such charges in writing together with a petition signed by at least ten (10) percent of the members, or two hundred (200), whichever is the lesser, may request the removal of such Board member by reason thereof. Such Board member shall be informed in writing of the charges at least ten (10) days prior to the meeting of the members at which the charges are to be considered and shall have an opportunity at the meeting to be heard in person or by counsel to present evidence in respect to the charges; and the person or persons bringing the charges against him/her shall have the same opportunity. The question of the removal of such Board member shall be considered and voted upon at the meeting of the members. No trustee shall be removed from office unless by a vote of two-thirds (2/3) of the members present. Any vacancy created by such removal may be filled by vote of the members at such meeting without compliance with the foregoing provisions with respect to nominations.

A Trustee may resign at any time by written notice delivered to the Board of Trustees, the President or Secretary of the Cooperative. A resignation is effective when the notice is delivered unless the notice specified a future date. The pending vacancy may be filled before the effective date but the successor shall not take office until the effective date.

SECTION 4.7. Vacancies. Subject to the provisions of these Bylaws with respect to the filling of vacancies caused by the removal of Board members by the members, a vacancy occurring in the Board shall be filled by the affirmative vote of a majority of the remaining Board members for the unexpired portion of the term, provided, however, that in the event the vacancy is not filled by the Board within sixty (60) days after the vacancy occurs, the members shall have the right to fill such vacancy at a meeting of the members without compliance with the foregoing provisions in respect to nominations. However, any successor, whether chosen by the Board or the members, must reside in the same geographic area as the vacant Trustee and have the same qualifications for office as set forth in Section 4.3.

SECTION 4.8. Compensation. Board members shall, as determined by resolution of the Board, receive a fixed sum for each day or portion thereof spent on Cooperative business, such as attendance at meetings, conferences, and training programs or performing committee assignments when authorized by the Board. If authorized by the Board, Board members may also be reimbursed for expenses actually and necessarily incurred in carrying out such Cooperative business or granted a reasonable per diem allowance by the Board in lieu of detailed accounting for some of these expenses. Board members, who elect to participate, may be extended various forms of liability and accident insurance as well as participation in benefits provided to employees except for benefits based on salary. No Board member shall receive compensation for serving the Cooperative in any other capacity, nor shall any close relative of a Board member receive compensation for serving the Cooperative, unless the payment and amount of compensation shall be specifically authorized by a vote of the members of the service by the Board member or his close relative shall have been certified by the Board as an emergency measure. For purpose of this section, close relative includes grandparents, parents, husband, wife, children, grandchildren, brothers, sisters, aunts, uncles, nephews and nieces, by blood, by marriage or by adoption, and spouses of any of the foregoing.

This by-law provision shall not apply to an employee who marries a close relative of a Trustee who does not live in the household of the Trustee.

The Cooperative shall adopt a written policy which will govern the application in practice of this by-law section to assure no employee will suffer unjust or unreasonable discrimination because of marital status.

SECTION 4.9. Rules, Regulations, Rate Schedules and Contracts. The Board of Trustees shall have power to make, adopt, amend, abolish, and promulgate such rules, regulations, rate classifications, rate schedules, contracts, security deposits and any other types of deposits, payments or charges, including contributions in aid of construction, not inconsistent with law or the Certificate of Incorporation or Bylaws, as it may deem advisable for the management, administration and regulation of the business and affairs of the Cooperative or, cause such to be submitted for any appropriate governmental regulatory approval. Further, the Board of Trustees may constitute itself into committees for the purpose of studying and making recommendations to the full Board in the course of its decisional processes.

SECTION 4.10. Accounting Systems and Reports. The Board of Trustees shall cause to be established and maintained a complete accounting system of the Cooperative’s financial operations and condition, and shall, after the close of each fiscal year, cause to be made a full, complete and independent audit of the Cooperative’s accounts, books and records reflecting financial operations during, and financial condition as of the end of, such year. A full and accurate summary of such audit reports shall be submitted to the members at or prior to the succeeding annual meeting of the members. The Board may authorize special audits, complete or partial, at any time and for any specified period of time.

ARTICLE V
MEETINGS OF THE BOARD

SECTION 5.1. Regular Meetings. A regular meeting of the Board shall be held without notice, immediately after, and at the same place as, the annual meeting of the members. A regular meeting of the Board shall also be held monthly at such time and place as designated by the Board. Such regular monthly meeting may be held without notice other than such resolution fixing the time and place thereof. A minimum of at least ten (10) regular meetings shall be held each year. Unless specifically prohibited by law, meetings, regular or special, may be conducted through the use of conference telephone or other communications equipment by means of which all persons participating in the meetings can communicate with each other. Such participation will constitute attendance and presence in person at the meeting of the persons so participating.

SECTION 5.2. Special Meetings. Special meetings of the Board may be called by the President or by any three (3) Board members, and it shall thereupon be the duty of the Secretary to cause notice of such meeting to be given as hereinafter provided. The President or Board members calling the meeting shall fix the time and place for the holding of the meeting.

SECTION 5.3. Notice of Board Meetings. Written notice of the time, place (or telecommunication conference event) and purpose of any special meeting of the Board shall be deemed to be delivered when deposited in the U.S. Mail, addressed to the Board member at his/her address as it appears on the records of the Cooperative, with first-class postage thereon prepaid, at least five (5) days before the date set for the meeting.

SECTION 5.4. Quorum. A majority of the Board shall constitute a quorum, provided, that if less than such majority of the Board is present at said meeting, a majority of the Board present may adjourn the meeting from time-to-time; and provided further, that the Secretary shall notify any absent Board members of the time and place of such adjourned meeting. The act of a majority of the Board members present and voting at which a quorum is present shall be the act of the Board, except as otherwise provided in these Bylaws or by the parliamentary procedure or special rules adopted by the Cooperative. Board members may not vote by proxy at regular or special Board meetings.

SECTION 5.5. Unanimous Consent in Writing. Unless otherwise prohibited by law, Board actions may be taken without a vote if unanimous consent of the Board is obtained in writing setting forth the action taken in detail and the document is signed by all Board members entitled to vote.

ARTICLE VI
OFFICERS

SECTION 6.1. Number and Titles. The officers of the Cooperative shall be a President, Vice President, Secretary, Treasurer, and such other officers as may be determined by the Board from time-to-time. The offices of Secretary and Treasurer may be held by the same person.

SECTION 6.2. Election and Term of Office. The officers shall be elected by ballot, if there is a contest, and if not, by voice vote or any other method designated by the person presiding. They shall be elected annually by and from the Board, at the meeting of the Board held immediately after the annual meeting of the members. If the election of officers shall not be held at such meeting, such election shall be held as soon thereafter as conveniently may be. Each officer shall hold office until the first meeting of the Board following the next succeeding annual meeting of the members, or until a successor shall have been elected and shall have qualified. Except as otherwise provided in these Bylaws, a vacancy in any office shall be filled by the Board for the unexpired portion of the term.

SECTION 6.3. Removal of Officers and Agents by the Board. Any officer or agent elected or appointed by the Board may be removed by the Board for cause related to position whenever in its judgment the best interest of the Cooperative will be served thereby. The officer against whom such charges have been brought shall be informed in writing of the charges at least ten (10) days prior to the Board meeting at which the charges are to be considered and shall have an opportunity at the meeting to be heard in person or by counsel and to present evidence in respect of the charges; and the person or persons bringing the charges against him/her shall have the same opportunity.

SECTION 6.4. President. The President shall:

(1)        Be the principal executive officer of the corporation and unless otherwise determined by the members of the Board, shall preside at all meetings of the members and the Board;

(2)        Sign any deeds, mortgages, deeds of trust, notes, bonds, contracts, or other instruments authorized by the Board to be executed, except in cases in which the signing and execution thereof shall be expressly delegated by the Board or by these Bylaws to some other officer or agent of the Cooperative, or shall be required by law to be otherwise signed or executed; and

(3)        In general perform all duties incident to the Office of President and such other duties as may be prescribed by the Board from time-to-time.

SECTION 6.5. Vice President. In the absence of the President, or in the event of his inability or refusal to act, the Vice President shall perform the duties of the President, and when so acting shall have all the powers of and be subject to all the restrictions upon the President. The Vice President shall also perform such other duties as from time-to-time may be assigned to him by the Board.

SECTION 6.6. Secretary. The Secretary shall be responsible for:

(1)        Keeping the minutes of the meetings of the members and of the Board in books prepared for that purpose;

(2)        Seeing that all notices are duly given in accordance with these Bylaws or as required by law;

(3)        The safekeeping of the corporate books and records and the Seal of the Cooperative and affixing the Seal of the Cooperative to all documents, the execution of which on behalf of the Cooperative under its seal is duly authorized in accordance with the provisions of these Bylaws;

(4)        Keeping a register of the names and post office addresses of all members.

(5)        Keeping on file at all times a complete copy of the Articles of Incorporation and Bylaws of the Cooperative containing all amendments thereto and at the expense of the Cooperative, furnishing a copy of these Bylaws and of all amendments thereto to each member; and

(6)        In general performing all duties incident to the Office of Secretary and such other duties as from time-to-time may be assigned to him by the Board.

SECTION 6.7. Treasurer. The Treasurer shall be responsible for:

(1)        Custody of all funds and securities of the Cooperative;

(2)        The receipt of and the issuance of receipts for all monies due and payable to the Cooperative and for the deposit of all such monies in the name of the Cooperative in such bank or banks as shall be selected in accordance with the provisions of these Bylaws; provided, however, that the Treasurer shall have authority, with the approval of the Board, to delegate to the General Manager the authority to appoint employees of the Cooperative to actually carry out the responsibilities set forth in this Section; and

(3)        The general performance of all the duties incident to the Office of Treasurer and such other duties as from time-to-time may be assigned to him by the Board; provided, however, with respect to the duties and responsibilities of the Treasurer, the Cooperative shall indemnify and hold the Treasurer harmless against any and all losses, claims and/or damages which may be asserted against the Treasurer, in his official capacity, unless such claim is a result of an act personally committed or omitted by the Treasurer resulting in loss to the Cooperative.

SECTION 6.8. General Manager. The Board shall appoint a General Manager, who may be, but who shall not be required to be, a member of the Cooperative. The General Manager shall perform such duties as the Board may from time-to-time require and shall have authority as the Board may from time-to-time vest in him.

SECTION 6.9. Bonds. The Board shall require the Treasurer and any other officer, agent or employee of the Cooperative charged with responsibility for the custody of any of its funds or property to give bond in such sum and with such surety as the Board shall determine. The Board in its discretion may also require any other officer, agent or employee of the Cooperative to give bond in such amount and with such surety as it shall determine. The costs of all such bonds shall be borne to the Cooperative.

SECTION 6.10. Compensation. The powers, duties and compensation of officers, agents and employees shall be fixed or approved by the Board, subject to the provisions of these Bylaws with respect to compensation for close relatives of Trustees.

SECTION 6.11. Reports. The officers of the Cooperative shall submit at each annual meeting of the members reports covering the business of the Cooperative for the previous fiscal year. Such reports shall set forth the condition of the Cooperative at the close of such fiscal year.

ARTICLE VII
INDEMNIFICATION OF OFFICERS, BOARD MEMBERS,
EMPLOYEES AND AGENTS

SECTION 7.1. Scope of Indemnification. The Cooperative shall indemnify any person who was or is a party, or is threatened to be made a party to any threatened, pending, or completed action, suit or proceeding, whether civil, criminal, administrative or investigative (other than an action by, or in the right of the Cooperative) by reason of the fact that such person is or was a Board member, officer, employee or agent of the Cooperative or who is or was serving at the request of the Cooperative as a Board member, officer, employee or agent of another cooperative, association, corporation, partnership, joint venture, trust or other enterprise, against expenses (including attorney’s fees) adjustments, fines and amount paid in settlement actually and reasonably incurred by such person in connection with such action, suit or proceeding; provided such person acted in good faith and in a manner such person reasonably believed to be in, or not opposed to, the best interests of the Cooperative, and, with respect to any criminal action or proceeding, had no reasonable cause to believe the conduct of such person was unlawful. The termination of any action, suit or proceeding by judgment, order, settlement, conviction, or upon pleas of nolo contendere or its equivalent, shall not, of itself, create a presumption that the person did not act in good faith and in a manner which such person reasonably believed to be in, or not opposed to, the best interests of the Cooperative, and, with respect to any criminal action or proceeding, had reasonable cause to believe that the conduct of such person was unlawful.

SECTION 7.2. Indemnification for Good Faith Action. The Cooperative shall indemnify any person who was or is a party, or is threatened to be made a party to, any threatened, pending or completed action or suit by, or in the right of, the Cooperative to procure a judgment in its favor by reason of the fact that such person is, or was, a Board member, officer, employee or agent of the Cooperative, or is, or was, serving at the request of the Cooperative as a Board member, officer, employee or agent of another cooperative, association, corporation, partnership, joint venture, trust or other enterprise, against expenses (including attorney’s fees) actually and reasonably incurred by such person in connection with the defense or settlement of such action or suit, if such person acted in good faith, and in a manner such person reasonably believed to be in or not opposed to the best interests of the Cooperative.

No indemnification shall be made in respect to any claim, issue or matter as to which such person shall have been adjudged to be liable for negligence or misconduct in the performance of the duty of such person to the Cooperative, unless, and only to the extent that the Court in which such action or suit was brought shall determine upon application that, despite the adjudication of liability, by in view of all the circumstances of the case, such person is fairly and reasonably entitled to indemnity of such expenses as the court shall deem proper.

SECTION 7.3. Cost of Defense Indemnified. To the extent that a Board member, officer, employee or agent of the Cooperative has been successful, on the merits or otherwise, in the defense of any action, suit or proceeding referred to in Sections 7.1 and 7.2, in defense of any claim, issue or matter therein, such person shall be indemnified against expenses (including attorney’s fees) actually and reasonably incurred by such person in connection therewith.

SECTION 7.4. Amount of Indemnification. Any indemnifications under Sections 7.1 and 7.2 (unless ordered by a court) shall be made by the Cooperative only as authorized in the specific case, upon a determination that indemnification of the Board member, officer, employee or agent is proper in the circumstances because such person has met the applicable standard of conduct set forth in Sections 7.1 and 7.2. Such determination shall be made:

(1)        By the Board by a majority vote of a quorum consisting of Board members who were not parties to such action, suit or proceedings; or

(2)        If such a quorum is not obtainable, or even if obtainable, if a quorum of disinterested Board members so directs, by independent legal counsel in a written opinion; or

(3)        By the members.

