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Stations must file their first Annual Children’s Television Programming Report by July 10, 2020, reporting on educational and informational programming responsive to the needs of children that aired between September 16, 2019 and December 31, 2019.  The FCC extended the previous filing deadline of March 30 to July 10 in light of the COVID-19 pandemic.  This report represents the last time that full power and Class A television stations will file a report describing less than a full year of programming.  Following rule changes made in 2019, such documentation will hereafter be submitted annually, with the next report due January 30, 2021 (addressing the programming aired in 2020).  Note that because that deadline falls on a weekend, submissions will be permitted until February 1, 2021.

Overview

The Children’s Television Act of 1990 requires full power and Class A television stations to: (1) limit the amount of commercial matter aired during programs originally produced and broadcast for an audience of children 12 years of age and under, and (2) air programming responsive to the educational and informational needs of children 16 years of age and under.  In addition, stations must comply with paperwork requirements related to these obligations.

On July 12, 2019, the FCC adopted a number of changes to its children’s television programming rules.  Substantively, the new rules provide broadcasters with additional flexibility in scheduling educational children’s television programming, and modify some aspects of the definition of “core” educational children’s television programming.  These portions of the revisions went into effect on September 16, 2019.

Procedurally, the new rules eliminate quarterly filing of the commercial limits certifications and the Children’s Television Programming Report in favor of annual filings, and change other information collection and reporting provisions.

Filing the Children’s Television Programming Report

Consistent with the above, the next Children’s Television Programming Report must be filed electronically with the FCC by July 10, 2020.  Broadcasters must file their Children’s Television Programming Reports via the Licensing and Management System (LMS), accessible at https://enterpriseefiling.fcc.gov/dataentry/login.html.  Once filed, the FCC’s electronic filing system should automatically upload the Children’s Television Programming Report to the station’s Public Inspection File, but station personnel should confirm that has in fact occurred.

Preparation of the Programming Documentation

In preparing the necessary documentation to demonstrate compliance with the children’s television rules, a station should keep the following in mind:

  • The Children’s Television Programming Report will be very important “evidence” of the station’s compliance when the station’s license renewal application is filed. Preparation of these documents should be done with care.
  • Accurate and complete records of what programs were used to meet the educational and informational needs of children and what programs aired that were specifically designed for particular age groups should be preserved so that the job of completing the Children’s Television Programming Report is made easier.
  • A station should prepare all documentation sufficiently in advance to ensure timely filing.  If the deadline is not met, the station should give the true date when the information was submitted and explain its lateness.  A station should avoid creating the appearance that it was timely filed when it was not.

These are only a few ideas as to how stations can make complying with the children’s television requirements easier.  Please do not hesitate to contact the attorneys in the Communications Practice for specific advice on compliance with these rules or for assistance in preparing any of this documentation.

Noncommercial Educational Television Stations

While noncommercial stations are required to air programming responsive to the educational and informational needs of children 16 years of age and under, they do not need to complete Children’s Television Programming Reports.  They must, however, maintain records of their own in the event their performance is challenged at license renewal time.  In the face of such a challenge, a noncommercial station will be required to have documentation that demonstrates its efforts to meet the needs of children.

A PDF version of this article can be found at 2019 Annual Children’s Television Programming Report Filing Due.

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This Pillsbury Broadcast Station Advisory is directed to radio and television stations in the areas noted above, and highlights upcoming deadlines for compliance with the FCC’s EEO Rule.

June 1 is the deadline for broadcast stations licensed to communities in Arizona, the District of Columbia, Idaho, Maryland, New Mexico, Michigan, Nevada, Ohio, Utah, Virginia, West Virginia, and Wyoming to place their Annual EEO Public File Report in their Public Inspection File and post the report on their station website. In addition, certain of these stations, as detailed below, must submit their two most recent EEO Public File Reports along with FCC Form 2100, Schedule 396 as part of their license renewal application submissions due by June 1.

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With much of the United States under COVID-19 stay-at-home directives, and frost warnings still in the forecast, it’s as good a time as any to review the upcoming cable and satellite carriage election process for television broadcasters. The FCC recently completed an overhaul of its rules governing how eligible television broadcasters provide notice of their carriage elections to cable and satellite companies. The first deadline under those new procedures is July 31, 2020, when broadcasters must update their online contact information at the FCC as a precursor to implementing the FCC’s new paperless MVPD carriage notification procedures.

