The FCC has updated its public notice rules to eliminate pre-filing on-air announcements before license renewal applications and to replace providing written notice in a newspaper and/or making on-air messages to announce the filing of an application for license renewal or transfers of control to instead paste a written public notice on a website that includes a link to the application and on-air notices to direct listeners to the FCC’s databases to view and comment on the application to “facilitate public engagement in the licensing process”.
Stations will be required to publish their notice on the website in order of availability station, licensee, or parent entity. If they do not have their own website they may be published on a locally targeted, publicly accessible website serving the area served and/or to be served by the station including local government, community BBS, local newspaper, or state broadcasters association. The filing must be placed on a site with an “FCC Applications” link on the homepage displayed in a readable, understandable and locatable position.
The agency also waives the requirement for stations that are due to file a license renewal between now and August 3 to make pre-filing announcements while awaiting the rule changes to be published in the federal register.
The following stations will have their licenses deleted on June 1 if they don’t file a license renewal application by then: 1350 KZTD Cabot AR, 91.7 KLSP Angola LA, 89.1 KVDP Dry Prong LA, 1230 KLIC Monroe LA, 1580 WORV Hattiesburg MS, 1110 WKRA Holly Springs MS, 92.7 WKRA-FM Holly Springs MS, 90.7 KOUI Louisville MS, and 1010 WMOX Meridan MS.
STA Filings
Bonnie Chambers seeks to use an STA to split programming on her Oldies 1500 KBRN and 103.9 K280GR Boerne TX. Chambers claims in the filing that it would enable the station to reach additional demographics during the coronavirus pandemic with the older listeners continuing to listen to the AM and target younger listeners on the translator.
Three stations have filed to go silent due to the pandemic. Jesus Pena Acosta’s Tejano “98.5 The Wave” KJJT Los Ybanez claimed that the station has no advertising revenue with businesses closed. KJJT had just flipped to its current format in February.
Eternity Media Group filed STA’s for 94.3 WETH Harrisonburg LA and 103.5 WETI Lake Village AR requesting “due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the economic collapse we hereby request to go silent for a period of 180 days”.