Judge OKs KOCE sale to local foundation

Marisa O’Neil

The Coast Community College District did not violate state law when

it chose to sell PBS channel KOCE-TV to the station’s fundraising

wing rather than accepting an all-cash bid from a religious

broadcaster, a judge ruled Monday.

The ruling denied Daystar Television’s claim that it, not the

KOCE-TV Foundation, should be allowed to buy the station from the

district. Foundation and district officials expressed relief at Judge

Corey Cramin’s decision, but Daystar officials vowed to appeal the

case.

“We’re going forward,” foundation President Bob Brown said outside

the courtroom. “We haven’t stopped going forward and we’ll continue

to go forward.”

Daystar’s attorneys claim that the network’s $25.1-million cash

bid should have been named the highest responsible bid by district

trustees in October. Attorney Richard Lloyd Sherman argued that

Daystar’s bid had a higher value than the foundation’s bid of $32

million on a long-term note, since revised to $28 million.

The state education code says that community college districts may

sell property “for cash” to the “highest responsible bidder.

While attorneys haggled over the definition of the words “cash”

and “responsible,” Cramin found another word in the code that made

those points moot.

“The operative statutory word in [the code] is ‘may’ sell for

cash,” he wrote in his opinion. “‘May’ is permissive, not mandatory.

Therefore, the court finds the acceptance of bids was not confined to

only cash bids.”

The Coast Community College District, he wrote, did not violate

the law by considering all factors of the sale.

“I think the main point is that the board had the discretion and,

indeed, duty to consider all factors of what’s responsible,” said

Milford Dahl, the attorney representing the district.

According to a survey taken last year, Orange County residents

supported preserving KOCE-TV’s PBS format, something the foundation

has promised to do. But that comes at the cost of the students,

Sherman said, who would benefit from the instant infusion of $25.1

million from his client.

“This is based on what [the judge] feels is best for the

community, not what’s best for the school district,” Sherman said of

the decision. “It’s not the proper basis for the code section. It’s

supposed to be what will pump the most money in.”

Daystar argued that the foundation was not financially solvent

enough to complete the deal, but the judge referred to its long track

record of fundraising.

The KOCE-TV Foundation filed a license transfer application with

the FCC last Monday, Brown said, and the process will likely take 60

to 90 days. He said they will “absolutely” have the $8 million due at

that time.

Now that the case is over, at least for the time being, he expects

donations from people who were waiting for the outcome.

“This has been a black cloud hanging over our heads,” he said of

the lawsuit. “We’ll make some calls this afternoon.”

Marcus Lamb, president of the Dallas-based Christian broadcaster,

said in a written statement that he was disappointed by the ruling

but plans to pursue and appeal.

“It will be up to the appellate court to re-look at this entire

situation,” Lamb said. “If they follow the law, I’m confident Daystar

will ultimately win, and in turn, so will the students and their

teachers.”