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This Pillsbury Broadcast Station Advisory is directed to radio and television stations in the areas noted above, and highlights upcoming deadlines for compliance with the FCC’s EEO Rule.

April 1 is the deadline for broadcast stations licensed to communities in Delaware, Indiana, Kentucky, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, and Texas to place their Annual EEO Public File Report in their Public Inspection File and post the report on their station website.  In addition, certain of these stations, as detailed below, must submit their two most recent EEO Public File Reports along with FCC Form 2100, Schedule 396 as part of their license renewal application submissions due by April 1.

Under the FCC’s EEO Rule, all radio and television station employment units (“SEUs”), regardless of staff size, must afford equal opportunity to all qualified persons and practice nondiscrimination in employment.

In addition, those SEUs with five or more full-time employees (“Nonexempt SEUs”) must also comply with the FCC’s three-prong outreach requirements.  Specifically, Nonexempt SEUs must (i) broadly and inclusively disseminate information about every full-time job opening, except in exigent circumstances, (ii) send notifications of full-time job vacancies to referral organizations that have requested such notification, and (iii) earn a certain minimum number of EEO credits, based on participation in various non-vacancy-specific outreach initiatives (“Menu Options”) suggested by the FCC, during each of the two-year segments (four segments total) that comprise a station’s eight-year license term.  These Menu Option initiatives include, for example, sponsoring job fairs, participating in job fairs, and having an internship program.

Nonexempt SEUs must prepare and place their Annual EEO Public File Report in the Public Inspection Files and on the websites of all stations comprising the SEU (if they have a website) by the anniversary date of the filing deadline for that station’s license renewal application.  The Annual EEO Public File Report summarizes the SEU’s EEO activities during the previous 12 months, and the licensee must maintain adequate records to document those activities.  As discussed below, nonexempt SEUs must submit to the FCC their two most recent Annual EEO Public File Reports when they file their license renewal applications.

For a detailed description of the EEO Rule and practical assistance in preparing a compliance plan, broadcasters should consult The FCC’s Equal Employment Opportunity Rules and Policies – A Guide for Broadcasters  published by Pillsbury’s Communications Practice Group.

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Full power commercial and noncommercial radio stations and LPFM stations, licensed to communities in Michigan and Ohio, and full power TV and Class A TV stations, as well as LPTV stations capable of local origination, licensed to communities in the District of Columbia, Maryland, Virginia, and West Virginia, must begin airing pre-filing license renewal announcements on April 1, 2020.

License renewal applications for these stations, and for in-state FM translator and TV translator/LPTV stations, are due by June 1, 2020.

If a station misses airing any of these required announcements, it should broadcast a make-up announcement as soon as possible and contact counsel to further address the situation.  Special rules apply to noncommercial educational stations that do not normally operate during any month when their announcements would otherwise be due to air, as well as to other silent stations.  These stations should also contact counsel regarding how to give the required public notice.

Pre-Filing License Renewal Announcements

Full power radio and LPFM stations, and full power TV, Class A TV, and LPTV stations capable of local origination, licensed to communities in the states identified above, must air a total of four pre-filing renewal announcements alerting the public to their upcoming renewal applications beginning two months before their license renewal filing date.  As a result, these stations with June 1 renewal filing deadlines must air the first pre-filing renewal announcement on April 1.  The remaining pre-filing announcements must air once a day on April 16, May 1, and May 16.

For full power radio and LPFM stations, at least two of these four announcements must air between 7:00 am and 9:00 am and/or 4:00 pm and 6:00 pm.

For full power TV and Class A TV stations, at least two of these four announcements must air between 6:00 pm and 11:00 pm (Eastern/Pacific) or 5:00 pm and 10:00 pm (Central/Mountain).   LPTV stations capable of local origination must broadcast these announcements at the same times or as close to the above schedule as their operating schedule permits.

Stations can find more information on pre- and post-filing announcements, as well as more detail on the FCC’s license renewal cycle, in our most recent radio Advisory on the subject.

The text of the pre-filing announcement is as follows:

On [date of last renewal grant], [call letters] was granted a license by the Federal Communications Commission to serve the public interest as a public trustee until October 1, 2020.  [Stations that have not received a renewal grant since the filing of their previous renewal application should modify the foregoing to read: “(Call letters) is licensed by the Federal Communications Commission to serve the public interest as a public trustee.”]