SECTION 7.5. Expenses Advanced. Expenses incurred in defending a civil or criminal action, suit or proceeding may be paid by the Cooperative in advance of the final disposition of such action, suit or proceeding, as authorized by the Board in the specific case, upon receipt of a firm commitment by or on behalf of the Board member, officer, employee or agent to repay such amount, unless it shall ultimately be determined that he/she is entitled to be indemnified by the Cooperative as authorized in this Article.

SECTION 7.6. Rights of Person Indemnified. The indemnification provided by this Article shall not be deemed exclusive of any other rights to which those seeking indemnification may be entitled under any bylaw, agreement, vote of members or disinterested Board members, or otherwise, both as to action in his official capacity and as to action in another capacity while holding such office, and shall continue as to a person who has ceased to be a Board member, officer, employee or agent, and shall inure to the benefit of the heirs, executors and administrators of such a person.

SECTION 7.7. Insurance Coverage. The Cooperative may purchase and maintain insurance on behalf of any person who is or was a Board member, officer, employee or agent of the Cooperative, or who is or was serving at the request of the Cooperative as a Board member, officer, employee or agent of another cooperative, association, corporation, partnership, joint venture, trust or other enterprise, against any liability asserted against such person and incurred by such person in any such capacity, or arising out of the status of each person as such, whether or not the Cooperative would have the power to indemnify such person against such liability under the provisions of this Article.

ARTICLE VIII
NON-PROFIT OPERATION

SECTION 8.1. Interest of Dividends on Capital Prohibited. The Cooperative shall at all times be operated on a cooperative non-profit basis for the mutual benefit of its patrons. No interest or dividends shall be paid or payable by the Cooperative on any capital furnished by its patrons.

SECTION 8.2. Patronage Capital in Connection with Furnishing Telecommunications and Information Services. In the furnishing of telecommunications and information services, the Cooperative’s operations shall be so conducted that all patrons will through their patronage furnish capital for the Cooperative. In order to induce patronage and to insure that the Cooperative will be operated on a non-profit basis, the Cooperative is obligated to account on a patronage basis to all its patrons for all amounts received and receivable from the furnishing of telecommunications and information services in excess of operating costs and expenses properly chargeable against the furnishing of such services. All such amounts in excess of operating costs and expenses at the moment of receipt by the Cooperative are received with the understanding that they are furnished by the patrons as capital. The Cooperative is obligated to pay by credits to a capital account for each patron all such amounts in excess of operating costs and expenses. The books and records of the Cooperative shall be set up and kept in such manner that at the end of each fiscal year the amount of capital, if any, so furnished by each patron is clearly reflected and credited in an appropriate record to the capital account of each patron, and the Cooperative shall within a reasonable time after the close of the fiscal year notify each patron of the amount of capital so credited to his account; provided that individual notice of such amounts furnished by each patron shall not be required if the Cooperative notified all patrons of the aggregate amount of such excess and provides a clear explanation of how each patron may compute and determine for himself or herself the specific amounts of capital so credited to him or her. All such amounts credited to the capital account of any patron shall have the same status as though it has been paid to the patron in cash in pursuance of a legal obligation to do so and the patron had then furnished the Cooperation corresponding amounts for capital.

All other non-operating income received by the Cooperative from its operations in excess of costs and expenses shall, insofar as permitted by law, be:

(1)        Used to offset any losses incurred during the current or any prior fiscal year, and

(2)        To the extend not needed for that purpose, allocated to its patrons on a patronage basis and any amount so allocated shall be included as part of the capital to be allocated to the accounts of the various classes of patrons in an equitable manner as approved by the Board.

In the event of dissolution or liquidation of the Cooperative, after all outstanding indebtedness of the Cooperative shall have been paid, outstanding capital credits shall be retired without priority on a pro rata basis before any payments are made on account of property rights of members. If, at any time prior to dissolution or liquidation, the Board shall determine that the financial condition of the Cooperative will not be impaired thereby, the capital then credited to patrons’ accounts may be retired in full or in part. Any such retirements of capital shall be at the discretion and direction of the Board as to timing, method and type of retirement.

Capital credited to the account of each patron shall be assignable only on the books of the Cooperative, pursuant to written instruction from the assignor and only to successors in interest or successors in occupancy in all or in a part of such patrons’ premises served by the Cooperative unless the Board, acting under policies of general application, and the legal representation of such patron’s estate shall agree upon; provided, however, that the financial condition of the Cooperative will not be impaired thereby.

When the capital credits of any patron no longer receiving service from the Cooperative comes to a total amount less than a fixed sum determined by the Board of Trustees, the same shall be retired in full with such retirements made only when and at the same time that a general retirement to other patrons is made. During a general capital credit retirement, no checks shall be issued for less than a fixed amount determined by the Board, and the amount of such unretired capital credits will be retired in the first following year when the total amount of capital credits qualifying for retirement exceeds that amount set by the Board, including the amount carried over. All tax refunds made by the United States Government or any of the states in connection with the final or true cost of service as determined by the capital credits allocation process may be held and used by the Cooperative as furnished patronage capital and shall be treated in the same manner as furnished capital set out in this Section of these Bylaws.

The patrons of the Cooperative, by dealing with the Cooperative, acknowledge that the terms and provisions of the Articles of Incorporation and Bylaws shall constitute and be a contract both between the Cooperative and each patron, and further, between all the patrons themselves individually. Both the Cooperative and the patrons are bound by such contract, as fully as though each patron had individually signed a separate instrument containing such terms and provisions with the Cooperative and each of its patrons. The provisions of this Article of the Bylaws shall be called to the attention of each patron of the Cooperative by posting in a conspicuous place in the Cooperative’s office or by publication distributed by the Cooperative to its patrons.

SECTION 8.3. Patronage Capital in Connection with Furnishing Other Services. In the event that the Cooperative should engage in the business of furnishing goods or services other than telecommunications and information services, all amounts received and receivable therefrom which are in excess of costs and expenses properly chargeable against the furnishing of such goods or services shall, insofar as permitted by law, be prorated annually on a patronage basis and returned to those patrons from whom such amounts were obtained at such time and in such order of priority as the Board shall determine.

ARTICLE IX
DISPOSITION AND PLEDGING OF PROPERTY
DISSOLUTION AND DISTRIBUTION OF SURPLUS ASSETS
UPON DISSOLUTION

The Cooperative may not sell, mortgage, lease, or otherwise dispose of or encumber all or any substantial portion of its property unless such sale, mortgage, lease, or other disposition or encumbrance is authorized at a meeting of the members thereof by the affirmative vote of not less than seventy-five percent (75%) of all members of the Cooperative, and unless the notice of such proposed sale, mortgage, lease, or other disposition or encumbrance shall have been contained in the notice of the meeting; provided, however, that notwithstanding anything herein contained, the Board of the Cooperative without authorization by the members thereof, shall have full power and authority to authorize the execution and delivery of a mortgage or mortgages or a deed or deeds of trust upon, or the pledging or encumbering of, any or all of the property, assets, rights, privileges, licenses, franchises, and permits of the Cooperative, whether acquired or to be acquired, and wherever situated, as well as the revenues and income therefrom, all upon such terms and conditions as the Board shall determine, to secure any indebtedness of the Cooperative to the United States of America or any instrumentality or agency thereof provided further that the Board may upon the authorization of a majority of those members of the Cooperative present at a meeting of the members thereof, sell, lease, or otherwise dispose of all or a substantial portion of its property to another Cooperative or foreign corporation doing business in this State pursuant to the Act under which this Cooperative is incorporated.

ARTICLE X
SEAL 

The Corporate Seal of the Cooperative shall be in the form of a circle and shall have inscribed thereon the name of the Cooperative and the words, “Corporate Seal”.

ARTICLE XI
FINANCIAL TRANSACTIONS

SECTION 11.1. Contracts. Except as otherwise provided in these Bylaws, the Board may authorize any officer or officers, agent or agents, to enter into any contract or execute and deliver any instrument in the name and on behalf of the Cooperative and such authority may be general or confined to specific instances.

SECTION 11.2. Checks, Drafts, Etc. All checks, drafts, or other orders for the payment of money, and all notes, bonds, or other evidences of indebtedness issued in the name of the Cooperative shall be signed by such officer or officers, agent or agents, employee or employees of the Cooperative and in such manner, as shall from time-to-time be determined by resolution of the Board.

SECTION 11.3. Deposits. All the funds of the Cooperative shall be deposited from time-to-time to the credit of the Cooperative in such institutions as the Board may select.

ARTICLE XII
MISCELLANEOUS

SECTION 12.1. Membership in Other Organizations. The Cooperative may become a member or purchase stock in other profit or nonprofit organizations, associations, partnerships or joint ventures when the Board finds that the general or long-term interests of its membership will be served by such investments or participation.

SECTION 12.2. Waiver of Notice. Any member or trustee may waive in writing any notice of a meeting required to be given by these Bylaws. The attendance of a member or Trustee at any meeting shall constitute a waiver of notice of such meeting by such member or Trustee, except in a case member or Trustee shall attend a meeting for the express purpose of objecting to the transaction of any business on the grounds that the meeting has not been lawfully called or convened.

SECTION 12.3. Rules and Regulations. The Board shall have power to make and adopt such rules and regulations, not inconsistent with law, the Articles of Incorporation or these Bylaws, as it may deem advisable for the management of the business and the affairs of the Cooperative.

ARTICLE XIII
AMENDMENTS

These Bylaws may be altered, amended or repeated by the affirmative vote of not less than a majority of the Trustees in office, at any regular or special Board meeting, but only if the notice of such meeting shall have contained a copy of the proposed alteration, amendment or repeal, or an accurate summary explanation thereof; provided, however, that the provisions of Section 9 relating to a major disposition of the Cooperative’s property and relating to the dissolution of the Cooperative, and Section 3.7 of Article III relating to voting by members, may be altered, amended or repealed only by the affirmative vote of not less than two-thirds (2/3) of all current members of the Cooperative voting in person and without proxies.

Amended: February 15, 1999

As a residential customer of a regulated public utility in Kentucky, you are guaranteed the following rights subject to Kentucky Revised Statutes and the provisions of the Kentucky Public Service Commission Administrative Regulations.

• You have the right to service, provided you (or a member of your household whose debt was accumulated at your address) are not indebted to the utility.
• You have the right to inspect and review the utility’s rates and tariffed operating procedures during the utility’s normal office hours.
• You have the right to be present at any routine utility inspection of your service conditions.
• You must be provided a separate, distinct disconnect notice alerting you to a possible disconnection of your service if payment is not received.
• You have the right to dispute the reasons for any announced termination of your service.
• You have the right to negotiate a partial payment plan when your service is threatened by disconnection for non-payment.
• You have the right to participate in equal, budget payment plans for your natural gas and electric service.
• You have the right to maintain your utility service for up to thirty (30) days upon presentation of a medical certificate issued by a health official.
• You have the right to prompt twenty-four (24) hour restoration of service or close of the next business day, whichever is later, and shall install and connect new service within seventy-two (72) hours, or close of the next business day, whichever is later, if the cause for refusal or discontinuance of service has been corrected and the utility’s tariffed rules and 807 KAR Chapter have been met.
• If you have not been disconnected, you have the right to maintain your natural gas and electric service for up to thirty (30) days if you present a Certificate of Need issued by the Kentucky Cabinet for Human Resources between November and the end of March.
• If you have been disconnected due to nonpayment, you have the right to have your natural gas or electric service reconnected between the months of November through March provided you:

1. 1. Present a Certificate of Need issued by the Kentucky Cabinet of Human Resources and
   2. Pay one third (1/3) of your outstanding bill ($200 maximum), and
   3. Accept referral to the Human Resources’ Weatherization Program, and
   4. Agree to a repayment schedule that will cause your bill to become current by October 15.

• You have the right to contact the Public Service commission regarding any dispute that you have been unable to resolve with your utility (Call Toll Free 1-800-772-4636).

The Customer Bill of Rights is referenced in 807 KAR 5:006 Section 14 (1) (c) 1.

Foothills Communications is compliant with FCC rules and regulations implemented pursuant to Section 222 of the Communications Act of 1934, as Amended, regarding the collection, access, use, disclosure or distribution of Customer Proprietary Network Information (“CPNI”), as well as regarding customer privacy safeguards with respect to CPNI. Foothills Communications makes an annual CPNI certification filing with the FCC and has adopted CPNI policies and procedures for training employees, agents and independent contractors, as well as for addressing and reporting any such violations.

CPNI is defined in Section 222(f) of the Communications Act as (A) information that relates to the quantity, technical configuration, type, destination, and amount of use of a telecommunications service subscribed to by any customer of a wireline or wireless telecommunications carrier, and that is made available to the carrier by the customer solely by virtue of the carrier-customer relationship; and (B) information contained in the bills pertaining to telephone exchange service or telephone toll service received by a customer of a carrier (except that CPNI does not include subscriber list information). Generally, CPNI includes personal information regarding a consumer’s use of his or her wireline and/or wireless telecommunications services. CPNI encompasses information such as: (a) the telephone numbers called by a customer; (b) the frequency, duration and timing of a customer’s phone calls, and (c) the telecommunications and information services purchased by a customer (including, but not limited to, local exchange, toll, cellular, paging, data transmission, call waiting, call forwarding, call blocking, Primary Interexchange Carrier (PIC) freeze, three-way calling, conference calling, voice mail, Internet access, call back, caller identification, call trace and toll denial services).

It is the official policy of Foothills Communications that all access, use, disclosure or distribution of Customer Proprietary Network Information (“CPNI”) be in accordance with the customer privacy safeguards and CPNI regulations set forth in the Communications Act and the Federal Communications Commission (“FCC”) Rules, and that all Foothills Communication’s employees, agents and independent contractors who handle the customers’ CPNI are aware of these customer privacy safeguards and CPNI regulations, and comply with them fully.

