FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION
August 4, 20 II
JULIUS GENACHOWSKI
CHAIRMAN
The I[onorable Chris Van Hollen
U.S. Hou e of Representatives
1707 Longworth House Office Building
Washington, D.C. 205 15
Dear Congressman Van Hollen:
Thank you for your letter regarding the status ofan Application for Review that was filed
with the Commission by Entravision Holdings, LLC, licensee of WJAL(TV), Hagerstown,
Maryland, concerning its request to change the community of license for WJAL.
In 2004, the Commission's Media Bureau affirmed a prior decision to dismiss the
Entravision petition for rulemaking seeking to change the community of license ofWJAL's
digital television (DTV) channel 16 from Ilagerstown to Silver Spring, Maryland. The Media
Bureau based its dismissal primarily on the grounds that the proposed relocation would cause
substantial interference to public safety and emergency operations on channel 17 in the
Washington, D.C. metropolitan area. The Bureau also determined that the proposal would result
in a significant curtailment ofexisting television service to the Hagerstown area. Entravision
filed an Application for Review requesting that the Bureau's decision be reviewed by the full
Commission.
[n 2006, Entravision filed a supplement to its Application for Review, which indicated
that the company had changed its DTV election for WJAL to channel 39, thereby addressing the
public safety concerns. By that time. however, the Commission had stopped considering certain
proposed license modifications, including community of license changes, in order to ensure a
stable database for conducting the DTV channel election process and the development ofa new
DTV Table ofAllotments. With the completion ofthe DTV transition, the staff has resumed
consideration of matters, such as Entravision's Application for Review, that were held in
abeyance pending the DTV transition.
[ appreciate learning ofyour interest in this important matter. [f [ can be of further
assistance. please do not hesitate to contact me.
Julius Genachowski
445 t 2TH STREET S.W WASHINGTON, D.C. 20554 • 202-4 I 8·1 000