Our license will expire on October 1, 2020.  We must file an application for renewal with the FCC by June 1, 2020.  When filed, a copy of this application will be available for public inspection at www.fcc.gov.  It contains information concerning this station’s performance during the last eight years [or other period of time covered by the application, if the station’s license term was not a standard eight-year license term].  Individuals who wish to advise the FCC of facts relating to our renewal application and to whether this station has operated in the public interest should file comments and petitions with the FCC by September 1, 2020.

Further information concerning the FCC’s broadcast license renewal process is available at [address of location of the station] [1] or may be obtained from the FCC, Washington, DC 20554, www.fcc.gov.

Post-Filing License Renewal Announcements

Once the license renewal application has been filed, full power radio and LPFM stations, and full power TV, Class A TV, and LPTV stations capable of local origination must broadcast six post-filing renewal announcements.  These announcements must air once per day on June 1, June 16, July 1, July 16, August 1, and August 16, 2020.

For full power radio and LPFM stations, at least three of these announcements must air between 7:00 am and 9:00 am and/or 4:00 pm and 6:00 pm.  At least one announcement must air in each of the following time periods: between 9:00 am and noon, between noon and 4:00 pm, and between 7:00 pm and midnight.  For commercial stations not operating between either 7:00 am and 9:00 am or 4:00 pm and 6:00 pm, at least three of these announcements must air during the first two hours of operation.

For full power TV and Class A TV stations, at least three of these announcements must air between 6:00 pm and 11:00 pm (Eastern/Pacific) or 5:00 pm and 10:00 pm (Central/Mountain).  At least one announcement must air in each of the following local time periods: between 9:00 am and 1:00 pm, between 1:00 pm and 5:00 pm, and between 5:00 pm and 7:00 pm.  LPTV stations capable of local origination must broadcast these announcements at the same times or as close to the above schedule as their operating schedule permits.

The text of the post-filing announcement is as follows:

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This Pillsbury Broadcast Station Advisory is directed to radio and television stations in the areas noted above, and highlights upcoming deadlines for compliance with the FCC’s EEO Rule.

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.  In addition, certain of these stations, as detailed below, must submit their two most recent EEO Public File Reports along with FCC Form 2100, Schedule 396 as part of their license renewal application submissions due by February 3.

Under the FCC’s EEO Rule, all radio and television station employment units (“SEUs”), regardless of staff size, must afford equal opportunity to all qualified persons and practice nondiscrimination in employment.

In addition, those SEUs with five or more full-time employees (“Nonexempt SEUs”) must also comply with the FCC’s three-prong outreach requirements.  Specifically, Nonexempt SEUs must (i) broadly and inclusively disseminate information about every full-time job opening, except in exigent circumstances, (ii) send notifications of full-time job vacancies to referral organizations that have requested such notification, and (iii) earn a certain minimum number of EEO credits, based on participation in various non-vacancy-specific outreach initiatives (“Menu Options”) suggested by the FCC, during each of the two-year segments (four segments total) that comprise a station’s eight-year license term.  These Menu Option initiatives include, for example, sponsoring job fairs, participating in job fairs, and having an internship program.

Nonexempt SEUs must prepare and place their Annual EEO Public File Report in the Public Inspection Files and on the websites of all stations comprising the SEU (if they have a website) by the anniversary date of the filing deadline for that station’s license renewal application.  The Annual EEO Public File Report summarizes the SEU’s EEO activities during the previous 12 months, and the licensee must maintain adequate records to document those activities.  As discussed below, nonexempt SEUs must submit to the FCC their two most recent Annual EEO Public File Reports when they file their license renewal applications.

For a detailed description of the EEO Rule and practical assistance in preparing a compliance plan, broadcasters should consult The FCC’s Equal Employment Opportunity Rules and Policies – A Guide for Broadcasters published by Pillsbury’s Communications Practice Group.  This publication is available at: http://www.pillsburylaw.com/publications/broadcasters-guide-to-fcc-equal-employment-opportunity-rules-policies. Continue reading →

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Full power commercial and noncommercial radio stations and LPFM stations licensed to communities in Indiana, Kentucky, and Tennessee must begin airing pre-filing license renewal announcements on February 1, 2020.

Full power commercial and noncommercial radio stations and LPFM stations licensed to communities in Indiana, Kentucky, and Tennessee must begin airing pre-filing license renewal announcements on February 1, 2020.  License renewal applications for these stations, and for in-state FM translator stations, are due by April 1, 2020.

