PUBLIC NOTICE Federal Communications Commission 445 12th St., S.W. Washington, D.C. 20554 News Media Information 202 / 418-0500 Internet: http://www.fcc.gov TTY: 1-888-835-5322 DA 07-2287 Released: May 31, 2007 EXTENSION OF TIME TO FILE COMMENTS ON THE STATUS OF CHILDREN’S TELEVISION PROGRAMMING MM Docket No. 00-167 Revised date for filing Comments: September 4, 2007 Revised date for filing Reply Comments: October 1, 2007 On April 17, 2007, the Commission released a Public Notice seeking comment on the status of children’s television programming, and compliance with the Children’s Television Act (“CTA”) and the Commission’s rules.1 Comments in response to the notice were originally due to be filed June 1, 2007, and reply comments were originally due to be filed June 18, 2007.2 On May 25, 2007, the Children’s Media Policy Coalition (“CMPC”), by its counsel, the Institute for Public Representation, filed a motion for extension of time to file comments in response to the Public Notice.3 CMPC states that to provide useful answers to the questions raised by the Commission it would like to analyze data from the FCC Form 398s filed by licensees with the Commission. However, because of the technical conversion of the FCC’s Form 398 database, the deadline for filing Form 398 for the first quarter of 2007 was extended from April 10, 2007 to June 10, 2007.4 CMPC argues that the current comment deadlines preclude any analysis of the most recent quarter of children’s programming. According to CMPC, extending the comment and reply comment due dates by two months would give CMPC and others the opportunity to analyze the most recent data and, in addition, would provide the time needed for CMPC to engage researchers to help analyze the quantity and quality of children’s educational programming. 1 Public Notice, Commission Seeks Comment on the Status of Children’s Television Programming, DA 07-1716, rel. April 17, 2007 (“Public Notice”). 2 Comments were originally due 30 days after date of publication of the Public Notice in the Federal Register, and reply comments were originally due 45 days after Federal Register publication. The Public Notice was published in the Federal Register on May 2, 2007. See 72 Fed. Reg. 24308 (May 2, 2007). 3 See Motion for Extension of Time to File Comments, MB Docket 00-167, May 25, 2007. 4 See Public Notice, Children’s Television Obligations of Commercial Television Broadcasters, Postponement of the Filing Window for Revised FCC Form 398 for the First Quarter of 2007, DA 07-1341, rel. March 20, 2007. 2 As set forth in Section 1.46 of the Commission’s rules,5 it is our policy that extensions of time for filing comments in rulemaking proceedings shall not be routinely granted. However, in view of the circumstances outlined by CMPC, we believe that an extension of the comment and reply comment periods in this proceeding is warranted to facilitate the development of a complete record. This extension will allow parties additional time to collect, review, and analyze data on children’s television programming and thereby help commenters to provide the Commission with the kind of useful information it is seeking. Accordingly, were hereby grant CMPC’s Motion for Extension of Time to File Comments in this proceeding to the extent outlined herein. The time for filing comments is extended to September 4, 2007 and the time for filing reply comments is extended to October 1, 2007. This action is taken pursuant to authority found in Sections 4(i), 4(j), and 303(r) of the Communications Act of 1934, as amended, 47 U.S.C. §§ 154(i), 154(j), and 303(r) and Sections 0.61, 0.283, and 1.46 of the Commission’s rules, 47 C.F.R. §§ 0.61, 0.283, and 1.46. For further information, contact Holly Saurer of the Media Bureau, (202) 418-2120. -FCC- 5 47 C.F.R. § 1.46.