Dates to Remember
January 10, 2026
TV, Class A, AM & FM Stations (commercial... Read More
The FCC Commissioners meet on December 18, 2025 and have published an agenda that includes consideration of a Report and Order in a proceeding begun by the prior administration that contemplated new regulations for LPTV stations. A draft of the Order has been published and several items are particularly relevant in the context of new […]
Read More →In a November 17th Public Notice, the FCC reset its previously announced schedule of dates for Class A, LPTV and TV translator major change applications and for new LPTV and TV translator station applications. A freeze on major change applications remains in effect until it is lifted on December 18. A temporary freeze on minor […]
Read More →First Business Day After Normal FCC Operations Resume Per the FCC’s Oct 1 public notice, all deadlines during the government shutdown are extended until the first business day after normal operations resume. This includes the 3rd quarter issues/programs lists that were due October 10 and the EEO audit responses that were due October 17, among […]
Read More →As of this writing, with no end in sight, the FCC’s main functions are shut down along with the government. Virtually every broadcaster (unless exempt) will have actions to take as soon as the government reopens and the FCC databases become available. The FCC extended all deadlines during the shutdown to the first business day […]
Read More →At its monthly meeting, the FCC Commissioners unanimously voted to move forward with the fifth proposed rulemaking related to use of the ATSC 3.0 “Next Gen” transmission standard for broadcast television, recognizing that several years have passed since it adopted rules allowing stations to voluntarily transition to ATSC 3.0 so long as a 1.0 signal […]
Read More →The FCC’s foreign sponsorship identification rules for broadcasters have been around for a few years, requiring disclosures when foreign governments or their agents purchase air time on commercial stations. The FCC recently announced the effectiveness of a revised part of the rule allowing stations to optionally use two short “forms” when assessing whether a buyer […]
Read More →October 1, 2025 Radio and TV Stations located in Alaska, American Samoa, Guam, Hawaii, Marianas Islands, Oregon, Washington, Iowa, Missouri and Florida: if five (5) full time employee threshold is met, prepare EEO public file report covering the period from October 1, 2024 – September 30, 2025, upload it to the station online public inspection […]
Read More →The FCC Enforcement Bureau extended to October 17 the deadline for broadcast stations included in the current random EEO Audit to complete and upload responses to their online files. In addition, the extension notice clarified a few important items. Based on feedback the FCC received from over 50 attorneys on a recent zoom call that […]
Read More →The FCC’s October 3 deadline is fast approaching for all broadcast stations (unless exempt) to prepare and submit ETRS Form One in the FCC’s online ETRS system. This report is required to be filed once annually to update station EAS equipment, software, monitoring stations/sources, and contact personnel for testing. Stations must log into ETRS using […]
Read More →For those still thinking that an ownership report is due this fall, the Media Bureau previously issued a public notice waiving the requirement to file those reports through June 1, 2027 or “until further notice.” This waiver was the first significant industry-wide regulatory relief arising from the FCC’s deregulatory push. Non-biennial ownership reporting is not […]
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