Following the recent U.S. Supreme Court decision affirming the Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC) authority to administer the Universal Service Fund (USF or Fund), a bipartisan, bicameral group of members of Congress are taking tangible steps towards potential USF reform. In an effort to evaluate and propose potential reforms to the…
On Thursday, August 7, the Federal Communications Commission (“FCC” or “Commission”) held its monthly Open Meeting, where it considered items spanning several industries, including broadcasting, satellite communications, and public safety, among others. The expansive agenda reflected the Commission’s full court press on agency-wide regulatory streamlining, system modernization, and expansion of…
The FCC’s rules require that all Emergency Alert System (EAS) Participants update their identifying information in the EAS Test Reporting System (ETRS) annually. Accordingly, the FCC has released a Public Notice announcing that the deadline for updating and submitting the ETRS Form One for 2025 will be Friday, October 3, 2025.…
Earlier this year, FCC Chairman Brendan Carr initiated a sweeping initiative to review “every rule, regulation, or guidance document” that could be eliminated “for the purposes of alleviating unnecessary regulatory burdens.” At its July Open Meeting, the Commission voted 2-1 to adopt a Direct Final Rule framework to enable it…
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: TV Group Owner Enters $222,500 Consent Decree Over Pornographic Broadcast Hack Kentucky Radio Station License Revoked Over Unpaid Regulatory…
August 1 is the deadline for broadcast stations licensed to communities in California, Illinois, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Wisconsin 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 radio and television…
This post is directed to television stations with locally-produced programming whose signals were carried by at least one cable system located outside the station’s local service area or by a satellite provider that provided the station’s signal to at least one viewer outside the station’s local service area during 2024.…
Schools, hospitals, and libraries in poor and rural areas and millions of low-income American consumers can breathe a sigh of relief: they will continue to receive uninterrupted service subsidies through the Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC) Universal Service Fund (USF or Fund). On June 27, 2025, the US Supreme Court issued…
Broadcasters’ next Quarterly Issues/Programs List (“Quarterly List”) must be placed in stations’ Public Inspection Files by July 10, 2025, reflecting information for the months of April, May, and June 2025. Content of the Quarterly List The FCC requires each broadcast station to air a reasonable amount of programming responsive to…
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: Public File Violations Lead to Spate of FCC Consent Decrees California Tower Owner Cited for Multiple Violations Montana TV…