Published on:

By and

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 Fees
  • FCC Threatens Chinese Telecom Provider With Fines for Failure to Fully Respond to FCC Inquiries

Pornography on Background Monitor During Newscast Leads to Costly Consent Decree

A group owner of TV stations entered into a Consent Decree with the FCC’s Enforcement Bureau to resolve an investigation into the broadcast of indecent material during a 6 p.m. newscast.

Section 73.3999 of the FCC’s Rules prohibits the broadcast of obscene material at any time and prohibits the broadcast of indecent material between 6:00 a.m. and 10:00 p.m., primarily to protect children from being exposed to inappropriate content.

After receiving a complaint about pornographic material appearing during a weather report in October 2021, the FCC sent a Letter of Inquiry (LOI) to the station’s licensee in November 2021.   The licensee’s parent company responded to the LOI and confirmed that the material aired for approximately 13 seconds on a monitor which was visible behind the weatherperson during the weather segment.  The broadcaster explained that the accidental airing of the material, which was aired without the station’s prior knowledge or involvement, was caused by an unauthorized third party who exploited a wireless screencasting feature of the on-set monitor to display the content.  The legacy wireless network had been installed prior to the licensee’s acquisition of the station and, as was discovered after the incident, it lacked password protection.

Upon spotting the material displayed on the monitor, the station promptly switched to a full-screen weather graphic to end the broadcast of the material, issued an on-air apology, and conducted an internal investigation which included working with local law enforcement to identify the party responsible for transmitting the material to the monitor.  The broadcaster reported that the content did not pass through the station’s normal production systems and attributed the breach to unauthorized access via the unsecured legacy wireless network.  Upon discovering that the monitor had a screencasting capability that had been exploited, the broadcaster subsequently disabled screencasting capabilities for all monitors located at its stations, deactivated the vulnerable network, and took the added step of removing all wireless components from its existing monitors and any newly acquired monitors at all of its stations.

Despite the police’s inability to determine who was responsible for exploiting the previously unknown wireless capability of the monitor, and the extraordinary steps taken by the broadcaster to prevent a recurrence not just at this station, but at all of its stations, the FCC pursued an investigation of the broadcaster.

To resolve the investigation, the broadcaster entered into a Consent Decree with the Enforcement Bureau.  Under the terms of the Consent Decree, the broadcaster agreed to make a “voluntary contribution” of $222,500 to the United States Treasury, implement a multi-year Compliance Plan (including appointing a Compliance Officer, creating a Compliance Manual, conducting employee training and establishing operating procedures to prevent such an occurrence in the future, and committing to promptly notify the FCC of any future violations of either the indecency rules or of the Consent Decree), and submit regular compliance reports to the FCC over a three-year period.

FCC Revokes Kentucky Radio Station’s License After Years of Unpaid Regulatory Fees

 The FCC revoked the license of a Kentucky AM radio station for failing to pay regulatory fees for six fiscal years, going back to 2013.

Under Section 9 of the Communications Act and Section 1.1151 of the FCC’s Rules, the Commission has the authority to assess annual fees to cover its operational costs.  Late payment of these fees incurs a 25% penalty plus interest. Continue reading →

Published on:

By

While at this stage it is only a temporary win, in the spirit of Chairman Carr’s Delete, Delete, Delete proceeding, the FCC today released a Public Notice announcing that the Commission is suspending the requirement that broadcasters file Biennial Ownership Reports until June 1, 2027 or further notice, whichever occurs first.  The reports are normally due by December 1 of odd-numbered years (like 2025) and report a broadcaster’s ownership as it existed on October 1 of that year.

A number of commenters in the Delete, Delete, Delete proceeding, including the State Broadcasters Associations and NAB, noted that the reports tend to be paperwork-heavy, and of limited utility given that broadcasters must already file Ownership Reports after each assignment, transfer, or initial grant of a broadcast station construction permit or license.  The FCC appeared today to at least tentatively agree, stating in the Public Notice that:

In the Commission’s proceeding “In re: Delete, Delete, Delete,” multiple commenters have urged the Commission to revisit the current biennial ownership filing requirement, which they maintain is a costly and burdensome requirement without a sufficient offsetting public benefit.  With the next filing window approaching, we find there is good cause to waive the biennial ownership report filing requirement for a period of 18 months and set a new filing deadline of June 1, 2027 or until further notice, whichever comes first.

