Federal Register: FCC (Broadcasting)

In this document, the Federal Communications Commission (Commission) eliminates two public inspection file requirements: The requirement that commercial broadcast stations retain in their public inspection file copies of letters and emails from the public; and the requirement that cable operators maintain for public inspection the designation and location of the cable system's principal headend. Our actions will reduce regulatory burdens on commercial broadcasters and cable operators, advance regulatory parity with respect to our public file requirements among various program distributors, and improve security at local stations and principal headend locations.

In this document the Incentive Auction Task Force and the Media Bureau of the Federal Communications Commission (Commission) adopts: Updates to the categories of eligible equipment and services, as well as updated baseline costs, in the catalog of eligible reimbursement expenses (Catalog); an economic methodology for adjusting the Catalog's baseline costs annually such that they remain accurate, by using the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Producer Price Index, WPUFD4 series; and revisions to the online Reimbursement Form to incorporate the updates to the Catalog, which will be embedded in the Reimbursement Form, as well as other features, including checkboxes for entities to indicate if they are seeking upgrades or partial payment requests, which are designed to make it more user-friendly.

In this document, the Media Bureau, in consultation with the Incentive Auction Task Force, the Wireless Telecommunications Bureau, and the Office of Engineering and Technology, adopts a methodology to establish construction deadlines and transitions schedule for full power and Class A television stations that are transitioning to new channels following the incentive auction.

At the request of La Voz Latina (LVL) and Charles Crawford (Crawford), respectively, the Audio Division amends the FM Table of Allotments, by allotting Channel 278A at San Isidro, Texas, and deleting Channel 278A at Roma, Texas. Channel 278A at San Isidro, Texas, will be the community's second local service. The Audio Division, therefore, grants both LVL's counterproposal and Crawford's ``Withdrawal of Expression of Interest.'' A staff engineering analysis indicates Channel 278A can be allotted to San Isidro consistent with the minimum distance separation requirements of the Commission's rules with a site restriction 6 kilometers west of the community. The reference coordinates are 26-42-15 NL and 98-29-48 WL.

This document requests comments on a Petition for Rulemaking filed by Northwest Florida Media, LLC, proposing to amend the FM Table of Allotments, of the Commission's rules, by allotting Channel 295A at Fort Walton Beach, Florida, as a sixth local service. A staff engineering analysis indicates that Channel 295A can be allotted to Fort Walton Beach, consistent with the minimum distance separation requirements of the Commission's rules without a site restriction. The reference coordinates are 30-24-40 NL and 86-37-28 WL.

In this document, the Federal Communications Commission seeks comment on a proposed Transition Progress Report (FCC Form 2100-- Schedule 387 (Transition Progress Report)) and proposed filing requirements for periodic progress reports by full power and Class A television stations that are not eligible to receive payment of relocation expenses from the TV Broadcast Relocation Fund in connection with their being assigned to a new channel through the Incentive Auction. The Commission tentatively concludes that this mechanism is needed to help the Commission, broadcasters, those involved in construction of broadcast facilities, other interested parties, and the public to monitor the construction of the stations that are not eligible for reimbursement.

In this document, the Federal Communications Commission (Commission) describes the information that must be provided in periodic progress reports (FCC Form 2100--Schedule 387 (Transition Progress Report)) by full power and Class A television stations that are eligible to receive payment of relocation expenses from the TV Broadcast Relocation Fund in connection with their being assigned to a new channel through the Incentive Auction. The Commission previously determined that reimbursable stations must file reports showing how the disbursed funds have been spent and what portion of the stations' construction in complete. These Transition Progress Reports will help the Commission, broadcasters, those involved in construction of broadcast facilities, other interested parties, and the public to assess how disbursed funds have been spent and to monitor the construction of stations.

A Petition for Reconsideration (Petition) has been filed in the Commission's rulemaking proceeding by William J. Kirsch.

The Federal Communications Commission (Commission) published a document in the Federal Register of December 30, 2016, concerning petitions for reconsideration filed in the Commission's rulemaking proceeding. The date for filing replies was incorrect. This document corrects the filing deadline date for replies to an opposition to the Petitions.

Petitions for Reconsideration (Petitions) have been filed in the Commission's rulemaking proceeding by David Oxenford and Kelly Donohue, on behalf of Connoisseur Media, LLC.; Richard J. Bodorff et al., on behalf of Nexstar Broadcasting, Inc.; and Rick Kaplan et al., on behalf of National Association of Broadcasters.

The Audio Division dismisses the petition for rulemaking filed by 1TV.Com, Inc., (Petitioner), licensee of KIKO(FM), Claypool, Arizona, proposing to amend the FM Table of Allotments, by substituting noncommercial educational Channel *278A for Channel *296A at Pima, Arizona, to accommodate a hybrid application, requesting modification of the license for Station KIKO(FM) to specify operation on Channel 243C2 rather than Channel 247C2 at Claypool, Arizona. No comments or counterproposals were received by any parties. Petitioner did not file comments expressing a continuing interest in the proposed Pima allotment. It is the Commission's policy to refrain from making an allotment to a community absent an expression of interest. We will not allot Channel *278A at Pima, Arizona.

