Remember our article in February about the Federal Communications Commission (“FCC” or the “Commission”) eliminating a requirement for certain broadcast television and radio stations to file a Broadcast Mid-Term Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) Report (a/k/a Form 397)? If you’re a regular CommLawBlog reader you might have noticed that fact in our monthly deadlines articles too. … Continue Reading
On May 9, 2019, the Federal Communications Commission (“FCC” or the “Commission”) issued a Report and Order in which it adopted new procedures used to resolve interference complaints against FM translator stations. We previously blogged about the proposed reforms to the complaint procedures in a May 21, 2018 article. Sections 74.1203(a) and 74.1204(f) of the … Continue Reading
The Federal Communications Commission (“FCC”) has released a tentative Report and Order, scheduled for a vote on July 10, which, if adopted, will lift many restrictions from the Educational Broadband Service (EBS), including allowing educational institutions to sell their licenses to commercial entities and eliminating the requirement that 5% of system capacity be reserved for … Continue Reading
The Federal Emergency Management Agency (“FEMA”) in coordination with the Federal Communications Commission (“FCC” or the “Commission”), will conduct a nationwide test of the Emergency Alert System (“EAS”) on August 7th, at 2:20 pm EDT. If conditions such as a real emergency or other unforeseen circumstances occur on the day of the test, a backup … Continue Reading
The Federal Communications Commission (“FCC” or the “Commission”) on June 4 released in a Public Notice streamlined financial information instructions for full-power/Class A TV stations receiving repack reimbursement that have changed their banking information or have sold or acquired an eligible station and need to transfer the banking information to the new owner. Eligible entities … Continue Reading
Broadband on Capitol Hill House Democrats have unveiled their $2 trillion dollar infrastructure package called the “Leading Infrastructure for Tomorrow’s America Act” (LIFT America Act). A House hearing was held May 22 with testimony from, among others, former FCC Commissioner Clyburn. The legislation includes $45 billion in broadband funding: $30 billion in reverse auction funds to … Continue Reading
Broadcast Deadlines: June 1, 2019: License Renewal Pre-Filing Announcements – Radio stations located in North Carolina and South Carolina must begin broadcasts of their pre-filing announcements with regard to their applications for renewal of the license. These announcements must be continued on June 16, July 1, and July 16.… Continue Reading
By a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking adopted on May 9, the Federal Communications Commission (“FCC”) sought comment on whether it should open the 1675-1680 MHz band for non-federal government mobile use. This marks the very plodding next step in a process that began back in 2012 when Ligado (then still known as Light Squared) petitioned … Continue Reading
Broadband on Capitol Hill Although optimism for a broadband infrastructure spending bill this year is fading, it is still a possibility. Senate Minority Leader Schumer (D-NY) and House Speaker Pelosi (D‑CA) plan met with President Trump today to discuss infrastructure legislation. Schumer recently said that an overall infrastructure plan (including broadband and traditional infrastructure such … Continue Reading
Broadcast Deadlines: April 29, 2019: Quadrennial Review of Broadcast Ownership Rules – Comments are due with regard to the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (MB Docket 18-349, FCC-18-179A1) which initiated the required 2018 Quadrennial Review of broadcast ownership rules.… Continue Reading
Fletcher, Heald & Hildreth’s Frank Montero, Steve Lovelady, and Dan Kirkpatrick recently presented a webinar about Online Public Inspection Files (OPIFs). The webinar, in collaboration with the broadcast associations of Arkansas, Colorado, Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi, New Jersey, New Mexico, Oregon, and Tennessee in addition to the Public Radio Regional Organizations, covered a variety of topics, … Continue Reading
Has it been eight years already? It’s hard to believe, but yes – the license renewal cycle for radio stations is about to start over again, with preparatory on-air announcements already in progress. The TV cycle will start next year. In a Public Notice released today, The Federal Communications Commission’s (“FCC” or the “Commission”) Media … Continue Reading
On March 15, 2019, the Federal Communications Commission (“FCC” or the “Commission”) released a notice of proposed rulemaking (“NPRM”) seeking comment on how the Commission can improve its secondary market rules for spectrum transactions. Specifically, the FCC wants to know whether and how it can improve its secondary market rules to get more spectrum in … Continue Reading
The Federal Communications Commission (“FCC” or the “Commission”) has opened a new frontier in the amount of spectrum available for unlicensed and experimental operations, adopting rules covering frequencies between 95 GHz and 3 THz (3,000 GHz).… Continue Reading
[Editor’s Note: This is part 2 of a 2-part series. Part 1, addressing repack funds for LPTV and TV Translator stations, is available here] As we reported in August 2018, the Federal Communications Commission (“FCC” or “Commission”) at that time released a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking laying out how it would parcel out reimbursement funds … Continue Reading
[Editor’s Note: This is part 1 of a two part series. Part 2, addressing repack funds for FM stations, will be available tomorrow] As we reported in August 2018, the Federal Communications Commission (“FCC” or “Commission”) at that time released a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking laying out how it would parcel out reimbursement funds for … Continue Reading
Broadcast Deadlines: April 1, 2019: License Renewal Pre-Filing Announcements – Radio stations located in the District of Columbia, Maryland, Virginia, and West Virginia must begin their pre-filing announcements with regard to their applications for renewal of license. These announcements must be continued on April 16, May 1, and May 16.… Continue Reading
In December we reported that the Federal Communications Commission (“FCC” or the “Commission”) commenced their 2018 Quadrennial Review of media ownership rules by adopting a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (“NPRM”). On February 28, that NPRM was published in the Federal Register, establishing the comment and reply comment dates in the proceeding. Comments on the NPRM … Continue Reading
The Federal Communications Commission (“FCC” or the “Commission”) continued its long-running fight against unwanted robocalls earlier this month, but the steps the Commission proposed may not make a significant impact immediately. On Friday, February 15th, the FCC released a notice of proposed rulemaking (“NPRM”) seeking comment on issues associated with implementing new caller ID spoofing … Continue Reading
There’s a green wave coming in the form of expanding marijuana legalization across the US, and many of the people trying to take advantage of this green wave are also trying to turn it into another kind of green: money. Broadcasters are also looking to take advantage of these new revenue opportunities, but because marijuana … Continue Reading
Broadcast Deadlines – March 11, 2019: Additional Steps to Revitalize the AM Radio Service – Reply comments are due in response to the Federal Communications Commission (“FCC” or the “Commission”) Second Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking with regard to revised alternative proposals regarding interference protection to Class A AM radio stations.… Continue Reading
Anyone who has filed an application for a new noncommercial educational (NCE) station or a new Low Power FM (LPFM) station knows that many traps beset the unwary throughout the process. If you fall into one of those traps, your chance of success can be severely injured. On Valentine’s Day, the Federal Communications Commission (“FCC” … Continue Reading
On February 14, 2019, the Federal Communications Commission (“FCC,” or the “Commission”) released a Report and Order in which it eliminated the requirement that certain broadcast television and radio stations file a Broadcast Mid-Term Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) Report (Form 397). As we reported back in January, the FCC found that the Form 397 reporting … Continue Reading
As we reported back in December, the Federal Communications Commission (“FCC”) issued a Report and Order that would eliminate the need to post and maintain broadcast licenses at a physical location. The Commission’s stated goal is to modernize U.S. “media rules and remove unnecessary regulatory burdens that impede competition and innovation in the media marketplace.” … Continue Reading
