February 1 is the deadline for broadcast stations licensed to communities in Arkansas, Kansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Nebraska, New Jersey, New York, and Oklahoma to place their Annual EEO Public File Report in their Public Inspection File and post the report on their station website. Under the FCC’s EEO Rule, all…
Articles Posted by Elizabeth Craig
2025 Fourth Quarter Issues/Programs List Advisory for Broadcast Stations
Broadcasters’ next Quarterly Issues/Programs List (“Quarterly List”) must be placed in stations’ Public Inspection Files by January 10, 2026, reflecting information for the months of October, November, and December 2025. Content of the Quarterly List The FCC requires each broadcast station to air a reasonable amount of programming responsive to…
FCC Enforcement Monitor — December 2025
Pillsbury’s communications lawyers have published the FCC Enforcement Monitor monthly since 1999 to inform our clients of notable FCC enforcement actions against FCC license holders and others. This month’s issue includes: FCC Issues Notice to Virginia Property Owner Over Pirate Radio Activity Public Media Organization Enters into $86,400 Consent Decree…
FCC Seeks a Refreshing Start to the Year for Earth Stations in Motion
To close out 2025, the Space Bureau has conducted one last check of its open docket list, adding a final name to its packed post-President’s Day comment window. An end of year Public Notice asks commenters to refresh the record on a five-year old rulemaking that proposes permitting non-geostationary orbit…
Updated: FCC Proposes to Recalibrate the UMFUS Framework to Expand Satellite Access
The rapid expansion of the commercial space economy over the last decade has resulted in demand on spectrum far exceeding the Commission’s expectations at the time it devised and adopted its Upper Microwave Flexible Use Spectrum (UMFUS) sharing framework. At the same time, negligible adoption of millimeter wave bands by…
Audio Description Requirements Expand to Nielsen Television Designated Market Areas 111 to 120 on January 1
Beginning January 1, 2026, the FCC’s audio description requirements will expand to commercial television stations affiliated with ABC, CBS, FOX, or NBC in 10 additional Nielsen Designated Market Areas (DMAs): Tyler-Longview (Lufkin & Nacogdoches), Sioux Falls (Mitchell), Fargo, Springfield-Holyoke, Lansing, Youngstown, Yakima-Pasco-Richland-Kennewick, Traverse City-Cadillac, Eugene, and Macon. Audio-described programming is…
Permissionless Innovation: The FCC’s Conceptual Shift for Space and Earth Station Licensing in the United States
The FCC unanimously adopted an NPRM proposing a comprehensive restructuring and reform of its long-standing space and earth station licensing rules (Part 25). The NPRM proposes to wholly replace its “Part 25 – Satellite Communications” rules with a new “Part 100 – Space and Earth Station Services” rule section. Comments…
FCC Enforcement Monitor — November 2025
Pillsbury’s communications lawyers have published the FCC Enforcement Monitor monthly since 1999 to inform our clients of notable FCC enforcement actions against FCC license holders and others. This month’s issue includes: FCC Extends Consent Decree After New “Issues” Arise FCC Resolves Pirate Radio Investigation With 20-Year Consent Decree Spurious Emissions…
Annual EEO Public File Report Deadline for Stations in Alabama, Colorado, Connecticut, Georgia, Maine, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Montana, New Hampshire, North Dakota, Rhode Island, South Dakota, and Vermont
December 1 is the deadline for broadcast stations licensed to communities in Alabama, Colorado, Connecticut, Georgia, Maine, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Montana, New Hampshire, North Dakota, Rhode Island, South Dakota, and Vermont to place their Annual EEO Public File Report in their Public Inspection File and post the report on their station…
FCC Enforcement Monitor—The Government Shutdown Edition
Pillsbury’s communications lawyers have published the FCC Enforcement Monitor monthly since 1999 to inform our clients of notable FCC enforcement actions against FCC license holders and others. This month’s issue is a special edition: FCC Enforcement Monitor—The Government Shutdown Edition While shutdowns of the federal government have become depressingly common,…