In operating the Services, Foothills Communications may act as a “services provider” under the DMCA and offer services as an online provider of materials and links to third party websites. As a result, third party materials that are not owned or controlled by Foothills Communications may be transmitted, stored, accessed or otherwise made available using the Service. You agree to notify Foothills Communications if and to the extent any situation arises wherein you believe any material available through the Service infringes a copyright. Any claimant must notify Foothills Communications using the notice procedure for claimed infringement under the DMCA and provide the following:

If you believe that your work has been copied and has been posted, stored or transmitted to Foothills Communication’s website in a way that constitutes copyright infringement, please submit a notification pursuant to the DMCA by providing Foothills Communication’s designated agent the following written information: (i) an electronic or physical signature of the person authorized to act on behalf of the owner of the copyright interest; (ii) a description of the copyrighted work that you claim has been infringed upon; (iii) a specific description of where the material that you claim is infringing is located on the website; (iv) your address, telephone number, and email address; (v) a statement by you that you have a good-faith belief that the disputed use is not authorized by the copyright owner, its agent, or the law; and (vi) a statement by you, made under penalty of perjury, that the above information in your notice is accurate and that you are the copyright owner or authorized to act on the copyright owner’s behalf.

Foothills Communication’s designated agent (the proper party for notice) to whom any copyright owner should address infringement notices under the DMCA:

Foothills Communications
Designated Agent
1621 Kentucky Route 40 West
Staffordsville, KY 41256
888-262-3782

Foothills Communications will respond expeditiously to remove or disable access to material Foothills Communications determines may be infringing and will follow the procedures specified in the DMCA to resolve the claim between the notifying party and the alleged infringing party who provided the applicable content.

Foothills Communications also has no obligation to monitor its Services, but may do so and disclose information regarding use of the Services for any reason if Foothills Communications, in its sole discretion, believes that it is reasonable to do so, including, without limitation, to: (i) satisfy laws, regulations, or governmental or legal requests, (ii) operate the Services properly, or (iii) protect itself and its customers and users. Foothills Communications may immediately remove material or information from Foothills Communication’s servers, in whole or in part, which Foothills Communications, in its sole and absolute discretion, determines to infringe another’s property rights or to violate the AUP.

To the extent any of your Services from Foothills Communications include wireless access, wireless systems use radio channels to transmit voice and data communications over a network, and privacy cannot be guaranteed. We are not liable to Customer or any other party for any lack of privacy resulting from using any wireless services of Foothills Communications. Customer acknowledges that wireless service is inherently not secure and that wireless communications can be intercepted by equipment and software designed for that purpose. Notwithstanding efforts to enhance security with respect to the Service, Foothills Communications cannot guarantee the effectiveness of these efforts and will not be liable to Customer or any other party for any lack of security that may result from use of the Service. Customer acknowledges that Customer is responsible for taking such precautions and providing such security measures best suited for Customer’s situation and intended use of the Service. Foothills Communications strongly encourages Customer to obtain security solutions, such as virtual private networks, encryption and personal firewalls, as more fully described at https://www.foothills.net.

Miscellaneous. You acknowledge and agree that this Agreement, together with all other terms and conditions incorporated herein, constitutes the entire agreement of the parties for the provision and use of the Services and the complete and exclusive statement of the terms agreed upon, all prior agreements and understandings being merged herein. Neither this Agreement nor any interest herein of Customer may be assigned, sublet, or in any manner transferred by Customer without the prior, written consent of Foothills Communications, which consent may be withheld in Foothills Communication’s sole discretion. Any attempted assignment or transfer in contravention of the preceding sentence shall be void. A waiver by Foothills Communications of any terms herein shall not be construed as a waiver of any subsequent breach of this Agreement. This Agreement shall be governed by the laws of the State of Kentucky without regard to choice of law principles. No amendments or modifications to this Agreement shall be effective or binding against Foothills Communications unless expressly agreed to in writing by an authorized representative of Foothills Communications. In the event any one or more of the provisions contained in this Agreement shall be invalid, illegal or unenforceable in any respect under any applicable statute or rule of law, then such provisions shall be deemed inoperative to the extent that they are invalid, illegal or unenforceable, and the remainder of this Agreement shall continue in full force and effect. Any invalid, illegal or unenforceable provisions shall be reformed and modified so that they express the original intent of the parties hereto as closely as reasonably practicable without being invalid, illegal or unenforceable.

Purpose

The purpose of this document is to establish guidelines for Foothills Communications and Foothills Connect (the Company) for displaying, documenting and archiving Broadband Consumer Labels in accordance with FCC requirements.

Definitions

Broadband Consumer Label – The Broadband Consumer Label (Label or Labels) is a “nutrition type label” that provides clear, easy-to-understand accurate information on stand-alone internet services. Labels must include the following: monthly price, introductory rate, length of contract, one-time fees, early termination fees, typical download speed, typical upload speed, typical

latency, data included with monthly price, network management policy, privacy policy, customer support phone number and website. Labels are intended to help consumers comparison shop for the internet service plan that will best meet their needs and budget.

Point of Sale – The provider’s website and any alternate sales channels through which the provider’s broadband internet is sold, including a provider-owned location, third-party retail location and over the phone. The Point of Sale also means the time a consumer begins investigating and comparing broadband service offerings available to them at their location.

Online Account Portal – An online portal where customers can access their account information, current and previous billing statements, specific service offerings, account notifications, etc.

Alternate Sales Channel – A Point of Sale other than a website through which internet service is sold, including a retail office and over the phone.

Procedure

The Labels must be displayed on the company website in close proximity to the advertised broadband service plan and on the consumer Online Account Portal, also known as the eBill site. Displaying the Labels close to the advertised internet service plans will allow customers to more easily make a side-by-side comparison of the available options. The Labels must be made available at all Points of Sale including Alternate Sales Channels such as in retail locations and over the phone. Labels will be accessible to people with disabilities at all Points of Sale. Machine readable Labels will be available on the company website via a link in the Network Management Policy.

Employees will use one or more of the following procedures to distribute the Labels at retail locations:

1. Direct the customer on their device to the specific web page where the Labels appear on the company website.
2. Email the customer a link to the specific web page where the Labels appear on the company website.
3. Provide the customer a printed copy of the Labels.

Employees will use one or more of the following procedures to distribute the Labels over the phone:

1. Direct the customer on their device to the specific web page where the Labels appear on the company website
2. Email the customer a link to the specific web page where the Labels appear on the company website
3. Read the Labels in their entirety verbally to the customer, unless the customer requests otherwise
4. Mail the customer a printed copy of the Labels

Access to Labels via the Online Account Portal (eBill):

Online accounts will be offered to all customers to provide easy access to the Label for their existing internet service plan. The customer will be able to easily access and review the terms of their existing plan to ensure they are receiving the service and price they agreed upon at the time of purchase.

Training

Training will be given to all employees who could be at the Point of Sale. Training will include information to help employees understand the Labels and the Company’s established business practices and processes to follow in distributing the Labels to customers.

Recordkeeping

Labels for plans that are no longer available for purchase by new customers will be removed from all Points of Sale and archived for two years. Such Labels will be provided to existing customers in those plans upon request within 30 days.

As an alternative to documenting each customer Label interaction, the Company has established business practices and processes to follow in distributing the Labels through Alternate Sales Channels; will archive training materials, policies, performance testing data and related business practice documentation for two years; and will provide such information to the Federal Communications Commission upon request, within 30 days.

Internet Services

Foothills Communications, d/b/a foothills.net (“Foothills”) offers our customers Internet Services (the “Service” or “Services”) subject to these terms and conditions(the “Agreement”). For purposes of this Agreement, “you,” “your,” “Customer,” and “Member” refer to the person purchasing the Services. “We,” “our,” and “us” refer to Foothills Communications.

Activation, Cancellation or Modification. Services can be ordered, cancelled or modified by calling our Foothills Communications office at 888-262-3782. In some cases we may be able to assist you remotely over the phone or via the Internet by computer in accordance with our fee schedules. Fees apply in accordance with our fee schedules for any work performed. Certain of our fee schedules may be listed on our website at www.foothills.net and are subject to change without notice. Any fees will be added to your bill if you are a current customer of Foothills Communications, and payment will be due in the same manner as payment for other Foothills Communications services. Cancellation will be effective as of the end of the month in which notice is received, and you will remain liable for Service charges for that month. Requests for upgrades to the Services which are accepted will take effect at the beginning of the next month following receipt of the upgrade request. Requested downgrades to the Services will be subject to standard installation charges, if any.

By enrolling in, activating, using, or paying for the Services, you agree to the terms and conditions in this Agreement, including but not limited to the prices, charges, and terms and conditions provided to you in marketing and informational materials associated with the Services and on the Foothills Communications website, www.foothills.net, as amended, all of which are incorporated herein by reference. If you do not agree to all of the aforementioned terms and conditions, do not use the Services, and cancel the Services immediately by calling Foothills Communications at the phone numbers listed above.

All use of the Services, whether or not authorized by you, shall be deemed your use. You are responsible for ensuring that all use of the Services complies with this Agreement.

Modification of Agreement. This Agreement may be updated or changed by us from time to time. You can review the most current version of the Agreement at any time at: www.foothills.net. If Foothills Communications makes a change to the Agreement and that change has a material impact on the Services, you will be provided notice of that change by contact to your current mail or email address in the records of Foothills Communications. You agree to periodically visit the aforementioned website to review any such changes. Your continued use of the Services following the sending of such notice by Foothills Communications, or the expiration of thirty (30) days following posting of the change on the Foothills Communications website, whichever occurs first, constitutes your acceptance of such changes.

Subscription for Services. Each Customer elects to subscribe to the Services for the Minimum Service Term set forth on the Customer’s enrollment form or other subscription document commencing from the date of acceptance by Foothills Communications and installation, as applicable. If no Minimum Service Term is selected for the applicable Service, then the Minimum Service Term shall be one month from the date of commencement of Service.

You agree that, should you terminate any Service prior to payment of all applicable amounts and/or fulfillment of the Minimum Service Term commitment, you will be liable for, and agree to immediately pay, any applicable amount for the following items which are not paid in full at the time of termination: (i) activation fee, (ii) installation fee, and/or (iii) equipment charge. Additionally, by accepting the Service and terminating Service prior to expiration of the Minimum Service Term, you agree to pay a reimbursement of the total reductions, discounts and promotional offerings accepted by you in connection with your agreement to accept Services. You acknowledge that these charges and fees are in addition to any other normally billed amounts that may be owed at the time of termination.

You agree that the following terms and restrictions apply to the Services:

(i) Foothills Communications does not provide, and is not responsible for Customer equipment and software used by you in connection with use of the Services (unless otherwise noted). You are responsible for all such equipment, software and any data thereon without responsibility or liability of Foothills Communications;

(ii) You are responsible for the following charges (to the extent applicable): all city, state, and federal taxes and other required charges on the Services;

(iii) You acknowledge that the Services will not function in the event of an Internet Protocol (“IP”) network interruption;

(iv) You further acknowledge that the listed speeds for any Service offering may not be available due to geographical and/or a number of other factors. Speed is not guaranteed unless stated so as part of the terms for service. Actual data transfer or “throughput” may be lower than sync-rate due to Internet congestion or configuration, server or router speeds, protocol overheads, signal strength or other factors which cannot be controlled by Foothills Communications, and

(v) The specific rates and charges for the Services are set forth on Foothills Communications’s price list.

Pricing Changes. Foothills Communications reserves the right where allowed by regulation to change pricing for its Services at any time without notice to you; provided that Foothills Communications will not change the basic rate for ordered Services during the Minimum Service Term commitment period applicable to you. Following expiration of a Minimum Service Term commitment, or upon any payment default by you, Foothills Communications may adjust the rates for Services to reflect any pricing increases made by Foothills Communications for the applicable Services.

Payment. Payment of each invoice for the Services is due in full, without deduction or offset, within fifteen (15) days of the invoice date at the invoice address for payment. A late fee of $15.00 will be applied to unpaid accounts twenty-two (22) days from the date of invoice. Accounts unpaid twenty-eight (28) days after the date of invoice may have their service interrupted. You agree to pay interest on any amounts past due at the rate of 1 1/2% per month (or the maximum amount required by law, whichever is less). You also agree that Foothills Communications may suspend and/or terminate the Services if any amounts due Foothills Communications are not paid by their due date. Foothills Communications may assign unpaid late balances to a collection agency for appropriate action. In the event legal action is necessary to collect on balances due, you agree to reimburse Foothills Communications for all expenses incurred to recover sums due, including attorneys’ fees and other legal expenses. You will be charged a $25.00 fee for any check or other instrument (including credit card charge backs) tendered by you and returned unpaid by a financial institution for any reason.

Any loss of Services caused by the action or inaction of the Customer, or by a defect or failure of Customer equipment, will not suspend Customer’s obligations to pay for the Services, and Customer shall remain liable for all applicable charges.

Credit Card and Credit Reporting Authorization. You may be asked to provide us with a valid email address and a credit card number from a card issuer that we accept in order to activate your Services. You hereby authorize Foothills Communications to charge and/or place a hold on your credit card with respect to any unpaid charges related to the Services. You authorize the issuer of the credit card to pay any amounts described herein without requiring a signed receipt, and you agree that this Agreement is to be accepted as authorization to the issuer of the credit card to pay all such amounts. You authorize Foothills Communications and/or any other company who bills for products or services or acts as billing agent for Foothills Communications to continue to attempt to charge and/or place holds on your credit card with respect to all sums described herein, or any portion thereof, until such amounts are paid in full.

You agree to provide Foothills Communications with updated credit card information upon Foothills Communications’s request and any time the information you previously provided is no longer valid. You are solely responsible for maintaining and updating the credit card information. Without limiting the applicability of any other provisions of this Agreement, you acknowledge and agree that neither Foothills Communications nor any Foothills Communications affiliated company will have any liability whatsoever for any non-sufficient funds or other charges incurred by you as a result of such attempts to charge, and/or place holds on, your credit card. If you mistakenly provide a debit card number, instead of a credit card number, you authorize all charges described herein to be applied to such debit card unless and until you provide a credit card number. In the event you are enrolled, or later enroll, in an automatic payment or electronic funds transfer plan, you agree that all sums described herein may be charged, at Foothills Communications’s option, to the account number provided for such automatic payment or electronic funds transfer plan.

To the fullest extent permitted by applicable law, you authorize Foothills Communications to disclose your account information, including your payment history and confidential information, to credit reporting agencies or private credit reporting associations, and periodically obtain and use your credit report and other credit information from credit reporting agencies, private credit reporting associations and other sources in connection with Foothills Communications’s offering of the Services. You understand that if you fail to fulfill the terms of your obligations to Foothills Communications, Foothills Communications may report your failure to credit reporting agencies as well as pursue Foothills Communications’s other rights and remedies.