Broadcasters certainly hope that today’s announcement is an indication the FCC is interested in permanently eliminating the biennial ownership reporting requirement, and just needs time to analyze and implement a longer-term approach to eliminating it.  Note that today’s waiver does not affect the requirement that broadcasters file Ownership Reports after each station assignment or transfer, as well as after grants of initial construction permits and licenses.  If the Commission should decide to permanently eliminate the biennial ownership reporting requirement, it is likely these other types of Ownership Reports that the FCC will rely upon for broadcast ownership information going forward.

Published on:

By , and

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 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.

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.

Deadline for the Annual EEO Public File Report for Nonexempt Radio and Television SEUs

Consistent with the above, August 1, 2025 is the date by which Nonexempt SEUs of radio and television stations licensed to communities in the states identified above, including Class A television stations, must (i) place their Annual EEO Public File Report in the Public Inspection Files of all stations comprising the SEU, and (ii) post the Report on the websites, if any, of those stations.  Once the new Report is posted on a station’s website, the prior year’s Report may be removed from that website. Continue reading →

Published on:

By , and

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.  These stations may be eligible to file royalty claims for compensation with the United States Copyright Royalty Board.  These filings are due by July 31, 2025.

Under the federal Copyright Act, cable systems and satellite operators must pay license royalties to carry distant TV signals on their systems.  Ultimately, the Copyright Royalty Board divides the royalties among those copyright owners who claim shares of the royalty fund.  Stations that do not file claims by July 31, 2025 will not be able to collect royalties for carriage of their owned programming outside their local service area during 2024.

To file a cable royalty claim, a television station must have aired locally-produced programming of its own and had its signal carried outside of its local service area by at least one cable system in 2024.  Television stations with locally-produced programming whose signals were delivered to subscribers located outside the station’s Designated Market Area in 2024 by a satellite provider are also eligible to file royalty claims.  A station’s distant signal status should be evaluated and confirmed by communications counsel. Continue reading →

Published on:

By and

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:

  • CB Radio Operator’s Transmission of Indecipherable Sound Effects Leads to $25,000 Fine
  • Low Power FM Radio Licensee Enters Consent Decree Over Airing of Commercials
  • Interfering Bluetooth Speaker Leads FCC Field Agents to Florida Spa

Unauthorized CB Radio Use Results in $25,000 Fine

An Illinois Citizens Band Radio Service (CB) operator was fined $25,000 for engaging in unauthorized operation of a CB radio and willfully or maliciously causing interference.  Operating a CB radio no longer requires an FCC license, but its operation must still comply with all FCC rules.  Among the activities that are generally prohibited are transmission of one-way verbal communications, music and sound effects, and conversations longer than five minutes.

Section 95.933 of the FCC’s Rules also prohibits CB transmissions that include advertising for political candidates or for goods or services, and also prohibits transmitting live radio or TV broadcasts.  In this case, the violator transmitted nonverbal, indecipherable sound effects for long periods of time.  The resulting Forfeiture Order noted that unauthorized CB operations disrupt proper CB uses like “travelers’ assistance, warnings of hazardous road conditions, reporting accidents, etc.”

In the Notice of Apparent Liability (NAL) that preceded the Forfeiture Order, the FCC detailed the relevant facts, including complaints of transmissions of comedy routines, air raid siren sounds, and digital noises.  A visit to the area by an FCC field agent determined that unintelligible, data-like noises were coming from an antenna on the violator’s home.  The individual failed to respond to an on-scene Notice of Interference to Authorized Radio Stations left by the agent.  After subsequently receiving a Notice of Unlicensed Operation, the individual spoke with the regional office of the FCC’s Enforcement Bureau and claimed that a battery-operated transmitter inside a milk crate had been placed at a corner near his house.  He failed, however, to submit any documentation corroborating the existence of such a device.  On a second visit to the area, the field agent observed a data-like transmission similar to what was observed during the initial site visit but did not observe a transmitting milk crate.

