And just like that, biennial ownership reports will not need to be filed for 1 1/2 years, thanks to a Media Bureau Public Notice distributed by the division of the FCC late Tuesday.
A temporary moratorium on filing the reports on FCC Form 323 or 323-E is now in place. Why? The Media Bureau, headed by Acting Chief Erin Boone, says, “With the next filing window approaching, we find there is good cause to waive the biennial ownership report filing requirement for a period of 18 months.”
As such, the new filing deadline is June 1, 2027 or until further notice, whichever comes first.
Until now, licensees of commercial and non-commercial full power television, Class A television, low power television, AM radio, and FM radio stations were required to file biennial ownership reports with the Commission in odd-numbered years.
The next filing window for biennial ownership reports was scheduled to open on October 2, with reports due by December 1. However, thanks to the FCC’s proceeding “In re: Delete, Delete, Delete,” multiple commenters have urged the Commission to revisit the current biennial ownership filing requirement, which they maintain is a costly and burdensome requirement without a sufficient offsetting public benefit.
The Media Bureau acquiesced, but notes the Public Notice does not pause requirements applicable to commercial and noncommercial full power television, AM radio, and FM radio stations to file a non-biennial ownership report in other instances required by section 73.3615 of the Commission’s rules, namely after the granting of an application for an original construction permit, with an application for a station license, and after the consummation of authorized assignments or transfers of permits and licenses.