Advances or Deposits. We may require you to make deposits or advance payments for Services, which we may use to satisfy your initial bill for Services, to offset against any unpaid balance on your account, or as otherwise set forth in this Agreement or permitted by law. Interest will not be paid on advance payments or deposits unless required by law. We may require additional advance payments or deposits if we determine that the initial payment was inadequate. Based on your creditworthiness or for other reasons, we may establish limits and restrict service or features as we deem appropriate. If your account balance goes beyond the limit we set for you, we may immediately interrupt or suspend service until your balance is brought below the limit. Any charges you incur in excess of your limit become immediately due. Upon determination solely by Foothills Communications of satisfactory payment history or as required by law, Foothills Communications may begin refunding of the deposit or advance payment through bill credits, cash payments, or as otherwise determined solely by Foothills Communications or as required by law.

Access to Premises. You will provide Foothills Communications with reasonable access to your premises in order to install, maintain, and repair the Services, and you authorize any other adult resident or guest at your residence to grant access to your premises for these purposes. You understand and agree that Foothills Communications may drill, cut, and otherwise alter improvements on the premises. If you do not own your premises, you warrant that you have obtained permission from any necessary party, including but not limited to the owner, landlord, or building manager, to make alterations Foothills Communications deems appropriate for the work to be performed. You acknowledge that Foothills Communications may use existing wiring, including altering the wiring and removing accessories, located within your premises.

You agree that the installation, inspection, maintenance, repair, and/or removal of any equipment could result in service outages or potential damage to your equipment, computers, computer network and/or the contents thereof and/or the loss of any recorded programming. Accordingly, you agree that you are solely responsible for providing any needed back-up for your information and data or programming and that in no event will Foothills Communications or any of its employees, agents, contractors, or business associates be liable for any loss of data or programming or damage to your equipment, computers, computer network and/or the contents thereof.

You will be responsible for payment of service charges for visits by Foothills Communications or its subcontractors to your premises when a service request results from causes not attributable to Foothills Communications or its subcontractors.

Foothills Communications Equipment. Unless expressly identified as being sold to Customer, title to all hardware and/or software provided by Foothills Communications in connection with this Agreement (the “Equipment”) shall remain with Foothills Communications. Foothills Communication’s repair and maintenance obligations as to its Equipment are limited solely to ordinary wear and tear and shall not include maintenance and repair necessary as a result of any other cause, including without limitation, vandalism or intentional or negligent acts or omissions by the Customer or third parties. Maintenance and repairs related to such causes are the Customer’s sole responsibility and liability. The Customer shall provide appropriate space, power and environment for, and take reasonable care of, the Equipment. Customer agrees not to damage or misuse the Equipment. Unless expressly agreed to in writing, the Customer will be solely responsible and liable for connection of the Customer’s computers and other equipment to the Equipment. The Customer will at all times be solely responsible and liable for the maintenance and repair of Customer’s computers and Customer’s other equipment. Customer shall return to Foothills Communications all Equipment within thirty (30) days following the expiration, cancellation or termination of this Agreement, or Foothills Communications will charge the Customer the un-depreciated list price of the unreturned Equipment in addition to all applicable late return fees.

Password Security. Upon Foothills Communication’s acceptance of Customer’s registration for certain Services, Foothills Communications may provide Customer with a username, password and user identification number. Customer and members of Customer’s household are the only authorized users of the account and must comply with this Agreement. Customer must keep all passwords and identifications confidential so that no one else may access the Services through Customer’s account. Customer must notify Foothills Communications immediately upon discovering any unauthorized use of the account. Using a personal account for high volume or commercial use (e.g., revenue generation, advertising, etc.) is prohibited. Usernames and passwords are Foothills Communication’s property, and Foothills Communications may alter or replace them at any time.

Limited Warranty. Foothills Communications will use reasonable efforts to provide Services and the Equipment in accordance with prevailing industry standards. Foothills COMMUNICATIONS MAKES NO OTHER WARRANTIES CONCERNING THE SERVICES OR ANY EQUIPMENT PROVIDED HEREUNDER, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO ANY WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE OR USE AND ANY WARRANTIES REGARDING THE DESIGN, CONDITIONS OF, OR QUALITY OF THE MATERIAL OR WORKMANSHIP OF ANY SERVICES OR EQUIPMENT. IN NO EVENT WILL Foothills COMMUNICATIONS BE LIABLE TO THE CUSTOMER OR TO ANY THIRD PARTY FOR ANY INDIRECT, SPECIAL, INCIDENTAL OR CONSEQUENTIAL LOSSES OR DAMAGES, INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, LOSS OF REVENUE, LOSS OF GOODWILL, LOSS OF BUSINESS, OR LOSS OF PROFITS, ARISING IN ANY MANNER FROM THIS AGREEMENT AND THE PERFORMANCE OR NONPERFORMANCE OF Foothills COMMUNICATION’S OBLIGATIONS HEREUNDER, HOWEVER CAUSED AND ON ANY THEORY OF LIABILITY, EVEN IF Foothills COMMUNICATIONS HAS BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES. CUSTOMER’S SOLE REMEDY RELATED TO ANY DEFECT OR FAILURE OF THE SERVICES IS LIMITED TO A REFUND OF THE PRO RATED PORTION OF THE MONTHLY CHARGES FOR THE AFFECTED SERVICES UP TO AN AGGREGATE MAXIMUM OF ONE MONTH’S CHARGES.

Limitations on Use. You acknowledge that the Services are provided for your personal use and not for resale or assignment. No Services or Equipment may be transferred to another location or shared with another person who is not bound by this Agreement. You will not use the Services for telemarketing or any excessive usage inconsistent with normal residential usage patterns (or, if a commercial customer under a commercial service plan, consistent with normal usage for that plan). If Foothills Communications determines, in its sole discretion, that you are reselling or transferring Services or that you are using Services in an improper manner or other manner unduly burdensome on Foothills Communication’s network and facilities, Foothills Communications reserves the right, without advance notice, immediately to terminate or modify the Services, or to change your Service plan to a different offer on a prospective basis, and, in addition, to assess additional charges for each month in which excessive usage occurred.

Status of Internet Usage. The Customer acknowledges that the Internet is an ever-changing network not controlled by any single government or entity, but reliant upon the interconnectivity and operability of various networks. ACCORDINGLY, NOTWITHSTANDING ANYTHING HEREIN TO THE CONTRARY, ANY INTERNET ACCESS AS WELL AS ALL SERVICES RELATED TO SUCH ACCESS ARE PROVIDED ON AN “AS IS” AND “AS AVAILABLE” BASIS. No advice or information given by Foothills Communications or its contractors or their respective employees shall create a warranty. Foothills Communications does not warrant that service will be uninterrupted or error free or that any information, software or other material accessible through the Internet is free of viruses, cancelbot, spyware, worms, trojan horses, or other harmful components. The Customer also understands that the Internet contains unedited materials, some of which are explicit and/or offensive. Foothills Communications has no control over and accepts no responsibility whatsoever for any such materials. The Customer agrees Customer accesses such materials at Customer’s own risk.

Anti-Virus. Any anti-virus and SPAM protection offered in connection with Foothills Communication’s Services is offered for Customer’s incoming email services and is provided through third party vendors and subject to their warranties and limitations. NO GUARANTEES ARE MADE OR PROVIDED THAT THE SERVICES WILL BE VIRUS OR SPAM FREE OR THAT CUSTOMER EQUIPMENT WILL BE PROTECTED FROM HACKERS, VIRUSES, SPAM, SPYWARE, CANCELBOT, WORMS, TROJAN HORSES OR OTHER HARMFUL COMPONENTS. CUSTOMER IS SOLELY RESPONSIBLE FOR MAINTAINING ADEQUATE FIREWALL PROTECTION, ANTI-VIRUS, SPYWARE AND OTHER SPAM PROTECTION FOR CUSTOMER EQUIPMENT IN ORDER TO UTILIZE THE SERVICES AND PROTECT CUSTOMER EQUIPMENT AND INFORMATION.

Acceptable Use Policies. The Customer (which for purposes hereof includes any authorized user of Customer) agrees not to use or permit its users to use the Services provided by Foothills Communications in ways that violate laws, infringe the rights of others, interfere with the users of Foothills Communication’s network or other networks, or otherwise violate Foothills Communication’s Acceptable Use Policies as set forth at https://www.foothills.net (the “AUP”) and incorporated herein by reference and as set forth below. Foothills Communications reserves the right to modify the terms and conditions of the AUP from time to time, without direct notice to Customer, and those changes will become effective within thirty (30) days from posting. Customer agrees to periodically visit the aforementioned website to review any such changes. The use of the Services by Customer after any changes to the AUP will constitute Customer’s acceptance of any changes. If Customer violates the AUP, Foothills Communications may immediately suspend the Services without prior notice. Foothills Communications also reserves the right to terminate the Services in the event of chronic or uncured violations of the AUP as determined by Foothills Communications. Notwithstanding anything herein, Foothills Communications shall be under no obligation to monitor the compliance of Customer with the AUP.

Digital Millennium Copyright Act (“DMCA”) Notice. In operating the Services, Foothills Communications may act as a “services provider” under the DMCA and offer services as an online provider of materials and links to third party websites. As a result, third party materials that are not owned or controlled by Foothills Communications may be transmitted, stored, accessed or otherwise made available using the Service. You agree to notify Foothills Communications if and to the extent any situation arises wherein you believe any material available through the Service infringes a copyright. Any claimant must notify Foothills Communications using the notice procedure for claimed infringement under the DMCA and provide the following:

If you believe that your work has been copied and has been posted, stored or transmitted to Foothills Communication’s website in a way that constitutes copyright infringement, please submit a notification pursuant to the DMCA by providing Foothills Communication’s designated agent the following written information: (i) an electronic or physical signature of the person authorized to act on behalf of the owner of the copyright interest; (ii) a description of the copyrighted work that you claim has been infringed upon; (iii) a specific description of where the material that you claim is infringing is located on the website; (iv) your address, telephone number, and email address; (v) a statement by you that you have a good-faith belief that the disputed use is not authorized by the copyright owner, its agent, or the law; and (vi) a statement by you, made under penalty of perjury, that the above information in your notice is accurate and that you are the copyright owner or authorized to act on the copyright owner’s behalf.

Foothills Communication’s designated agent (the proper party for notice) to whom any copyright owner should address infringement notices under the DMCA is DMCA-Designated Agent, 1621 Kentucky Route 40 West, Staffordsville, KY 41256, 888-262-3782. Foothills Communications will respond expeditiously to remove or disable access to material Foothills Communications determines may be infringing and will follow the procedures specified in the DMCA to resolve the claim between the notifying party and the alleged infringing party who provided the applicable content.

Foothills Communications also has no obligation to monitor its Services, but may do so and disclose information regarding use of the Services for any reason if Foothills Communications, in its sole discretion, believes that it is reasonable to do so, including, without limitation, to: (i) satisfy laws, regulations, or governmental or legal requests, (ii) operate the Services properly, or (iii) protect itself and its customers and users. Foothills Communications may immediately remove material or information from Foothills Communication’s servers, in whole or in part, which Foothills Communications, in its sole and absolute discretion, determines to infringe another’s property rights or to violate the AUP.

To the extent any of your Services from Foothills Communications include wireless access, wireless systems use radio channels to transmit voice and data communications over a network, and privacy cannot be guaranteed. We are not liable to Customer or any other party for any lack of privacy resulting from using any wireless services of Foothills Communications. Customer acknowledges that wireless service is inherently not secure and that wireless communications can be intercepted by equipment and software designed for that purpose. Notwithstanding efforts to enhance security with respect to the Service, Foothills Communications cannot guarantee the effectiveness of these efforts and will not be liable to Customer or any other party for any lack of security that may result from use of the Service. Customer acknowledges that Customer is responsible for taking such precautions and providing such security measures best suited for Customer’s situation and intended use of the Service. Foothills Communications strongly encourages Customer to obtain security solutions, such as virtual private networks, encryption and personal firewalls, as more fully described at https://www.foothills.net.

Miscellaneous. You acknowledge and agree that this Agreement, together with all other terms and conditions incorporated herein, constitutes the entire agreement of the parties for the provision and use of the Services and the complete and exclusive statement of the terms agreed upon, all prior agreements and understandings being merged herein. Neither this Agreement nor any interest herein of Customer may be assigned, sublet, or in any manner transferred by Customer without the prior, written consent of Foothills Communications, which consent may be withheld in Foothills Communication’s sole discretion. Any attempted assignment or transfer in contravention of the preceding sentence shall be void. A waiver by Foothills Communications of any terms herein shall not be construed as a waiver of any subsequent breach of this Agreement. This Agreement shall be governed by the laws of the State of Kentucky without regard to choice of law principles. No amendments or modifications to this Agreement shall be effective or binding against Foothills Communications unless expressly agreed to in writing by an authorized representative of Foothills Communications. In the event any one or more of the provisions contained in this Agreement shall be invalid, illegal or unenforceable in any respect under any applicable statute or rule of law, then such provisions shall be deemed inoperative to the extent that they are invalid, illegal or unenforceable, and the remainder of this Agreement shall continue in full force and effect. Any invalid, illegal or unenforceable provisions shall be reformed and modified so that they express the original intent of the parties hereto as closely as reasonably practicable without being invalid, illegal or unenforceable.

NONDISCRIMINATION AND NETWORK MANAGEMENT POLICIES:

Foothills Communications manages its network in accordance with the FCC’s Internet Policy Statement adopted on August 5, 2005. Foothills Communications does not discriminate or favor any lawful Internet applications, content, or services where lawfully used. Foothills Communications promotes the ability of Customer to freely access and disseminate lawful content in a manner that respects others’ use of the network and that complies with the law. Foothills Communications supports industry practices for safeguarding children, intellectual property rights of others and Customer’s privacy and security. Foothills Communications follows standard best efforts for Internet delivery with respect to allocation of capacity without differentiation among applications, providers and sources. Generally accepted technical measures to provide acceptable service levels to all Customers will be used by Foothills Communications, such as application–neutral bandwidth allocation, as well as measures to address service attacks, illegal content and other harmful activities to protect network integrity and reliability.

Further, Foothills Communications supports the following Internet principles of the FCC:

To encourage broadband deployment and preserve and promote the open and interconnected nature of the public Internet, consumers are entitled to access the lawful Internet content of their choice; to run applications and use services of their choice, subject to the needs of law enforcement; to connect their choice of legal devices that do not harm the network; and are entitled to competition among network providers, application and service providers, and content providers.

