Washington Beat

If you seek any of the FCC's Commissioners on Friday, you no longer need to wait until they return from the Presidents' Day Federal holiday on Tuesday, Feb. 20. Each of the Commissioners had been called to testify this week before the powerful House Energy & Commerce Committee's Subcommittee on Communications and Technology to discuss the FCC's budget. But, the Subcommittee just cancelled the gathering.

The NAB on Monday announced the inaugural recipient of its new NAB Broadcast Champion Award. The honor recognizes a member of Congress "who demonstrates exemplary leadership and commitment to strengthening the future of radio and television, recognizing broadcasters’ vital role in our local communities." Its choice for the first honor: The lead co-sponsor of the Local Radio Freedom Act.

He was House Majority Leader of the Oregon State Legislature during an eight-year tenure in Salem. He was a key figure on the sidelines of the power House Energy & Commerce Committee, and since May 2016 served in a key lobbying role for the NAB.  Ray Baum's career took him from the Nation's Capital to the surf of Cannon Beach. Baum is the latest victim of cancer, and has passed away after a multi-year fight against the disease.

Monday was a busy day for the FCC's four Commissioners and its Chairman, Ajit Pai. Meetings were held across the day with several advisors in tow, with the discussion ranging from the FCC's AM-FM subcaps rules to rural radio policy repeal and the FCC's Class C4 facility proposal. Participating in these meetings, representing broadcasters, were the leaders of the National Association of Black Owned Broadcasters (NABOB) and the Multicultural Media, Telecom and Internet Council (MMTC).

The "CLASSICS Act" appears to be gaining some steam on Capitol Hill. With 25 co-sponsors of legislation introduced in July 2017 by retiring Republican Rep. Darrell Issa (Calif.) — including 10 bipartisan House members signing on since Feb. 2 — there is now companion legislation in the upper body of Congress.

Regular Media Information Bureau columnist Ken Benner is full of glee today, thanks to the establishment — or substantial enhancement — of the FCC's Consumer Advisory Committee. Among the issues the committee may consider is the "implementation of Commission rules and consumer participation in the FCC rulemaking process." What does this mean for you? Benner explains it all. 

Morgantown may be the home of West Virginia University, but for viewers of DBS providers such as DirecTV and DISH Network it wasn't the home of network affiliates based in an area to the south of the city. That's now changed, thanks to a successful petition filed with the Commission that brings stations owned by Gray Television and Nexstar Media Group to this all-important city in the Mountaineer State.

Could another incentive auction be on the way for broadcast television owners? While that question could be premature, there's a push for the federal government to "free up more spectrum for commercial licensed and unlicensed use." This would, in the view of a bipartisan group of House Members, "bring 5G wireless service closer to reality and help close the digital divide."

"Ensuring Effective and Reliable Alerts and Warnings" is a top concern of the Homeland Security Committee, and a Tuesday hearing convened by the Subcommittee on Emergency Preparedness, Response and Communications provided House members with an opportunity to hear from government and industry stakeholders about the current state of emergency alerts and warnings. Among those testifying on Capitol Hill: NAB EVP/CTO Sam Matheny.

In this concluding Media Information Bureau column, featured columnist Ken Benner offers more insight and advice for individuals — and media companies — who wish to call on his 55 years of experience providing service to the broadcast industry by recruiting more Alternative Broadcast Inspection Program (ABIP) certification inspectors.

"We are already a full month into the New Year, and the regulatory issues for broadcasters keep on coming," says Wilkinson Barker Knauer Partner David Oxenford. What does this mean for radio and TV station owners? "February brings the usual requirements for annual EEO Public File Reports," he says. There's also the Online Public File, Biennial Ownership Reports, ATSC 3.0 and FM Translator Comments, and Effective Dates of Ownership Rule Changes. Here's what should be on your calendar for the second month of 2018.

The final effort for an AM radio station to seek "revitalization" through the use of an FM translator has officially concluded. More than 850 applications have been received by the Media Bureau in a filing window for new "cross-service" FM translators as part of Auction 100.

A Notice of Proposed Rulemaking has been adopted by the FCC seeking comments on a plan that would bring a new Class A FM to a resort community situated along the east bank of the Colorado River in Arizona. If the new FM were to sign on the air, an FM translator presently using the signal would need to find a new home. Meanwhile, the petitioner is the owner of two stations that aren't on the air.

In the nation's 14th-largest market, one of the most-listened-to radio stations serving the region's Spanish-speaking Hispanic audience has long been KNAI-FM 88.3, a noncommerical Class C1 facility that has been the affiliate of the Cesar Chávez Foundation's regional Mexican "La Campesina Network." Unfortunately, KNAI and a sister station in the San Joaquin Valley of California didn't play by the FCC's rules when it came to the Commission's underwriting laws. To settle the matter, the Foundation has entered into a Consent Decree with the Enforcement Bureau that involves a compliance plan and a record-breaking civil penalty due to the U.S. Treasury.

A deadline for Comments, and a date Reply Comments are due, are now affirmed for those who wish to have their say in the FCC's competitive bidding procedures for "Auction 99." Bidding in this auction of cross-service FM translator construction permits begins May 15 and resolves 12 groups of pending mutually exclusive applications.