Seattle Community Access Network (SCAN) was a nonprofit organization contracted by the City of Seattle to manage Seattle’s public access television stations (also known as SCAN or Channel 29/77) from August 1999 to December 2011. SCAN was funded by cable franchise fees that were passed to the City of Seattle from the cable company, then placed in a fund for public, educational, and government access television which was managed by the Department of Information Technology. A portion of that fund was then allocated to SCAN to run the stations, along with public donations.

For a small fee, residents of King County could produce their own show to be viewed on the channel as long as it didn’t include any commercial promotion. Shows ranged widely in topic, including religion, conspiracy theories, vintage cars and political commentary. In 2011 the City Council cut 90% of SCAN’s funding and with their contract ending the same year, another organization (The Seattle Community College District) took over management of the public access channels.

Records include SCAN board meeting agendas and minutes, along with financial reports, channel usage reports, and some literature published by SCAN (e.g., brochures and newsletters). The materials address how SCAN allocated its budget, how they raised additional funding, and how the board reviewed station policies.