ACCEPTABLE USE POLICIES:

You agree to comply with the rules of the Service and the appropriate rules for other networks or services connected directly or indirectly to the Service, including Acceptable Use Policies established for the Internet as a whole.

The Service may only be used for lawful purposes for your individual use. You agree to use responsible Internet practices, including, without limitation, using computer security and anti-virus protections, to ensure that unauthorized third parties do not gain access to your computer or computer network or the Service.

You further agree not to:

(i) Resell the Service or otherwise permit the use of the Service by any unauthorized users;

(ii) Restrict or inhibit any other user from using and enjoying the Internet;

(iii) Post or transmit any message, data, image or program that would violate the property rights of others, including unauthorized copyrighted text, images or programs, trade secrets or other confidential proprietary information, and trademarks or service marks used in an infringing fashion;

(iv) Post or transmit emails or other information or software which contains a virus, malicious code, spyware, adware, cancelbot, trojan horse, worm or other harmful component;

(v) Post, publish, transmit, reproduce, distribute or in any way exploit any information, software or other material obtained through the Service for commercial purpose (other than as expressly permitted by Foothills Communications with regards to such information, software or other material);

(vi) Upload, post, publish, transmit, reproduce, or distribute in any way, information, software or other material obtained through the Service which is protected by copyright, or other proprietary right, or derivative works with respect thereto, without obtaining permission of the copyright owner or right holder;

(vii) Post or transmit any unlawful, threatening, abusive, libelous, defamatory, obscene, pornographic, profane, or otherwise objectionable information of any kind (as determined in Foothills Communication’s sole discretion), including without limitation any transmissions constituting or encouraging conduct that would constitute a criminal offense, give rise to civil liability, or otherwise violate any local, state, national or international law, including without limitation the U.S. export control laws and regulations;

(xiii) Transmit spam (i.e., mass unsolicited email messages) or flames (the sending of a large number of email messages to a single or multiple addresses);

(ix) Gain or attempt to gain unauthorized access to or otherwise disrupt or deface websites, networks, systems or accounts owned by Foothills Communications or any third parties, including without limitation, through the use of worms, trojan horses, denial of service attacks or other computer hacking techniques, disrupt the Service or network connectivity of Foothills Communications or any third parties, misuse Foothills Communications or third party facilities or create fraudulent accounts; or

(x) Edit, transmit, distribute, reproduce, or modify in any part or copy onto any media The Walt Disney Company and its affiliated company content, text, photo, graphic, audio, and/or video material (including but not limited to such material from ESPN, ABCNews, Movies.com, SOAPNet or any other Disney company) (“Disney Content”), except that Customer may download one copy of the Disney Content on a single computer for the Subscriber’s personal, noncommercial home use only, provided that (i) Customer keeps intact all copyright and other proprietary notices, (ii) Customer makes no modifications to the Disney Content, (iii) Customer does not use the Disney Content in a manner that suggests an association with any of Disney’s products, services, or brands. Customer agrees that The Walt Disney Company and its affiliated companies will not be held liable for any delays, inaccuracies, errors, or omissions in the Disney Content or in the transmission of delivery of all or any part of the Disney Content, or for any damages arising from any of the foregoing.

Foothills Communications has no obligation to monitor the Service or your use of the Service. However, you agree that Foothills Communications has the right to monitor the Service electronically from time to time and to disclose any information as necessary to satisfy any law, regulation or other governmental request, to operate the Service properly, or to protect itself or its subscribers. Foothills Communications will not intentionally monitor or disclose any private email message, except as stated above.

Foothills Communications reserves the right to refuse to post or to remove any information or materials, in whole or in part, that, in its sole discretion, are unacceptable, undesirable, or in violation of its AUP. Foothills Communications may further deny any person or entity access to all or part of its system, without notice, if such person or entity engages in any conduct or activities that Foothills Communications, in its sole discretion, believes violates any of its AUP.

Foothills Communications may deny you access to all or part of the Service without notice if you engage in any conduct or activities that Foothills Communications in its sole discretion believes violates any of the terms and conditions in this AUP. If Foothills Communications denies you access to the Service because of such a violation, you shall have no right to access the Internet or your email account through Foothills Communications.

YOU AGREE TO DEFEND, INDEMNIFY AND HOLD Foothills COMMUNICATIONS HARMLESS FROM ANY AND ALL LIABILITIES, COSTS AND EXPENSES, INCLUDING REASONABLE ATTORNEYS’ FEES, RELATED TO ANY VIOLATION OF THIS AGREEMENT BY YOU OR AUTHORIZED USERS OF YOUR ACCOUNT, OR IN CONNECTION WITH THE USE OF THE SERVICE OR THE INTERNET OR THE PLACEMENT OR TRANSMISSION OF ANY MESSAGE, INFORMATION, SOFTWARE OR OTHER MATERIALS ON THE INTERNET BY YOU OR USERS OF YOUR ACCOUNT.

PRIVACY POLICY:

Foothills Communications is committed to protecting the privacy and security of the information provided by Customers and other parties visiting Foothills Communication’s website.

Personal Information. Visitors can generally browse our website anonymously without providing any personal information. However, there are cases where we may request information from people visiting our website. When personally identifiable information is collected, you will know because you will need to provide the requested information through the completion of a form. Personally identifiable information may include a visitor’s name, address, telephone number and email address. We will not collect any personally identifiable information unless the Customer or visitor provides it to us voluntarily. If you choose not to give information we request, you can still visit our website, but you may be unable to access certain options, offers, and services. Foothills Communications is dedicated to building a long-term relationship with all of our website visitors and customers. We will not sell, share or rent this information to others in ways other than as set forth in this Privacy Policy. This Privacy Policy does not apply to the use or disclosure of information that is collected or obtained by us through means other than our website.

Log Files. Our log tracking collects visitors’ IP addresses to analyze trends, administer our website, track visitor movement, and gather broad demographic information to help determine the type of information visitors are interested in seeing on our website. This tracking only collects IP addresses and not personally identifiable information. Visitors are not personally identifiable within our log files. Foothills Communications only uses this information for internal purposes and does not share this information with non-affiliated companies or institutions.

Cookies. A “Cookie” is a piece of information that is sent from a Foothills Communications web server to a visitor’s browser and stored on the visitor’s hard drive. Foothills Communications uses Cookies when a Customer or visitor orders a product or registers for a specific program. The Cookie stores information that allows Foothills Communication’s website to remember a Customer or visitor the next time he or she visits it. Cookies also allow us to tailor our website to better match Customers’ or other visitors’ interests and preferences. The applicable party may choose to disable Cookies by changing his or her browser settings; however, such party may not be able to access some of the information or features on our website after doing so.

Registration. In some cases, a person may be required to complete a registration form to order a product or to receive certain information. During the registration process, the person is required to give specific information such as name and email address. This information is used to contact the person regarding services offered by Foothills Communications for which the person has expressed interest.

Ordering Services. When ordering Services online, Foothills Communications will request certain information from a Customer to complete an order. The Customer’s information will include name, address, telephone number, email address, payment information and other information as may be requested by Foothills Communications in the order form. This information is used for billing purposes, fulfillment of orders, ongoing account maintenance and upgrades.

Security. When asked to enter certain sensitive information (such as credit card number and/or social security number), that information is encrypted and is protected through third party security systems. Access to visitor information is restricted to Foothills Communications and underlying parties through their respective developers, network operations personnel and other qualified employees or agents (such as billing clerks or customer care representatives). In addition, the servers on which Foothills Communications stores personally identifiable information are kept in a secure location. While we use reasonable efforts to safeguard the confidentiality of your information, Foothills Communications will have no responsibility for disclosure of any information obtained due to errors in transmission or the unauthorized acts of third parties.

Marketing Contacts. If a party wishes to subscribe to newsletters or other marketing information, such as email updates, Foothills Communications will ask for contact information, including a street address or email address. In addition, we may ask for information that will help deliver pertinent information from Foothills Communications. Persons who do not wish to receive Foothills Communications newsletters or promotional materials may opt-out of receiving these communications. Each contact the visitor receives from Foothills Communications will inform the visitor how to unsubscribe from these communications.

Sharing of Personal Information. Collected personal information is only used for the business purposes of Foothills Communications and is not shared with external, non-affiliated companies except as provided in this Privacy Policy. Foothills Communications may partner with other parties to provide specific services, such as billing solutions, which are designed to enhance the functionality of our products and services. When a customer signs up for these services, Foothills Communications will only share names or other contact information that is necessary for the third party to provide these services. We may also provide your personal information to third party agents we have hired to help us provide a good or service you have requested. For example, we would need to provide your address to a shipping company to deliver a package you have ordered. In addition, we outsource certain functions of our business, and those agents may have access to your personal information; however, in such cases our agents are prohibited from disclosing your personal information to others.

We may share statistical or aggregated non-personal information about our visitors with advertisers, business partners, sponsors and other third parties. No personal information is supplied in these cases. This data is used to customize our website content and advertising to deliver a better experience to our users.

Correction/Updating Personal Information. If a Customer needs to update or change personal identification information, Foothills Communications will help the Customer to correct, update or remove personal data provided to Foothills Communications. The Customer can update or change personally identifiable information by contacting Foothills Communications directly or through its website.

Notification of Changes. If we make any changes to the Foothills Communications Privacy Policy, we will post those changes on Foothills Communication’s website so Customers and visitors are informed of what information we collect and how we use that information. We will only use information in accordance with the current Foothills Communications Privacy Policy.

Links. Foothills Communication’s website contains links to other websites. Foothills Communications is not responsible for the contents or privacy practices of these websites. We encourage our visitors and customers to read the privacy policy of each website they visit. This Privacy Policy applies solely to information collected on Foothills Communication’s website.

Policies For Children. FOOTHILLS COMMUNICATIONS DOES NOT KNOWINGLY SOLICIT, COLLECT OR USE ANY PERSONAL INFORMATION FROM VISITORS UNDER 13 YEARS OF AGE. NO INFORMATION SHOULD BE SUBMITTED TO OUR WEBSITE BY GUESTS UNDER 13 YEARS OF AGE, AND VISITORS UNDER 13 YEARS OLD ARE NOT ALLOWED TO REGISTER FOR OUR CONTESTS, NEWSLETTER, PRODUCTS OR SERVICES.

Special Cases. Foothills Communications reserves the right to disclose personal information in special cases, when we have reason to believe that disclosing this information is necessary to identify, contact or bring legal action against someone who may be causing injury to or interference with (either intentionally or unintentionally) our rights or property, other website users, or anyone else that could be harmed by such activities. We may disclose personal information without notice to you in response to a subpoena or when we believe in good faith that the law permits it or to respond to an emergency situation.

Specific areas or pages of our website may include additional or different provisions relating to collection and disclosure of personal information. In the event of a conflict between such provisions and this Privacy Policy, such specific terms shall control.

Questions. If you have any questions or concerns about this Privacy Policy or the privacy practices of Foothills Communications, please contact us at our corporate offices or on our corporate website at www.foothills.net.

NOTICES:

Unless otherwise specified in this Agreement, notices to you may be made by email, posting online at www.foothills.net, bill insert, regular mail or call to your telephone number. It is your responsibility to check for such notices.

Unless otherwise specified in this Agreement, notices by you to Foothills Communications must be given by calling our Foothills Communications office at 800-292-5457, and such notices are effective as of the date that our records show we received your call.

LEGAL NOTICES must be given by letter delivered by overnight mail or certified mail to Foothills Communications, ATTN: CEO, 1621 Kentucky Route 40 West, Staffordsville, KY 41256.

Foothills Communications manages its network in accordance with the FCC’s Internet Policy Statement adopted on August 5, 2005. Foothills Communications does not discriminate or favor any lawful Internet applications, content, or services where lawfully used. Foothills Communications promotes the ability of Customer to freely access and disseminate lawful content in a manner that respects others’ use of the network and that complies with the law. Foothills Communications supports industry practices for safeguarding children, intellectual property rights of others and Customer’s privacy and security. Foothills Communications follows standard best efforts for Internet delivery with respect to allocation of capacity without differentiation among applications, providers and sources. Generally accepted technical measures to provide acceptable service levels to all Customers will be used by Foothills Communications, such as application–neutral bandwidth allocation, as well as measures to address service attacks, illegal content and other harmful activities to protect network integrity and reliability.

Further, Foothills Communications supports the following Internet principles of the FCC:

To encourage broadband deployment and preserve and promote the open and interconnected nature of the public Internet, consumers are entitled to access the lawful Internet content of their choice; to run applications and use services of their choice, subject to the needs of law enforcement; to connect their choice of legal devices that do not harm the network; and are entitled to competition among network providers, application and service providers, and content providers.

I. Device Attachment Rules/Application Specific Behaviors

Except as may be provided elsewhere herein, Foothills Communications does not currently engage in any application-specific behaviors, nor does it employ device attachment rules for its network. Customers may use any lawful applications or devices with Foothills Communications.

II. Specialized Services

Foothills Communications does not provide any Specialized Services at this time.

FOOTHILLS COMMUNICATIONS

NETWORK TRANSPARENCY STATEMENT

Foothills Communications (“Foothills” or “Company”) provides this Network Transparency Statement in accordance with the FCC’s Restore Internet Freedom Rules to ensure that you have sufficient information to make informed choices about the purchase of broadband services. Information about Foothills’ other policies and practices concerning broadband are available at www.foothills.net (“Foothills Website”).

Foothills engages in network management practices that are tailored and appropriate for achieving optimization on the network considering the particular network architecture and technology of its broadband Internet access service. Foothills’ goal is to ensure that all of its customers experience a safe and secure broadband Internet environment that is fast, reliable and affordable. Foothills wants its customers to indulge in all that the Internet has to offer, whether it is social networking, streaming videos and music, to communicating through email and videoconferencing.

Foothills’ network management includes congestion- and security-protocol-management and customers generally will not be impacted by the protocols and practices that Foothills uses to manage its network.