A Petition for Reconsideration (Petition) has been filed in the Commission's rulemaking proceeding by John R. Feore, on behalf of ION MEDIA NETWORKS, INC., and Colby M. May, on behalf of TRINITY CHRISTIAN CENTER OF SANTA ANA, INC.

In this Report and Order, the Federal Communications Commission (Commission) extends its streamlined foreign ownership rules and procedures that apply to common carrier and certain aeronautical licensees under Section 310(b)(4) of the Communications Act of 1934, as amended (the ``Act'') to broadcast licensees, with certain modifications to tailor them to the broadcast context. The Commission also reforms the methodology used by both common carrier and broadcast licensees that are, or are controlled by, U.S. public companies to assess compliance with the 20 percent foreign ownership limit in Section 310(b)(3), and the 25 percent foreign ownership benchmark in Section 310(b)(4) of the Act, in order to reduce regulatory burdens on applicants and licensees. Finally, the Commission makes certain technical corrections and clarifications to its foreign ownership rules.

This document proposes to amend the FM Table of Allotments, by substituting Channel 277A for vacant Channel 224A at Mullin, Texas, to accommodate the hybrid application requesting modification of the license for Station KNUZ(FM), San Saba, Texas to specify operation on Channel 224A rather than Channel 291A at San Saba, Texas. A staff engineering analysis indicates that Channel 277A can be allotted to Mullin consistent with the minimum distance separation requirements of the Commission's rules with site restriction 3.1 km (1.9 miles) north of the city. The reference coordinates are 31-35-00 NL and 98-40-31 WL.

This document retains the broadcast ownership rules with minor modifications in compliance with section 202(h) of the Telecommunications Act of 1996 which requires the Commission to review its broadcast ownership rules quadrennially to review these rules to determine whether they are necessary in the public interest as a result of competition. In addition, this document adopts an eligible entity definition pursuant to the remand of the Commission's 2008 Diversity Order by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit. This document also readopts the Television Joint Sales Agreement (JSA) Attribution Rule, which was vacated on procedural grounds by the Third Circuit. Lastly, this document adopts a definition of Shared Service Agreements (SSAs) and requires commercial television stations to disclose those SSAs by placing the agreements in each station's online public inspection file.

In this document the Media Bureau of the Federal Communications Commission (Commission) seeks comment on updates to the catalog of eligible reimbursement expenses (Catalog) which contains costs for equipment and services that broadcasters and multichannel- video-programming-distributors (MVPDs) may incur as a result of the post-incentive auction repack and channel reassignment. In order to disburse money from the $1.75 billion TV Broadcaster Relocation Fund in accordance with the Spectrum Act and the Incentive Auction Report and Order, the Media Bureau seeks comment on changes to the Catalog, which include: Increases to the baseline costs previously proposed, the addition of new categories of reimbursement expenses, and the removal of other categories of expenses due to discontinuance or technological advancements. The Media Bureau also seeks comment on a proposed economic methodology for adjusting the baseline costs listed in the Catalog annually throughout the three-year reimbursement period.

This document seeks comment on the proposal set forth by the Media Bureau, in consultation with the Incentive Auction Task Force, the Wireless Telecommunications Bureau, and the Office of Engineering and Technology, for developing a post-incentive auction transition scheduling plan. In preparing their submissions commenters should be mindful of the Commission's prohibited communications rule, which prohibits broadcasters and forward auction applicants from communicating any incentive auction applicant's bids or bidding strategies to other parties covered by the relevant rules.

This document eliminates the UHF discount from the calculation of the national television audience reach cap because it is no longer justified due to the transition to digital television. The discount attributes television stations broadcasting in the UHF spectrum with only 50 percent of the television households in their Designated Market Areas (DMAs). To avoid imposing undue harm on existing broadcast television station groups that exceed the national audience reach cap without the benefit of the UHF discount, this Report and Order grandfathers combinations: In existence on September 26, 2013 (Grandfather Date), the release date of the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) in this proceeding; created by a transaction that had received Commission approval on or before the Grandfather Date; and proposed in applications pending before the Commission on the Grandfather Date.

In this document, the Media Bureau (Bureau) dismisses as moot the Application for Review filed jointly by KZLZ, LLC (KZLZ) and Lakeshore Media, LLC, the current and former licensee, respectively, of Station KWCX-FM. While the AFR was pending, KZLZ filed a minor modification application to change the community of license of Station KWCX-FM from Willcox to Tanque Verde, Arizona. Once the requested facility modification to Station KWCX-FM was granted, the assignment at Willcox was deleted, and this in turn rendered moot any Section 307(b) comparison between Davis-Monthan AFB and the deleted Willcox assignment.

At the request of the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe, the Audio Division amends the FM Table of Allotments, by allotting Channel 228C1 at Eagle Butte, South Dakota, as the first local Tribal-owned service. A staff engineering analysis indicates that Channel 228C1 can be allotted to Eagle Butte consistent with the minimum distance separation requirements of the Commission's rules with no site restriction. The reference coordinates are 45-01-32 NL and 101- 14-22 WL.