The 2023 NAL described the individual’s history of non-compliance with FCC rules dating back to 1999, including his failure to pay a previous $14,000 fine.  The individual did not respond to the NAL, so the FCC proceeded to issuing a fine.

The FCC’s base fine for each day of unauthorized operation is $10,000, and for each day of interference is $7,000.  The Enforcement Bureau determined that the violations occurred on two days and assessed a fine of $25,000, the highest total fine the Enforcement Bureau is allowed to fine a non-common carrier under its delegated authority.  The individual has 30 days to pay the $25,000 fine, which will be made slightly more difficult by the fact that the FCC limits credit card payments to the agency to $24,999.99.

Low Power FM Station Signs Consent Decree Over Underwriting Violations

A Virginia low power FM (LPFM) radio licensee entered into a Consent Decree with the FCC to resolve issues related to airing commercial advertising.  The LPFM station’s license renewal application drew a Petition to Deny and informal objection making a number of allegations, including that the station participated in a prohibited operating agreement with other parties in violation of Section 73.860(e) of the FCC’s Rules, deviated from the educational purpose stated in the station’s initial construction permit (CP) application, made false certifications in the CP application, and regularly aired commercial announcements in violation of Section 399B of the Communications Act and Sections 73.503(d) and 73.801 of the FCC’s Rules. Continue reading →

Published on:

By and

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 significant community needs, issues, and problems as determined by the station.  The FCC gives each station the discretion to determine which issues facing the community served by the station are the most significant and how best to respond to them in the station’s overall programming.

To demonstrate a station’s compliance with this public interest obligation, the FCC requires the station to maintain and place in the Public Inspection File a Quarterly List reflecting the “station’s most significant programming treatment of community issues during the preceding three month period.”  By its use of the term “most significant,” the FCC has noted that stations are not required to list all responsive programming, but only that programming which provided the most significant treatment of the issues identified.

Given that program logs are no longer mandated by the FCC, the Quarterly Lists may be the most important evidence of a station’s compliance with its public service obligations.  The lists also provide important support for the certification of Class A television station compliance discussed below.  We therefore urge stations not to “skimp” on the Quarterly Lists, and to err on the side of over-inclusiveness.  Otherwise, stations risk a determination by the FCC that they did not adequately serve the public interest during their license term.  Stations should include in the Quarterly Lists as much issue-responsive programming as they feel is necessary to demonstrate fully their responsiveness to community needs.  Taking extra time now to provide a thorough Quarterly List will help reduce risk at license renewal time.

The FCC has repeatedly emphasized the importance of the Quarterly Lists and often brings enforcement actions against stations that do not have complete Quarterly Lists in their Public Inspection File or which have failed to timely upload such lists when due.  The FCC’s base fine for missing or late Quarterly Lists is $10,000.

Preparation of the Quarterly List

The Quarterly Lists are required to be placed in the Public Inspection File by January 10, April 10, July 10, and October 10 of each year.  The next Quarterly List is required to be placed in stations’ Public Inspection Files by July 10, 2025, covering the period from April 1, 2025 through June 30, 2025. Continue reading →

Published on:

By and

With publication of OMB approval in the Federal Register, today was the effective date for amendments to Section 73.1212(j) of the FCC’s Rules, which governs sponsorship identification for broadcast programming that “has been provided by a foreign governmental entity.”  Under those amendments, broadcast licensees would need to use one of two recordkeeping methods to demonstrate compliance with the foreign sponsorship disclosure rules.

Late today, however, the FCC’s Media Bureau released a Public Notice stating:

By this Public Notice, the Bureau announces that OMB has approved the rule modifications which revise requirements under 47 CFR § 73.1212(j)(3).  Accordingly, these revised requirements are now effective as of June 10, 2025.  However, the Bureau defers requiring compliance with the revised rules under 47 CFR § 73.1212(j)(3) until 6 months after June 10, 2025, or December 8, 2025. Only new leases and renewals of existing leases entered into on or after the compliance date must comply with the rule modifications.

So while the amended rules did go into effect today, broadcasters won’t need to come into compliance with the new recordkeeping requirements until December 8, 2025.  Until that time, you can read a detailed description of how the currently applicable pre-amendment rule works here.