1. Foothills’ Network Transparency Disclosures

Foothills uses various tools and industry standard techniques to manage its network and deliver fast, secure and reliable Internet service. Foothills believes in full transparency and provides the following disclosures about its network management practices:

1. Blocking: Foothills does not block or discriminate against lawful content.
2. Throttling: Foothills does not throttle, impair or degrade lawful Internet traffic.
3. Affiliated Prioritization: Foothills does not prioritize Internet traffic and has no plans to do so.
4. Paid Prioritization: Foothills has never engaged in paid prioritization. We don’t prioritize Internet for consideration to benefit particular content, applications, services or devices. Foothills does not have plans to enter into paid prioritization deals to create fast lanes.
5. Congestion Management: Foothills monitors the connections on its network in the aggregate on a continuous basis to determine the rate of utilization. If congestion emerges on the network, Foothills will take the appropriate measures to relieve congestion.

On Foothills’ network, all customers have access to all legal services, applications and content online and, in the event of congestion, most Internet activities will be unaffected. Some customers, however, may experience longer download or upload times, or slower surf speeds on the web if instances of congestion do occur on Foothills’ network.

Customers using conduct that abuses or threatens the Foothills network or which violates the company’s Acceptable Use Policy, Internet service Terms and Conditions, or the Internet Service Agreement will be asked to stop any such use immediately. A failure to respond or to cease any such conduct could result in service suspension or termination.

Foothills’ network and congestion management practices are ‘application-agnostic’, based on current network conditions, and are not implemented on the basis of customers’ online activities, protocols or applications. Foothills’ network management practices do not relate to any particular customer’s aggregate monthly data usage.

Foothills monitors its network on a continuous basis to determine utilization on its network. Foothills also checks for abnormal traffic flows, network security breaches, malware, loss, and damage to the network. If a breach is detected or high volume users are brought to light by complaint, Foothills provides notification to the customer via email, phone or mail. If a violation of Foothills’ policies has occurred and such violation is not remedied, Foothills may seek to suspend or terminate that customer’s service.

6. Application-Specific Behavior: Except as may be provided elsewhere herein, Foothills does not currently engage in any application-specific behaviors on its network. Customers may use any lawful applications with Foothills.

7.Device Attachment Rules: For best results, network gateways used on the Foothills broadband network should be provided by Foothills. Customers may attach devices of their choosing to their ONT/Fibernet Ethernet connection, including wired or wireless routers, laptops, desktop computers, video game systems, televisions, or other network-enabled electronics equipment. However, customers are responsible for ensuring that their equipment does not harm Foothills’ network or impair the service of other customers. Foothills is not responsible for the functionality or compatibility of any equipment provided by its customers. Customers are responsible for securing their own equipment to prevent unauthorized access to Foothills’ broadband network by third parties and will be held responsible for the actions of such third parties who gain unauthorized access through unsecured customer equipment.

8. Network Security: Foothills knows the importance of securing its network and customers from network threats and annoyances. The company promotes the security of its network and patrons by protections from such threats as spam, viruses, firewall issues, and phishing schemes. Foothills also deploys spam filters in order to divert spam from an online customer’s email inbox into a quarantine file while allowing the customer to control which emails are identified as spam. Customers may access the spam files through the email. Spam files may be automatically deleted if not accessed within 30 days.

As its normal practice, Foothills does not block any protocols, content or traffic for purposes of network management, but Foothills may block or limit such traffic as spam, viruses, malware, or denial of service attacks to protect network integrity and the security of our customers.

1. Network Performance
2. Service Descriptions

Foothills deploys Internet access to its subscribers via Fiber to the Premises (“FTTP”) technology. The service will be media converted from the fiber optic uplink (GPON, P2P) to a normal 10/100/1000mbps Ethernet connection using a device called an Optical Network Terminal (“ONT”). In some cases, a business may purchase a special internet service that may handoff directly using fiber where a ONT is not required.

2. Network Performance

Foothills makes every effort to support advertised speeds and will dispatch repair technicians to customer sites to perform speed tests as needed to troubleshoot and resolve speed and application performance caused by Foothills’ network. Foothills measures availability, latency, and aggregate utilization on the network and strives to meet internal service level targets.

However, the bandwidth speed at which a particular distant website or other Internet resources may be downloaded, or the speed at which your customer information may be uploaded to a distant website or Internet location is affected by factors beyond Foothills’ control, including the speed of the connection from a distant web server to the Internet, congestion on intermediate networks, and/or limitations on your own computer equipment, including a wireless router. In addition, your service performance may be affected by the inside wiring at your premise. Accordingly, you, the customer, must consider the capabilities of your own equipment when choosing a Foothills broadband service. Your computers and/or wireless or other networks in your homes or offices may need an upgrade in order to take full advantage of the chosen Foothills broadband plan.

Foothills tests each service for actual and expected access speeds at the time of network installation to demonstrate that the service is capable of supporting the advertised speed. Customers may also test their actual speeds using the speed test located at http://foothills.speedtest.net/ and may request assistance by calling our business office at 606-297-3501 or by email at frtcc@foothills.net.

DOWNLOAD & UPLOAD SPEEDS

Download Speeds

Upload Speeds

* TCP Throughput shown in table. Service is provided over a 1 Gbps Ethernet Connection running at line rate, however due to overhead of protocols such as IP and TCP the TCP throughput is lower than 1 Gbps.

3. Impact of Non-BIAS Data Services

Real time services, such as Non-BIAS services, include Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) and Internet Protocol (IP) video services, command optimal bandwidth. As Non-BIAS traffic is combined with general Internet traffic on Foothills’ network, broadband customers could experience service delays, although very unlikely, if there is an occurrence of congestion on Foothills’ network. In any such event, the Non-BIAS traffic is given priority over general Internet traffic.

Foothills provides Voice-over-the-Internet-Protocol (VoIP) to its customers. The VoIP traffic uses private RFC 1918 addresses, dedicated paths for VoIP and QoS on the routers/switches it touches. Where VoIP traffic is combined with best effort Internet traffic and QoS priority is employed, the network could endure marginal delays if there are instances of bandwidth contention, although very unlikely.

The Company offers IP video service to end-users. This non-BIAS data service does not adversely affect the last-mile capacity available for the Company’s broadband Internet access services, or the performance of such services. Customer should note that significantly heavier use of non-BIAS services (particularly IP video services) may impact the available capacity for and/or the performance of its broadband Internet access services. The Company will monitor this situation and appreciates feedback from its customers.

1. Commercial Terms

Pricing and additional service information may be found here.
In addition to this Network Transparency Statement, patrons may also find links to the following on the Foothills Website:

• Privacy Policy
• Acceptable Use Policy

For questions, complaints or requests for additional information, please contact Foothills at:

Business Office at 606-297-3501
Email at frtcc@foothills.net

Privacy Policy: Protecting Your Information

Foothills Communications is committed to respecting and protecting the privacy of our customers. As discussed below, we have strict policies governing access by employees and others to customer communications and information. We access customer accounts, records or reports for authorized business purposes only. We educate our employees about their obligation to safeguard customer information and communications, and we hold them accountable for their actions. In short, privacy is a priority for Foothills Communications in all aspects of our business.

This Customer Privacy Policy is divided into four sections:

1. Section I describes several general principles that express Foothills Communications commitment to assuring strong and meaningful customer privacy protection.
2. Section II describes, more specifically, how Foothills Communications protects the confidentiality of Customer Proprietary Network Information (CPNI).
3. Section III describes Foothills Communications “Do Not Call” practices, which are designed to protect our customers from unwanted telemarketing.
4. Finally, Section IV provides our contact information should you have any questions about this policy or Foothills Communications privacy practices more generally.

PRIVACY POLICY

Download a PDF of the Privacy Policy or read it below:

Section I – GENERAL PRIVACY PRINCIPLES

The following principles express Foothills Communications commitment to assuring strong and meaningful customer privacy protection, and are intended to guide Foothills Communications efforts to balance customer privacy with customer interest in receiving quality services. These principles apply to our use of “individual” customer information – that is, information about specific customers. “Individual” customer information includes “personal information” – information particular to you, including your address, phone number, fax number and email address – and “non-personal information” that may include information such as your network traffic data, services and features used or call record details. These policies are fully consistent with applicable laws and regulations governing privacy, including the regulations of the Federal Communications Commission (“FCC”). Individual customer information is distinct from “aggregated” customer information, which does not reveal a customer’s identity. Further, the examples provided below are intended to be illustrative, not all-inclusive.

1. Foothills Communications obtains and uses individual customer information for business purposes only.

Foothills Communications obtains and uses customer information that helps us to provide our customers with quality telecommunications services. In addition to supporting the direct provision of service, this information may be used to protect customers, employees and property against fraud, theft or abuse; to conduct industry or consumer surveys; and to maintain good customer relations. Access to databases containing customer information is limited to employees who need that information to perform their jobs. These employees are required to follow strict rules when handling customer information, and are subject to disciplinary action if they fail to do so.

In order to better serve our customers, we may ask them questions to elicit additional information about their special needs and interests. For example, we may ask whether customers work at home, whether any members of the household have special needs, or whether teenagers reside in the household in order to determine whether customers may be interested in or might benefit from additional lines or services. In all cases, the information we gather is used to facilitate the provision of quality customer service. We do not share this information with third parties to market non-Foothills Communications services to our customers.

2. Foothills Communications collects information from customers in a number of different ways.

Foothills Communications may collect information from you through communications such as via the web, or by phone, email or mail delivery, or through the services provided to you as the customer.

You may visit our site without divulging any personal information; however, there are areas of this site that might require personal information in order to contact Foothills Communications directly, specifically, when registering e-mails, obtaining remote access, and contacting online technical support.

Information may also be collected in the following ways:

Browsing Our Site

• IP addresses may be collected for the purposes of system administration, to gather broad demographic information, and to monitor the level of activity on our site.
• Information may be collected regarding the referring URL, which browser you used to come to our site, and the pages of our site that you viewed during your visit and any search terms entered on our site.
• E-mails may be sent by the customer to Foothills Communications on this website. Foothills Communications may retain the information in any e-mail that you send to us, such as your name, e-mail, address, or telephone number.

Broadband Internet Service

• Foothills Communications may monitor the network and take measurements of network performance and the performance of your Internet connection to improve the customer’s, or Foothills Communications, overall service levels.
• During communications with Foothills Communications for service support, we may also access information about your customer premise equipment such as computers and wireless modem devices or other device settings to provide customized technical support or to install specific applications or services for your use.
• Foothills Communications reserves the right to access broadband traffic from individual accounts for the purposes of general maintenance and management of the network, as well as upon request by law enforcement officials.

Provision of Information by Third Parties

• Foothills Communications may obtain credit information about you from third parties when you purchase products or services from Foothills Communications.

3. Foothills Communications informs customers how information Foothills Communications obtains about them is used, as well as their options regarding its use.

Foothills Communications uses customer information in a transparent fashion, and discloses to customers the types of information Foothills Communications obtains about them how and when that information is used, when that information might be disclosed, the stringent measures we employ to protect that information, and ways that customers can restrict the use or disclosure of that information. This Privacy Policy is available on our website at https://www.foothills.net and from Foothills Communications service representatives.

4. Foothills Communications gives customers opportunities to control access by others to customer information and how Foothills Communications uses individual information about them.

Foothills Communications is committed to providing customers with opportunities to control how Foothills Communications uses customer information about them. For example, customers may inform us of which telephone listings they want to include in our directories and in directory assistance and may also choose to have a non-published number, or a non-listed number, or to exclude your address from your listing. Customers in areas where Caller ID services are available have the ability to block the display of their phone numbers and names. (Note that Caller ID blocking does not prevent the transmission of your phone number when you dial certain business numbers, including 911, or 800, 888, 877, and 900 numbers.) Further, customers can express a preference not to be called for marketing purposes (please see Section III, below, for more information on Foothills Communications “Do Not Call” policy). Customers may also opt out of our direct mailings and other service marketing programs. (Please see Section II, below, for information on Foothills Communications policy on the use of “Customer Proprietary Network Information”). A customer may indicate a change in such preferences at any time by contacting Foothills Communications customer service.

We do use individual customer information internally for planning purposes – so that we can, for example, develop, test and market new products and services that meet the needs of our customers. Ordinarily, such information is combined into aggregations that do not include individual customer identities. Under certain circumstances, we are required by law to disclose the aggregated information to other companies, but in such cases customer identities are not included.

5. Foothills Communications enables customers to control how Foothills Communications discloses individual information about them to other persons or entities, except as required by law or to protect the safety of customers, employees or property.

Ordinarily, Foothills Communications will only share individual customer information with persons or entities outside the company to assist us in the provision of services to which the customer subscribes. We do not use third-party marketers, nor do we share access to individual customer information derived from the provision of Foothills Communications telecommunications services with other companies interested in marketing other services to our customers – and we would not do so without the consent of the customer. Foothills Communications is committed to ensuring that customer information is not used without the knowledge and permission of our customers.

However, there are exceptions to our general practice. For example, unless you request otherwise, we may share certain personal or non-personal information with our affiliated companies with whom we have established business relationships. In addition, if Foothills Communications enters into a merger, acquisition, or sale of all or a portion of its assets, a customer’s personally identifiable information will, in most instances, be transferred as a part of the transaction, subject to required notices to affected customers. In addition, we may, where permitted by law, provide information to credit bureaus, or provide information and/or sell receivables to collection agencies, to obtain payment for Foothills Communications billed products and services. We are also required by law to provide billing name and address information to a customer’s long distance carrier and other telephone companies to allow them to bill for telecommunications services. (By law, customers with non-published or unlisted service have the right not to have their billing name and address disclosed when they make a calling card call or accept a collect or third party call. However, if they do restrict disclosure, they will be unable to make calling card calls or accept collect and third party calls.) Similarly, we are required to provide directory publishers with subscriber listing information – name, address and phone number, and for yellow page advertisers, primary advertising classification – for purposes of publishing and delivering directories. In addition, under certain circumstances, we may share customer information with other carriers or with law enforcement, for example, to prevent and investigate fraud or other unlawful use of communications services.

6. Foothills Communications strives to ensure that the information we obtain and use about customers is accurate.

Foothills Communications is committed to ensuring that the information we obtain and use about customers is accurate. To that end, we strive to verify that our customer records are correct. Customers who find an error in their Foothills Communications bills are encouraged to notify Foothills Communications. Foothills Communications service representatives are trained to answer customer questions about, and to give customers reasonable access to, the information we have about them. Our service representatives will also provide explanations of how such information is used and how to correct any inaccuracies if they occur.

