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Modernizing And Streamlining Broadcaster Application Notice Rules

Leo Migdal
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modernizing and streamlining broadcaster application notice rules

Prior to the May open meeting, the Federal Communications Commission has adopted the broadcast public notice Report and Order (MB Dockets 17-265, 17-105, 05-6). In the Order, the FCC made some monumental changes on how broadcasters comply with Section 311(a) of the Communications Act which requires all broadcast applicants to make a public notice of their application. This law was passed by Congress in the early 60s as part of a suite of legislation regarding broadcaster transparency in the wake of radio’s “payola” and television’s rigged quiz show scandals. The primary element of this proceeding was the elimination of the requirement that broadcast applicants purchase advertising in the newspaper of the greatest circulation for the community that was involved in the application. This is in reaction to the overall nature of the role of newspapers in modern American culture. All commercial applicants, as well as noncommercial applicants (including LPFM) without a working station (such as new entrants and licensees with silent stations) will now be required to place their public notices on a...

FM translators and boosters, regardless of their commercial status will also do online public notices. This website can be their station website, the applicant’s organization website or the parent corporation of the applicant’s website. Links must be on the home page for the website and must be in a conspicuous location, just like the required links full-service stations must have to their online public file and contest rules. Public notices on a website must run for 30 consecutive days and the display of the notice must begin within 5 days from the date of publication in the FCC’s Broadcast Applications or Applications... Prior to this Report and Order, there was never a regulation that required LPFM stations to follow the statutory requirements of §311(a). This was an apparent oversight that lasted for 20 years.

When the FCC created the LPFM service in 2000, several regulations that applied to full-service stations were not made applicable to LPFM stations. In April, the FCC mended a 20-year oversight on the filing of silent notifications and silent special temporary authority authorizations. In May, 2019, the Audio Division determined that LPFM stations were required by statute to make public notice announcements for license renewals. This Order is the final patch on those oversights under FCC Chairman William Kennard. Noncommercial applicants (including LPFM) that have a station on the air will make their public notice announcements over the air. Stations will be required to carry 6 announcements in a 4-week period with no more than 2 announcements per week.

Announcements must be broadcast anytime between the hours of 7 AM and 11 PM, Monday through Friday. Announcements must commence within 5 days from the date of publication in the FCC’s Broadcast Applications or Applications public notice that the application has been accepted for filing. Due to aggressive automated scraping of FederalRegister.gov and eCFR.gov, programmatic access to these sites is limited to access to our extensive developer APIs. If you are human user receiving this message, we can add your IP address to a set of IPs that can access FederalRegister.gov & eCFR.gov; complete the CAPTCHA (bot test) below and click "Request... This process will be necessary for each IP address you wish to access the site from, requests are valid for approximately one quarter (three months) after which the process may need to be repeated. An official website of the United States government.

If you want to request a wider IP range, first request access for your current IP, and then use the "Site Feedback" button found in the lower left-hand side to make the request. Changes aim to streamline filings and eliminate outdated procedures The FCC is continuing its housekeeping efforts with proposed updates to certain radio and TV rules. The commission published its Notice for Proposed Rulemaking in the Federal Register on Monday. As a result, comments may be filed through April 23, with reply comments due by May 8. As Radio World reported in December, the commission said these efforts are intended to “better reflect current application processing requirements, codify existing practices and remove references to outdated procedures and legacy filing systems.”

The move signals that Chairman Brendan Carr is advancing this set of proposals, which were initially introduced under former Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel. In December, all five FCC commissioners voted to open the NPRM. On May 13, 2020, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) released an Order modernizing the notice requirements associated with filing certain broadcast applications. These requirements apply to both TV and radio broadcasters, with the pertinent requirements depending upon the type of application being submitted. The current rule requires certain broadcast applicants to provide written notice in a local newspaper, other applicants to provide on-air public notice, and some applicants to provide both newspaper and on-air public notice. The new rule eliminates the newspaper publication requirement and replaces it with a requirement that a written public notice be posted online on a publicly accessible website that includes a link to the application.

On-air notices will direct listeners and viewers to the Commission's online databases where they can view and comment on the application. In lieu of requirements that broadcast station applicants publish public notice in local newspapers, "written" (as opposed to on-air) notice will require posting on a publicly accessible website for 30 days, beginning within five... In order of availability, online notice may be accomplished by posting on: Posting may be accomplished by inserting a tab or link at the top of the home page of the selected website conspicuously labeled "FCC Applications," that will link to a separate page containing the... A broadcaster that has an application (app) for its station, designed to be installed on users' mobile devices, must include in the app a link to the web page containing the full notice text. On May 13, 2020, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC or Commission) issued an order adopting significant changes to its requirements governing the way that broadcasters must provide the public with notice of a variety...

Most significantly, the FCC eliminated the requirement that broadcasters provide public notice of covered applications in a newspaper, substituting an online written public notice requirement in place of the decades-old newspaper publication mandate. The FCC also streamlined the content of on-air public notice announcements. Although the rule changes adopted in the Order will not go into effect until after a notice of their effectiveness is published in the Federal Register, the FCC also waived the requirement that broadcast... Additional details concerning the FCC’s Order are provided below. Elimination of Newspaper Publication Requirement The Order eliminates the requirement, adopted more than 50 years ago, that broadcasters provide public notice of covered applications in newspapers.

In taking this action to modernize its rules, the FCC recognizes that the newspaper publication requirement was costly to applicants and consumers, and less helpful to the public than an online public notice requirement... Modernization of regulations will strengthen local journalism, enhance public interest, and ensure broadcasters can compete in a digital age BISMARCK, N.D. – Despite the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) making modest adjustments to its broadcast ownership rules, the regulations remain nearly the same as they were in the 1990s. The minimal changes implemented since then fail to account for the rise of digital platforms, social media, streaming services, and smartphones. Local broadcasters are a trusted source for credible reporting, yet they face outdated ownership restrictions.

U.S. Senator Kevin Cramer (R-ND) joined U.S. Senator Jerry Moran (R-KS) in sending a letter to FCC Chairman Brendan Carr, requesting the agency modernize its broadcast ownership rules to enable local broadcasters to compete with today’s giant media conglomerates. The letter echoes Chairman Carr’s characterization of the failure to modernize regulations as a “break glass moment” for local media. Specifically, the letter calls on the FCC to repeal the national audience reach cap, update local television (TV) ownership limits, and modernize local radio station sub-caps. The FCC’s national audience reach cap limits a single entity's ability to own TV stations, which collectively reach more than 39% of U.S.

TV households. Another regulation imposed by the agency, known as the “Top 4” rule, also restricts the number of big four broadcast TV networks a company can own. This rule applies to ABC, CBS, Fox, and NBC. The FCC’s arcane local radio ownership sub-caps limit the number of stations an organization can own per market based on the total number of stations within the market. In a radio market with more than 45 stations, an entity may own up to eight radio stations. No more than five of the stations can be in the same service (AM or FM).

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FM translators and boosters, regardless of their commercial status will also do online public notices. This website can be their station website, the applicant’s organization website or the parent corporation of the applicant’s website. Links must be on the home page for the website and must be in a conspicuous location, just like the required links full-service stations must have to their online ...

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If You Want To Request A Wider IP Range, First

If you want to request a wider IP range, first request access for your current IP, and then use the "Site Feedback" button found in the lower left-hand side to make the request. Changes aim to streamline filings and eliminate outdated procedures The FCC is continuing its housekeeping efforts with proposed updates to certain radio and TV rules. The commission published its Notice for Proposed Rulem...