Full power commercial and noncommercial radio and LPFM stations must air four pre-filing announcements alerting the public to the upcoming renewal application filing.  As a result, these radio stations must air the first pre-filing renewal announcement on February 1.  The remaining pre-filing announcements must air once a day on February 16, March 1, and March 16, for a total of four announcements.  At least two of these four announcements must air between 7:00 am and 9:00 am and/or 4:00 pm and 6:00 pm.

The text of the pre-filing announcement is as follows:

On [date of last renewal grant], [call letters] was granted a license by the Federal Communications Commission to serve the public interest as a public trustee until August 1, 2020.  [Stations that have not received a renewal grant since the filing of their previous renewal application should modify the foregoing to read: “(Call letters) is licensed by the Federal Communications Commission to serve the public interest as a public trustee.”]

Our license will expire on August 1, 2020.  We must file an application for renewal with the FCC by April 1, 2020.  When filed, a copy of this application will be available for public inspection at www.fcc.gov.  It contains information concerning this station’s performance during the last eight years [or other period of time covered by the application, if the station’s license term was not a standard eight-year license term].  Individuals who wish to advise the FCC of facts relating to our renewal application and to whether this station has operated in the public interest should file comments and petitions with the FCC by July 1, 2020.

Further information concerning the FCC’s broadcast license renewal process is available at [address of location of the station][1] or may be obtained from the FCC, Washington, DC 20554, www.fcc.gov.

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More than fifteen years after the adoption of the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act (“BCRA”) of 2002, popularly known as “McCain-Feingold,” Congress’s and the Federal Communications Commission’s interest in political broadcasting and political advertising practices remains undiminished.  Broadcast stations must meet a broad range of federal mandates, and must therefore familiarize themselves with this regulatory area, ensuring they have adequate policies and practices in place and that they monitor legislative, FCC, and Federal Election Commission developments for changes in the law.

Stations must adopt and meticulously apply political broadcasting policies that are consistent with the Communications Act and the FCC’s rules, including the all-important requirement that stations fully and accurately disclose in writing their rates, classes of advertising, and sales practices to candidates.  This information should be provided to candidates and their agents in a station’s Political Advertising Disclosure Statement.

Many of the political broadcasting regulations are grounded in the “Reasonable Access,” “Equal Opportunities,” and “Lowest Unit Charge” provisions of the Communications Act.  These elements of the law ensure that broadcast facilities are available to candidates for federal office, that broadcasters treat competing candidates equally, and that stations provide candidates with the same rates offered to their most-favored commercial advertisers during specified periods prior to an election.  As a general rule, stations may not discriminate between candidates for the same office as to station use, the amount of time given or sold, or in any other meaningful way.

These rules are enforced through fairly stringent recordkeeping requirements, with a station’s political advertising documentation required to be kept in its political file—a file that is now available online to the public as part of a station’s Public Inspection File.  Political files must contain a station’s political documentation for the past two years.  As of the publication of this Advisory, all TV political file documents going back two years and most radio political file documents going back two years are online.  However, the FCC allowed certain smaller, small market, and noncommercial radio stations a longer period of time to move their pre-March 1, 2018 political documents online.  For these stations, their political files are not required to be completely online until March 1, 2020.

Because of the transition to online political files, broadcasters must be even more diligent to ensure that all political documents are timely created and uploaded.  The past few years have seen an uptick in political complaints from watchdog organizations which now have convenient around-the-clock access to stations’ political files.  Unfortunately, many of those who have suddenly gained ready access to stations’ political files do not understand the political rules and may allege that a station’s political file is missing required information when the political file is in fact complete. It is therefore important for stations to understand their obligations so they are able to quickly respond to such allegations before they generate formal FCC complaints.  Even where the station is completely in the right, responding to FCC complaints and investigations can be expensive, and diverts the attention of station staff from operating the station and serving the public.

While this Advisory outlines the political broadcasting rules in general terms, application of the rules can be quite fact-specific and there are many additional aspects of the rules too numerous to address within this Advisory. Accordingly, stations should contact legal counsel with specific questions or problems they encounter.

The Advisory continues at 2020 Political Broadcasting Advisory.

 

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Each full power and Class A TV station being repacked must file its next quarterly Transition Progress Report with the FCC by January 10, 2020.  The Report must detail the progress a station has made in constructing facilities on its newly-assigned channel and in terminating operations on its current channel during the months of October, November and December 2019.  However, in a March 28, 2019 Public Notice, the FCC waived the quarterly Transition Progress Report due on January 10, 2020 for stations assigned to Phase 8 of the transition.  The quarterly deadline falls within days of the deadline for those stations’ 10-Week Report (which stations must continue to timely file), making the quarterly report redundant.