In addition to reviewing their bills, customers can access their customer information by contacting Foothills Communications customer service. However, Foothills Communications will only provide customer information after properly authenticating the identity of the requesting “customer” in accordance with applicable law and industry best practices. In this way, Foothills Communications can maximize the ability of its customers to review their customer information for accuracy while minimizing the risk that this information falls into the wrong hands. Foothills Communications service representatives can explain how customers may be authenticated to obtain access to their own customer information.

7. All Foothills Communications employees are responsible for safeguarding individual customer communications and information.

Foothills Communications takes reasonable precautions to protect your personal information against unauthorized access. Foothills Communications requires its personnel to be aware of and protect the privacy of all forms of customer communications as well as individual customer records. Foothills Communications makes clear that employees who fail to comply with its privacy policies will face disciplinary action, which can include dismissal. All employees are trained regarding their responsibilities to safeguard customer privacy. We strive to ensure that information we have about our customers is accurate, secure and confidential, and to ensure that our employees comply with our privacy policy.

We never tamper with, intrude upon or disclose the existence or contents of any communication or transmission, except as required by law or the proper management of our network. Access to databases containing customer information is limited to employees who need it to perform their jobs – and they follow strict guidelines when handling that information. We use safeguards to increase data accuracy and to identify and authenticate the sources of customer information. We use locks and physical security measures, sign-on and password control procedures, and internal auditing techniques to protect against unauthorized use of terminals and entry into our data systems. Foothills Communications requires that records be safeguarded from loss, theft, unauthorized disclosure, and accidental destruction.

In addition, sensitive, confidential, or proprietary records are protected and maintained in a secure environment. It is our policy to destroy records containing sensitive, confidential, or proprietary information in a secure manner. Hard copy confidential, proprietary, or sensitive documents are made unreadable before disposition or recycling, and electronic media must be destroyed using methods that prevent access to information stored in that type of media. Just as employees would report stolen property, missing records and suspicious incidents involving records are referred to Foothills Communications Management. We encourage our employees to be proactive in implementing and enforcing Foothills Communications privacy policies. If employees become aware of practices that raise privacy or security concerns, they are required to report them to their supervisors.

Foothills Communications regulatory department is responsible for ensuring that all Foothills Communications business units and their employees comply with privacy laws and regulations. Foothills Communications also requires any consultants, suppliers and contractors that may come into contact with CPNI to observe these privacy rules with respect to any of our customers’ individual customer information. They must abide by these principles when conducting work for us, and they will be held accountable for their actions.

Foothills Communications also takes special care to protect the safety and privacy of young people using its services. Foothills Communications does not knowingly collect information about children. Foothills Communications believes that children should get their parents’ consent before giving out any personal information. Foothills Communications encourages parents and legal guardians to participate in their child’s experience using Foothills Communications services. Children should always ask a parent for permission before sending personal information to Foothills Communications.

While we have made significant efforts to protect your personal information, we cannot ensure or warrant the security of any information you transmit to us, and you do so at your own risk. Unfortunately, no data transmission over the Internet can be guaranteed to be 100% secure and we will not be held liable should a third party illegally obtain your personal information via Internet transmission.

8. Foothills Communications participates in and supports consumer, government and industry efforts to identify and resolve privacy issues.

We participate in legislative and regulatory proceedings, industry association efforts, consumer group efforts, and general business group activities relating to telecommunications privacy issues. Our Industry Affairs personnel are responsible for the coordination of Foothills Communications public policy participation.

9. Foothills Communications complies with all applicable privacy laws and regulations wherever Foothills Communications does business.

Customer and policymaker perceptions of privacy have changed over time and will continue to do so. Changes in technology can also alter what is appropriate in protecting privacy. Laws may change accordingly. We regularly examine – and update as necessary – Foothills Communications privacy policies and internal procedures to ensure compliance with applicable law and evolving technology. Foothills Communications also will monitor customer needs and expectations. Foothills Communications will work with policymakers and consumers to ensure that we continue to safeguard privacy, giving customers choices, flexibility and control. Foothills Communications considers privacy laws and regulations to be the minimum standards to which we will adhere in protecting privacy. In addition to complying with the law, Foothills Communications will adhere to its internal privacy policies and procedures wherever we do business.

10. Foothills Communications complies only with valid, properly issued, and legally enforceable third-party requests for access to customer information.

Foothills Communications may release customer information in response to requests from governmental agencies, including law enforcement and national security agencies, in accordance with federal statutory requirements or pursuant to court order. Before releasing any customer information, Foothills Communications will ensure that the underlying governmental request satisfies all procedural and substantive legal requirements and is otherwise proper. For example, Foothills Communications will ensure that any court orders are valid, properly issued, and legally enforceable. Except as required by law or with the approval of the customer, Foothills Communications will not release any customer information in response to subpoenas or similar requests issued by private parties. Further, Foothills Communications will be diligent in authenticating the validity of any “governmental” request to ensure that the request actually originates from an authorized government agency.

Section II – USE OF CUSTOMER PROPRIETARY NETWORK INFORMATION

Customers count on Foothills Communications to respect and protect the privacy of information we obtain in the normal course of providing telecommunications services to our customers. Foothills Communications is committed to protecting the privacy of all customer information, and in particular the privacy of customer proprietary network information (or CPNI).

1. Definition of “Customer Proprietary Network Information.”

The term “customer proprietary network information” is defined by federal statute to mean: (i) information that relates to the quantity, technical configuration, type, destination, location, and amount of use of a telecommunications service subscribed to by any customer of a telecommunications carrier, and that is made available to the carrier by the customer solely by virtue of the carrier-customer relationship; and (ii) information contained in the bills pertaining to telephone exchange service or telephone toll service received by a customer of a carrier.

2. Use of Customer Proprietary Network Information.

Under federal law, you have the right to, and we have the duty to protect, the confidentiality of your CPNI. However, we may use CPNI without your consent, in a manner consistent with applicable law, to: (i) initiate, render, bill, and collect for our services; (ii) market services among the categories of service to which you already subscribe; (iii) provide inside wiring installation, maintenance, and repair services; (iv) provide maintenance and technical support for our services; (v) protect our rights and property, and protect users of our services and other carriers from fraudulent, abusive, or unlawful use of, or subscription to, these services; and (vi) provide any inbound telemarketing, referral, or administrative services for the duration of a customer-initiated call.

Further, after providing you with the required notice and opportunity to “opt out,” we may use your CPNI, in a manner consistent with applicable law, to market additional communications-related services to you and conduct surveys in order to improve our service offerings.

Foothills Communications will not use your CPNI for purposes other than those described above unless we first obtain your express “opt in” consent. For example, without such consent we will not use CPNI to market services not provided by Foothills Communications, and will not share your CPNI with third parties (subject to the limitations discussed below).

3. Limits on the disclosure of CPNI outside Foothills Communications.

As a general rule, Foothills Communications does not use third-party marketers and will not disclose your CPNI to third party contractors without your explicit “opt in” consent. This means that our records of the services you buy and the calls you make generally will remain private if you choose to keep them so, since we will not ordinarily disclose this information to outside parties without your permission. However, we will release customer information without involving you if disclosure is required by law, or necessary to protect the safety of customers, employees or property. For example: When you dial 911, information about your location may be transmitted automatically to a public safety agency.

Certain information about your long distance calls may be transmitted to your long distance company for billing purposes. We are also required by law to give competitive local exchange carriers access to customer databases for purposes of serving their customers, to exchange credit information with other carriers, and to provide listings (other than certain non-published and non-listed information) to directory publishers.

We will disclose information as necessary to comply with law enforcement statutes, such as to comply with valid, properly issued, and legally-enforceable subpoenas, warrants and court orders.

We may, where permitted by law, share CPNI with third parties where necessary to provide the services to which you subscribe, to protect our rights or property, and to protect users of our services and other carriers from fraudulent, abusive or unlawful use of services.

We may, where permitted by law, provide CPNI to third parties such as credit bureaus, or sell receivables to collection agencies, to obtain payment for Foothills Communications billed products and services.

4. Authentication to prevent unauthorized access to CPNI.

Foothills Communications is committed to ensuring that only properly authorized individuals are able to access CPNI for legitimate purposes. This includes ensuring that any request by a “customer” to access CPNI is valid and properly authenticated, in accordance with applicable law and industry best practices. In general, our internal policies and procedures are designed to ensure that CPNI is not released to unauthorized individuals.

Further, if a “customer” calls us to access “call detail records” (which include the number called, the number from which a call was placed, and the time, location, or duration of any call), we will not release those records unless (i) during the call, the customer provides a pre-established password; (ii) the information is sent to the customer’s address of record; or (iii) after the call, we call the customer’s telephone number of record to provide the requested information. If a “customer” attempts to access CPNI through our website, we will only provide such access if the customer has first established a password and back-up authentication mechanism for the relevant account, in a manner that does not rely on readily-available biographical or account information. If a “customer” attempts to access CPNI by visiting a retail location in person, we will only provide such access if the “customer” presents valid photo identification matching the name of record on the account. (Note that different procedures may apply to certain business customers served by a dedicated account representative where the underlying service agreement addresses CPNI protection and authentication.) We also will notify you at your address of record if anyone changes the access authorization or authentication information associated with your account.

5. Notice of unauthorized access to CPNI.

As a company, we are vigilant in our efforts to protect your CPNI. However, should we become aware that your CPNI has been accessed without proper authority, we will take swift action to fully document and address such unauthorized access and provide appropriate notice. In particular, we will (i) notify law enforcement (including the United States Secret Service and the Federal Bureau of Investigation) within seven business days; and (ii) notify you and any other affected customers within seven business days thereafter, unless earlier notification is necessary to avoid immediate and irreparable harm, or we are instructed by law enforcement personnel to refrain from providing such notice.

Section III – Foothills Communications “DO NOT CALL” LIST

Any Foothills Communications customer can express a preference not to be called by us for marketing purposes, and Foothills Communications will respect such preference. A customer that does not wish to receive sales calls from Foothills Communications specifically may ask to be placed on our company-specific “Do Not Call” list. We will note the customer’s request immediately, although it may take up to 30 days for the customer’s telephone number to be removed from any active lists or sales programs that are currently underway.

Any customer can ask to be put on our “Do Not Call” list by contacting Foothills Communications customer service department. The requesting customer should provide, at a minimum, the telephone number that is the subject of the request, although inclusion of the customer’s name and address is also useful. If a customer is served by multiple telephone numbers, the customer should tell us all numbers that should be placed on the “Do Not Call” list.

A residential customer will remain on our “Do Not Call” list for five years, and a business customer will remain on our “Do Not Call” list for one year, unless the customer asks to be removed from the list by contacting our customer service department. If a customer’s telephone number ever changes, the customer must give us updated information in order for the “Do Not Call” status to remain in effect.

Notwithstanding the fact that a customer’s telephone number is on our “Do Not Call” list, we may still contact that customer with respect to surveys, billing, and other service-related matters. Further, the customer should understand that being on our “Do Not Call” list will not prevent calls from other companies unaffiliated with Foothills Communications.

Section IV – FURTHER INFORMATION

Foothills Communications reserves the right to change, modify or update this Privacy Policy at any time without notice. In the event of any modification, we will post the changes in this Privacy Policy so that you will always know what information we are gathering and how we might use that information. However if such changes are material, we will either announce the change on the home page of the site or take such other action as we deem appropriate under the circumstances. Accordingly, you should periodically visit this page to determine the current Privacy Policy to which you are bound.

If you have any questions or comments concerning this Customer Privacy Policy, or if you believe that the Company has not adhered to its privacy policy, please contact Foothills Communications customer service department. You may contact Foothills Communications via regular mail at:

Foothills Communications

1621 Kentucky Route 40 West
Staffordsville, KY 41256

Phone: 888-262-3782

Privacy Policy Regarding the Collection and Use of Customer’s Social Security Number

1. How your social security number is collected.

We obtain your social security number when you apply for service. Additionally, we may obtain a social security number at the time of processing Capital Credits.

2. How your social security number is used.

Your social security number is obtained because we will be extending credit to you by billing you after the services have been provided to you.

3. How do we protect your social security number?

We are sensitive to your concerns that your social security number might fall into the wrong hands, which could result in identity theft or general access to your personal information by unauthorized persons.

Your Application for service, and any other documents containing your social security number, are filed in a secure location to which only authorized personnel have access. Personnel who receive your Application have strict instructions to immediately transport such documents to the secure area and to not permit such documents to remain on desks, in baskets or elsewhere in public work areas where they could be seen by unauthorized individuals. Personnel are prohibited from copying or in any way duplicating documents containing your social security number except duplication for an authorized purpose.

Your social security number does not appear in electronic form accessible on our network by any individuals not authorized to have access to your social security numbers. Firewalls, passwords and other safeguards have been installed in our network to restrict access to your social security number to those employees so authorized. Employees authorized to have access to your social security numbers are prohibited from saving your social security number, in any fashion, on a the hard drive of any laptop or other stand alone computer not saving data on our network.

We will not include your social security number on any documents, such as monthly statements, for which it serves no purpose. We need your social security number on file for the purposes stated but will not use it unnecessarily so as to limit the opportunity for it to be inadvertently disseminated.

All employees who will come in contact with your social security number are provided initial training before they are permitted to handle any document containing social security numbers and will be reminded, through periodical updated training, of the importance of protecting the privacy of social security numbers and our policies which have been designed to insure such protection, asserting the need to safeguard customers’ social security numbers. Before discarding any customer records, employees are to shred any portion of the records which contain a customer’s social security number.

4. Who can access your social security number?

Authorized employees will have access to documents containing your social security number.

If your account is turned over for collection purposes and the attorney/collection agency requests your social security number to assist in collection proceedings, we will provide your number to them as our agent.

If we receive a subpoena or Court order compelling us to turn your records over to a law enforcement agency or investigator or to a party in connection with a legal proceeding, then we will release them, including your social security number, as required by law. If the subpoena is issued in a civil matter, you should have the opportunity to seek a protective order or to quash the subpoena to protect the confidentiality of your information.

5. How will we eventually dispose of your social security number?

Even after you terminate service and pay all amounts owed to us on your account, we will retain your records in accordance with our record retention policy and this privacy policy. We may need your information for processing Capital Credits and will need to retain this information for a number of years. If we elect to destroy your records in accordance with our policy, the records containing your social security number will be shredded and any electronic records containing your social security number will be permanently deleted.

Broadband Internet Service – Privacy Policy

Foothills Rural Telephone Cooperative (“Foothills” or “Company”) is committed to protecting its Broadband Internet service customers’ privacy. Users should review this privacy policy to better understand Foothills’s views and practices, and how they pertain to them as customers of Foothill’s web service.

