Federal Communications Commission DA 19-180 DA 19-180 Released: March 15, 2019 MEDIA BUREAU REMINDS BROADCAST LICENSEES OF UPCOMING RADIO STATION LICENSE RENEWAL CYCLE By this Public Notice, the FCC’s Media Bureau provides information on the upcoming 2019-2022 radio license renewal cycle. Applications for stations in the first license renewal group (radio stations licensed to communities in the District of Columbia, Maryland, Virginia, and West Virginia) may be filed on or after May 1, 2019, and must be filed no later than June 1, 2019. The Commission will not accept renewal applications for filing prior to May 1, 2019. Each AM, FM, noncommercial educational (NCE) FM, FM translator, and Low Power FM (LPFM) station must electronically file its license renewal form. Each AM, FM, and NCE FM station, regardless of how many full-time staff it employs, must also file with the Commission a Broadcast Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) Program Report, which will be referenced in the license renewal application form. Licensees with pending applications from the prior renewal cycle are also subject to these filing requirements. Such licensees should file new license renewal forms with updated information and certifications to cover all periods from the end of their last license term through the date of filing. The Bureau also reminds stations of their obligation to upload documents to the Commission’s Online Public Inspection File. Failure to comply with the public inspection file requirements, including the political file requirements, prior to the deadline for filing a station’s renewal application may result in forfeitures and may impact a station’s renewal application. All renewal applicants must complete the required submissions on or prior to the filing deadline specified on the website of the Media Bureau’s Audio Division: https://www.fcc.gov/media/radio/broadcast-radio-license-renewal-dates-by-state#block-menu-block-4 https://www.fcc.gov/media/radio/broadcast-radio-license-renewal-dates-by-date#block-menu-block-4 The Bureau does not send written or electronic reminder notices to licensees, and failure to receive a notice does not excuse a licensee from timely compliance with the Commission’s license renewal requirements. The base forfeiture amount for a late-filed AM or FM station (including NCE station) license renewal application is $3,000. If a license renewal application is not filed by the expiration of the term, a station may be subject to an additional base forfeiture amount of $4,000 for unauthorized operations. The Bureau wishes to remind licensees that their pre-filing local notice obligations under Section 73.3580(d)(4) of the Commission’s Rules 47 CFR § 73.3580(d)(4) https://www.ecfr.gov/cgi-bin/text-idx?SID=45e1da4af9e05a4da15c9b00cc4a09d2&mc=true&node=se47.4.73_13580&rgn=div8. will commence two months prior to their renewal filing deadlines, i.e., on April 1, 2019, for District of Columbia, Maryland, Virginia, and West Virginia stations. The Commission has not yet adopted rule changes in response to its proposal in MB Docket No. 17-264 to revise Section 73.3580. Amendment of Section 73.624(g) of the Commission’s Rules Regarding Submission of FCC Form 2100, Schedule G, Used to Report TV Stations’ Ancillary or Supplementary Services; Amendment of Section 73.3580 of the Commission’s Rules Regarding Public Notice of the Filing of Applications, MB Docket No. 17-264, Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, 32 FCC Rcd 8203 (2017). Therefore, that proceeding has not changed each station’s current obligations under Section 73.3580. Failure to comply with pre-filing announcement requirements could result in a delay in the processing of a license renewal application. The Bureau will release further general guidance and instructions for the upcoming license renewal cycle in several weeks, and it will make the Commission’s electronic filing system available for filing EEO Program Reports and license renewal applications on May 1, 2019. Action by the Chief, Audio Division, Media Bureau. For additional information, please contact Michael Wagner, Michael.Wagner@fcc.gov, (202) 418-2775, or Tom Hutton, Tom.Hutton@fcc.gov, (202) 418-7266, of the Media Bureau, Audio Division. Press inquiries should be directed to Janice Wise, Janice.Wise@fcc.gov, at (202) 418-8165. - FCC - 2