Hopefully, today’s announced delay is a cause for optimism that a deregulatory FCC might use the additional time to streamline these cumbersome requirements.  If not, however, on December 8, 2025, stations will need to maintain records verifying whether a party leasing airtime is a “foreign governmental entity” for purposes of providing adequate disclosures through one of the following two recordkeeping methods:

Certification Approach

Stations and lessees of airtime must each complete a written certification reflecting that the station made the required inquiries regarding foreign governmental sponsorship.  Parties may use the FCC’s own “check-box” templates (Appendices C and D to the FCC’s Order), or create their own certification forms, provided that the forms collectively address the following required certifications:

  • Whether the licensee informed the airtime lessee of the foreign sponsorship disclosure requirement;
  • Whether the licensee asked about, and whether the lessee is, a “foreign governmental entity,” which includes foreign governments, foreign political parties, agents of foreign principals (as defined by the Foreign Agents Registration Act of 1938 (FARA), and U.S.-based foreign media outlets;
  • Whether the licensee asked about, and whether the lessee knows of, any entity or individual further back in the production or distribution chain that meets the definition of a foreign governmental entity and has provided some form of inducement to air the programming;
  • Whether the licensee sought a written certification from the lessee certifying lessee’s answers; and
  • Whether the licensee obtained the necessary information for a disclosure where one is required.

These certifications must be dated and signed by an appropriate representative of each party and retained in the licensee’s records as discussed below.

Screenshot Approach

As an alternative to certifications, licensees may ask lessees to provide screenshots of their search results when searching for themselves in the following two federal databases:

This option places the responsibility for conducting the searches on the lessee and, the FCC believes, avoids triggering the investigatory concerns raised by the D.C. Circuit. Licensees must still conduct and document the same underlying foreign sponsorship inquiries (but without need of written certifications) and retain the lessee responses in their records.

Regardless of which approach a station adopts by December 8, it must retain documentation of its diligence efforts—whether certifications or screenshots—for the remainder of the license term or one year, whichever is longer.  The records may be stored in either the licensee’s Public Inspection File or in its internal files, as long as the documents are promptly made available to the FCC upon request.

Published on:

By and

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 Translators Miss License Renewal Deadline

Public File Violations Lead to Consent Decrees with Multiple California Licensees

In a flurry of Consent Decrees, the FCC resolved investigations into Public Inspection File violations by three California television licensees.  Two of the Consent Decrees impose $32,500 civil penalties for willfully and repeatedly violating the FCC’s rules by failing to timely upload to the Public Inspection File required Quarterly Issues/Programs Lists and children’s commercial limits certifications.  The third licensee agreed to pay a $42,500 civil penalty for the same violations, as well as for the late filing of a license to cover application and the resulting unauthorized operation.

In each instance, while processing license renewal applications, the FCC’s Media Bureau noted that the applicant had been unable to certify that all required documentation had been uploaded to the station’s Public Inspection File when required during the license term.  Each station disclosed that it had been late in uploading Quarterly Issues/Programs Lists and children’s commercial limits certifications to its Public Inspection File, asserting “administrative oversight and/or employee turnover.”

Section 73.3526(e)(11)(i) of the FCC’s Rules requires that every full power commercial television station place in its Public Inspection File “a list of programs that have provided the station’s most significant treatment of community issues during the preceding three month period.”  Section 73.3526(e)(11)(ii) of the FCC’s Rules requires that every full power commercial television station place in its Public Inspection File “records sufficient to permit substantiation of the station’s certification, in its license renewal application, of compliance with the commercial limits on children’s programming….”

Each Consent Decree details the respective station’s failure to timely upload multiple Issues/Programs Lists and commercial limits certifications.  The first station uploaded 26 Issues/Programs lists late and 21 children’s commercial limits certifications late.  The second station uploaded 31 Issues/Programs Lists late and 23 children’s commercial limits certifications late.  The third station uploaded 27 Issues/Programs lists late and 20 children’s commercial limits certifications late.  Each station had several such Lists and certifications that were uploaded over a year late.  As of the date each Consent Decree was adopted, the respective station had uploaded all required documents to its Public Inspection File.