What types of information does Foothills collect?

Foothills may collect two types of information: personal information and non-personal information. “Personal information” refers to information that is particular to you, such as, your name, address, phone number, fax number, and e-mail address. “Non-personal information” refers to information that does not by itself identify a specific individual. This information may include Foothills’s website Uniform Resource Locator (“URL”) that you just came from, what browser you are using and your Internet Protocol (“IP”) address.

How do we collect information from you?

In general, Foothills does not collect personal information on this site without your knowledge and active participation. You may visit our site without divulging any personal information; however, there are areas of this site that might require personal information in order to contactFoothills directly, specifically, when registering e-mails, obtaining remote access, and contacting online technical support.

Information is collected on this site in the following ways:

• Browsing our site

Foothills may collect IP addresses for the purposes of system administration, to gather broad demographic information, and to monitor the level of activity on our site. Foothills may collect information from visitors to our site regarding the referring URL, your IP address, which browser you used to come to our site, and the pages of our site that you viewed during your visit and any search terms entered on our site.

• Cookies

“Cookies” are small pieces of information that are stored by your browser on your computer hard drive. Our cookies do not contain any personally identifying information. Your web browser may allow you to be notified when you are receiving a cookie, giving you the choice to accept it or not. While you can still navigate through our site if you do not accept cookies, you may not be able to register for e-mails or obtain remote access from Foothills.

• E-mail

As noted above, on Foothills’s website, you are given the opportunity to send e-mail to us.Foothills retains the information in any e-mail that you send to us, such as your name, e-mail address, address, telephone number, etc. Foothills may periodically send you e-mails or other company information. Foothills will not send you e-mails if you have previously requested us not to do so and/or have not registered to receive them.

Foothills reserves the right to access broadband traffic from individual accounts for the purposes of general maintenance and management of the network, as well as upon request by law enforcement officials.

How is your personal information used?

Foothills uses your information in connection with delivering its products and services to you. More importantly, Foothills wants to deliver a compelling online experience that will keep customers coming back to visit the service again and again. Foothills uses the information supplied to it as a means to personalize portions of the service. Some of these personalized services are made available directly by Foothills, while others may be offered by its content partners. In addition, Foothills analyzes and evaluates customer preferences, comments, and criticisms of its offerings in order to make improvements to the present and future versions of the service.

Foothills uses the personal information it collects to provide you with information or samples that you have requested. In addition, we use the non-personal information we collect to provide you with a better site experience in the future. Foothills does not rent, sell or trade your private information to any non-affiliated third party.

Who is collecting your information?

While you are on Foothills’s website, the Company may collect non-personal and e-mail information. In addition, we will provide links in Foothills’s website to third party websites.Foothills is not responsible for the third party websites. Foothills urges you to review carefully the privacy policies posted on these sites. Foothills cannot guarantee the accuracy of the information found on these sites. Please be aware that Foothills does not control, nor are we responsible for, the privacy policies of third parties or their company websites. This Privacy Statement applies only to Foothills and the information we collect on our site.

With whom do we share your information?

As described above, some of your information may be shared with third parties as a result of your navigation to the third party web site. In addition and with your prior authorization, we may, in the future, need to share certain personal or non-personal information with our affiliated companies with whom we have established business relationships.

Foothills will never willfully disclose individually identifiable information about its customers to a third party without first receiving that customer’s permission unless Foothills believes in good faith that the law requires it, or to protect the rights or property of Foothills.

How does Foothills protect your personal information?

Foothills takes reasonable precautions to protect your personal information against unauthorized access by storing the information on a secure server, which is accessible only by authorized personnel.

Unfortunately, no data transmission over the Internet can be guaranteed to be 100% secure and we will not be held liable should a third party illegally obtain your personal information. While we have made significant efforts to protect your personal information, we cannot ensure or warrant the security of any information you transmit to us, and you do so at your own risk.

Foothills takes special care to protect the safety and privacy of young people using its services. The Foothills site does not knowingly collect information about children and the majority of its site is not specifically directed to children. Foothills believes that children should get their parents’ consent before giving out any personal information. Foothills encourages parents and legal guardians to participate in their child’s experience on its website. Children should always ask a parent for permission before sending personal information to Foothills, or to anyone on the Internet.

How do you provide consent?

By using Foothills’s website, you agree with our Privacy Statement and our policies and procedures contained herein regarding the collection and sharing of your information.

How often are changes made to the Privacy Statement and how will you learn of the changes?

Foothills reserves the right to change, modify or update this Privacy Statement at any time without notice. In the event of any modification, we will post the changes in this Privacy Statement so that you will always know what information we are gathering and how we might use that information. However, if such changes are material, we will either announce the change on the home page of the site or take such other action as we deem appropriate under the circumstances. Accordingly, you should periodically visit this page to determine the current Privacy Statement to which you are bound.

In compliance with the Federal Communications Commission’s Substantive Rules 16 C.F.R. §681.2(b)(5), Foothills Communications is providing this notice to advise you of your rights concerning identity theft and Red Flag Rules. Foothills Communications has developed and implemented a written Identity Theft Prevention Program to detect, prevent, and mitigate identity theft in connection with the opening of certain accounts or certain existing accounts. The Foothills Communications program addresses methods of identifying, detecting, and preventing Red Flags. Foothills Communications makes every effort to detect Red Flags, such as by obtaining identifying information about and verifying the identity of a person opening an account. Foothills Communications also authenticates customers, monitors transactions and verifies the validity of change of address requests. In order to prevent Identity Theft, Foothills Communications will not open a new account and will close an existing account and notify law enforcement if Red Flags are detected.

Prohibition against the Use of Service for Illegal Robocalling

Definition

Illegal Robocalls are calls generated by autodialers for commercial purposes without the permission of the called party. These calls may be from a recorded voice or be auto transferred to a live agent; they will often appear from a disguised number; and they will either claim a pre- existing business relationship (“car warranty” or “Microsoft refund”) or disguise their commercial intent with false claims of fraudulent activity (“IRS notice” or “Amazon account hack”).

Robocalls for non-commercial reasons (school closings, political notices, for example) or for commercial reasons with the telephone owner’s prior consent (utility bill payment or appointment reminders, for example) are legal and permitted.

Screening of Use of Service – New Orders

To mitigate illegal robocalling, we will screen new service requests:

• We will not deploy large volume calling capability as a residential service or at an address shown in the company records as being residential
• Business requesting large volume calling capability must provide a tax ID and verification as to the nature of the business
• We verify addresses to look for overlapping / multiple deployed voice path subscriptions
• A company representative may visit the premise of the business to verify the number of users at the location is appropriate for the volume of calling paths requested

Screening of Use of Service – Existing Customers

We will monitor usage of our network to look for flags that suggest illegal robocalling is occurring
and investigate as warranted. If notified by a third party that suspected illegal robocalling is occurring within our network, will investigate such complaints. Any such investigations will be at our sole discretion.

During the course of investigating any such complaints we may be required to review your calling patterns and release information about your calls or your service to third parties as required and permitted by law.

Investigation and Resolution of Illegal Robocalling

We are permitted but not required to investigate any claims of illegal robocalling in whatever manner
we believe is appropriate based on the nature of the claim. Such investigation may include contacting the alleged robocaller to review and resolve, if possible, the complaint. If we are unable to resolve the complaint or you fail to respond to us, we may suspend or terminate your service with or without advanced notice. AT OUR SOLE DISCRETION, WE MAY CHOOSE TO REFUSE SERVICES THAT WE BELIEVE MAY BE USED FOR ILLEGAL ROBOCALLING.

Foothills Communications (foothills.net) Web Site (the “Service”) is an on-line document presentment and payment service provided by Foothills Communications. It is recommended that all payment authorizations be received by Foothills Communications at least three (3) business days before the actual due date, not the late date, to allow processing time and prevent late payments.

Please read this Agreement carefully before accessing or using the Service. By accessing or using the Service, you agree to be bound by the terms and conditions below. If you do not accept the terms and conditions of this Agreement, you may not access or use the Service. Foothills Communications may modify this Agreement from time to time, and such modifications shall be effective immediately upon posting of the modified Agreement. By continuing to access or use the Service following such modifications, you agree to be bound by the modified Agreement.

Document Presentment and Payment Services. By accessing the Service, you authorize

1. Foothills Communications to establish and maintain your documents and payment authorizations and
2. Foothills Communications to process your payments according to your instructions.

When Foothills Communications receives a payment authorization, you authorize Foothills Communications to charge your transaction account and remit funds on your behalf so that the funds arrive as close to the business day designated by you as reasonably possible. While it is anticipated that Foothills Communications will complete most transactions within twenty-four (24) hours of the day designated, it is understood that due to circumstances beyond the control of Foothills Communications, particularly delays in handling and posting payments by slow-responding companies or financial institutions, some transactions may take a day or even a few days longer.

For this reason, it is recommended that all payment authorizations be received by Foothills Communications at least three (3) business days before the actual due date, not the late date. If you properly follow the procedures described herein, and Foothills Communications fails to process payment authorizations in a timely manner, Foothills Communications will not impose any additional fees or charges for late payments. In any other event, including, but not limited to, sending a payment authorization less than three (3) days prior to the actual due date, the risk of incurring and the responsibility for paying any and all late charges or penalties shall be borne by you.

Foothills Communications will use its best efforts to process all your payment authorizations promptly and properly. However, Foothills Communications shall incur no liability if it is unable to complete any payments initiated by you because of the existence of any one or more of the following circumstances:

1. Your account does not contain sufficient funds to complete the transaction or the transaction would exceed the credit limit of your overdraft account.
2. You have not provided Foothills Communications with correct names or account information.
3. Circumstances beyond Foothills Communication’s control (such as, but not limited to, fire, flood, or interference from an outside force) prevent the proper transmission of your payment authorization and Foothills Communications has taken reasonable precautions to avoid those circumstances.

Provided none of the foregoing, three (3) exceptions to the Foothills Communications performance obligations are applicable, Foothills Communications shall be responsible for properly directing the payment authorization.

THE FOREGOING SHALL CONSTITUTE Foothills COMMUNICATION’S ENTIRE LIABILITY AND YOUR EXCLUSIVE REMEDY HEREUNDER.

Authorization of payment of taxes or court-directed payment through the Service is prohibited.

Password and Security. The Service will be accessible through a password chosen by you. You agree not to give or make available your password to any unauthorized individuals. If you believe that your password has been lost or stolen or that someone may attempt to use your password without your consent or has authorized payments without your permission, you must notify Foothills Communications at once.

You must not restrict or inhibit any other Foothills Communications customer from using the Service. You may not send any unlawful, fraudulent, libelous, defamatory, obscene, pornographic, threatening, offensive, or otherwise objectionable information of any kind. You may not use the Service to conduct any illegal activity or solicit the performance of any illegal activity, including without limitation the U.S. export control laws and regulations.

In the event Your Bank Returns a Transaction. In using the Service, you are requesting Foothills Communications to make payments for you from your designated transaction account. If your financial institution, or the holder of the account from which you have designated payment is unable to process a transaction (for example, there are not sufficient funds in your account to cover the transaction), the transaction may not be completed.

Types of Payments and Limitations on Payees

You may use the Service to authorize payment from an account that you designate. Foothills Communications reserves the right to refuse to pay any person or entity to whom you may direct a payment. Foothills Communications is obligated to notify you promptly if they decide to refuse to pay a person or entity designated by you. This notification is not required if you attempt to pay tax or court-related payments, which are prohibited under this Agreement.

Charges

Foothills Communications reserves the right to charge a fee for receiving a document electronically and/or making electronic payments.

EXCLUSION OF WARRANTIES

FOOTHILLS COMMUNICATIONS IS PROVIDING THE SERVICE “AS IS” WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, THE IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, NON INFRINGEMENT AND TITLE. FOOTHILLS COMMUNICATIONS DOES NOT WARRANT THAT THE SERVICE IS ERROR-FREE, OR THAT ACCESS TO AND USE OF THE SERVICE WILL BE UNINTERRUPTED OR ERROR-FREE.

LIMITATION OF LIABILITY

IN NO EVENT SHALL FOOTHILLS COMMUNICATIONS OR ITS LICENSORS OR SUPPLIERS BE LIABLE FOR ANY DAMAGES WHATSOEVER (INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, DIRECT, INDIRECT, SPECIAL OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES) ARISING OUT OF THE DELIVERY, PERFORMANCE, OR USE OF THE SERVICE, WHETHER INCURRED BY YOU OR ANY THIRD PARTY, EVEN IF FOOTHILLS COMMUNICATIONS OR ITS LICENSORS OR SUPPLIERS HAVE BEEN ADVISED OR MAY OTHERWISE KNOW OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES. IF ANY LIABILITY IS IMPOSED ON FOOTHILLS COMMUNICATIONS, ITS LICENSORS OR SUPPLIERS, FOOTHILLS COMMUNICATION’S AND ITS LICENSORS OR SUPPLIERS TOTAL LIABILITY TO YOU OR ANY THIRD PARTY SHALL NOT EXCEED THE AMOUNT YOU PAID FOR THE SERVICE. Some jurisdictions prohibit exclusion or limitation of liability for implied warranties or consequential or incidental damages, so the above limitation may not apply to you. You may also have other legal rights that vary from jurisdiction to jurisdiction.

Assignment

You may not assign this Agreement to any other party. Foothills Communications may assign this Agreement to any future, directly or indirectly, affiliated company. Foothills Communications may also assign or delegate certain of its rights and responsibilities under this Agreement to independent contractors or other third parties.

General

This Agreement constitutes the entire agreement and supersedes any prior agreements or understandings, oral or written, between Foothills Communications and you concerning the Service. Failure or delay in enforcing any right or provision of this agreement shall not be deemed a waiver of such provision or right with respect to any subsequent breach or a continuance of an existing breach. If any provision of this Agreement shall be held to be unenforceable that provision will be enforced to the maximum extent possible, and the remaining provisions of this Agreement will remain in full force and effect.

By accessing or using the Service, you agree to be bound by the terms and conditions herein. If you do not accept the terms and conditions of this Agreement, you may not access or use the Service. Foothills Communications may modify this Agreement from time to time, and such modifications shall be effective immediately upon posting of the modified Agreement. By continuing to access or use the Service following such modifications, you agree to be bound by the modified Agreement.

Read the Terms of Service Agreement

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