Following the 2017 broadcast television spectrum incentive auction, the FCC imposed a requirement that television stations transitioning to a new channel in the repack file a quarterly Transition Progress Report by the 10th of January, April, July, and October of each year.  The first such report was due on October 10, 2017.

The next quarterly Transition Progress Report must be filed with the FCC by January 10, 2020, and must reflect the progress made by the reporting station in constructing facilities on its newly-assigned channel and in terminating operations on its current channel during the period from October 1 through December 31, 2019.  The Report must be filed electronically on FCC Form 2100, Schedule 387 via the FCC’s Licensing and Management System (LMS), accessible at https://enterpriseefiling.fcc.gov/dataentry/login.html.

The Transition Progress Report form includes a number of baseline questions, such as whether a station needs to conduct a structural analysis of its tower, obtain any non-FCC permits or FAA Determinations of No Hazard, or order specific types of equipment to complete the transition.  Depending on a station’s response to a question, the electronic form then asks for additional information regarding the steps the station has taken towards completing the required item.  Ultimately, the form requires each station to indicate whether it anticipates that it will meet the construction deadline for its transition phase. Continue reading →

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The Fourth Quarter of 2019 represents the last time that full power and Class A television stations will submit documentation of compliance with the Children’s Television Act of 1990 on a quarterly basis.  Following rule changes made in 2019, going forward, such documentation will be submitted annually.  To facilitate the transition to the new filing regime, the FCC has adopted interim filing requirements for the Fourth Quarter as follows:  Stations must place documentation of their compliance with their obligations regarding commercial limitations in children’s programming for the Fourth Quarter of 2019 in their Public Inspection Files by January 10, 2020, and must file their first Annual Children’s Television Programming Report by March 30, 2020.

Overview

The Children’s Television Act of 1990 requires full power and Class A television stations to: (1) limit the amount of commercial matter aired during programs originally produced and broadcast for an audience of children 12 years of age and under, and (2) air programming responsive to the educational and informational needs of children 16 years of age and under.  In addition, stations must comply with paperwork requirements related to these obligations.  On July 12, 2019, the FCC adopted a number of changes to its children’s television programming rules.  Substantively, the new rules provide broadcasters with additional flexibility in scheduling educational children’s television programming, and modify some aspects of the definition of “core” educational children’s television programming.  These portions of the revisions went into effect on September 16, 2019.

Procedurally, the new rules eliminate quarterly filing of the commercial limits certifications and the Children’s Television Programming Report in favor of annual filings, and change other information collection and reporting provisions.  These portions of the revisions will go into effect on January 21, 2020.

Because the new paperwork rules will not be in effect until January 21, 2020, stations must upload documentation of compliance with the commercial limits in children’s programming to their Public Inspection Files by January 10, 2020, as was previously the case.  Pursuant to the new annual filing requirement, documentation covering the 2020 calendar year will be due by January 30, 2021.

The FCC has waived the January 10, 2020 quarterly deadline with respect to the filing of the Children’s Television Programming Report.  The rule changes that the FCC adopted require changes to the existing Children’s Television Programming Report form on FCC Form 2100, Schedule H (commonly known as “FCC Form 398”), which have only just been approved by the Office of Management and Budget.  Therefore, to allow time for the newly approved Children’s Television Programming Report to be integrated into the FCC’s electronic filing system (expected to occur around January 30, 2020), and for broadcasters to become familiar with it, the FCC has extended the due date for broadcasters’ first Annual Children’s Television Programming Report to March 30, 2020.    

Commercial Television Stations

Commercial Limitations

The FCC’s rules require that stations limit the amount of “commercial matter” appearing in children’s programs to 12 minutes per clock hour on weekdays and 10.5 minutes per clock hour on the weekend.  In addition to commercial spots, website addresses displayed during children’s programming and promotional material must comply with a four-part test or they will be considered “commercial matter” and counted against the commercial time limits.  In addition, the content of some websites whose addresses are displayed during programming or promotional material are subject to host-selling limitations.  Program promos also qualify as “commercial matter” unless they promote (i) children’s educational/informational programming, or (ii) other age-appropriate programming appearing on the same channel.  Licensees must prepare supporting documents to demonstrate compliance with these limits on a quarterly basis through the Fourth Quarter of 2019, and annually thereafter.

Consequently, this proof of compliance should be placed in your Public Inspection File by January 10, 2020, covering programming aired during the months of October, November, and December 2019. Continue reading →