With regard to the third station, in addition to the late Quarterly Issues/Program Lists and children’s commercial limits certifications, it had failed to timely file a license to cover application.  In June 2021, the FCC granted the station a construction permit to modify the station’s facilities to increase power.  The construction permit had an expiration date of June 2024.  Despite timely completing construction of the new facilities around October 2021, the licensee did not file a license application for the new facilities until March 2025.  Sections 73.3536 and 73.3598(a) of the FCC’s Rules require that a license application be filed promptly upon completion of construction. Continue reading →

Published on:

By , and

June 1 is the deadline for broadcast stations licensed to communities in Arizona, the District of Columbia, Idaho, Maryland, Michigan, Nevada, New Mexico, 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.

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.

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.

Deadline for the Annual EEO Public File Report for Nonexempt Radio and Television SEUs

Consistent with the above, June 1, 2025 is the date by which Nonexempt SEUs of radio and television stations licensed to communities in the states identified above, including Class A television stations, must (i) place their Annual EEO Public File Report in the Public Inspection Files of all stations comprising the SEU, and (ii) post the Report on the websites, if any, of those stations.  Once the new Report is posted on a station’s website, the prior year’s Report may be removed from that website. Continue reading →

Published on:

By and

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:

  • Virginia Sheriff and FCC Determine Public Safety Interference Caused by Handheld Radio
  • Unauthorized Operation by Puerto Rico AM Station Leads to Notice of Violation
  • Signal Booster Operated by Luxury Apartment Building in Texas Interferes with Local Public Safety System

Virginia Investigation Results in Notice of Unlicensed Operation for Interfering with a Public Safety Communications System

Following an investigation by a Virginia sheriff’s office into interference with the county’s public safety radio communications system, the FCC’s Enforcement Bureau conducted its own investigation and issued a Notice of Unlicensed Operation (NOUO) to an individual.

According to the NOUO, the sheriff’s office determined that a handheld Motorola two-way radio was transmitting signals in an attempt to self-authenticate and thereby access the county’s system.  The handheld unit used a unique identification code and had apparently been illegally programmed to operate on the county’s licensed frequencies.  The investigation led to an individual who admitted that he had programmed the radio to operate on the county’s frequencies and that he was the one operating it at the time the device attempted to self-authenticate and gain access to the county’s public safety radio system.

Under Section 301 of the Communications Act, use of radios like the one in question must generally be licensed by the FCC unless they transmit at a sufficiently low level of power to qualify under Part 15 of the FCC’s Rules for unlicensed operation.  The handheld radio in question was not certified as a Part 15 device.

In addition, any person operating a radio transmitter on frequencies exclusively licensed for public safety use needs an FCC license.  The NOUO stated that no such license had been issued to the individual.

Violators of Section 301 are subject to “substantial monetary fines, in rem arrest action against the offending radio equipment, and criminal sanctions including imprisonment.”  The individual has 10 days to respond to the FCC with a description of the steps he is taking to avoid future unlicensed operation and interference.

Puerto Rico AM Station Receives Notice of Violation for Unauthorized Operation

A Puerto Rico AM radio station recently received a Notice of Violation (NOV) from the FCC.  In the NOV, the FCC’s Enforcement Bureau stated that field agents out of its Miami office observed the station operating in violation of its license.  Specifically, the agents reported that the station was operating from a single tower with a non-directional pattern, whereas the station’s license specifies a directional antenna pattern using a two-tower array.  The station had not requested and obtained Special Temporary Authority from the FCC to operate at variance from its licensed parameters.

Within 20 days of the issuance of the NOV, the licensee is required to file a response which “(i) must fully explain each violation, including all relevant surrounding facts and circumstances, (ii) must contain a statement of the specific action(s) taken to correct each violation and preclude recurrence, and (iii) must include a timeline for completion of any pending corrective action(s).”  The licensee must also include “an affidavit or declaration under penalty of perjury, signed and dated by an authorized officer of [the licensee] with personal knowledge of the representations provided” in its response.  The FCC may then take additional enforcement action once it has the relevant facts in hand. Continue reading →