REGULATORY FEES FACT SHEETFederal Communications Commission 445 12th St., S.W. Washington, D.C. 20554 September 5, 2013 WHAT YOU OWE – CABLE TELEVISION SYSTEMS FOR FY 2013 Each year, the Commission is required to collect regulatory fees. Licensees and regulatees are assessed fees as set forth in Assessment and Collection of Regulatory Fees for Fiscal Year 2013, Report and Order 78 FR 52433, (August 23, 2013) (“FY 2013 Regulatory Fees Report and Order”). The Commission also publishes industry-specific guidance in Who Owes Fees & What Is My FY 2013 Fee, which can be found on the Commission website at http://transition.fcc.gov/fees/regfees.html. The Commission’s automated filing and payment system (“Fee Filer”) is now available for filing and payment of FY 2013 regulatory fees. Regulatory fee payments must be RECEIVED by the Commission no later than 11:59 PM, Eastern Daylight Time, on September 20, 2013. Cable television systems operating on October 1, 2012 must pay a regulatory fee per subscriber1 for all of the community units (CUIDs) in which they operate. The number of basic cable subscribers that were served on December 31, 2012 should be used as the basis from which to calculate the fee payment. Regulatory fees should be paid with a single line aggregate total in Fee Filer without having to list your individual CUIDs. Cable television system operators and licensees of CARS facilities must pay a regulatory fee if they were operating or held a CARS license on October 1, 2012, even if a facility’s license expired after October 1, 2012. In instances where a license or authorization is transferred or assigned after October 1, 2012, the fee must be paid by the party that is the licensee or holder of the authorization on the date that the fee payment is due. When submitting payment, CARS licensees should individually list each of their CARS call signs. Notice of Billing: CARS licensees will not receive a pre-completed regulatory fee bill (FCC Form 159-B) in the mail for their CARS licenses. A regulatory fee bill will be created, but this bill will be available for viewing only by accessing Fee Filer. CARS licensees are also required to make regulatory fee payments for all other non-billed holdings, such as cable systems and other fee services. 1 Number of Subscribers in a Community Unit = Number of single family dwellings + Number of individual households in multiple dwelling units (e.g., apartments, condominiums, mobile home parks, etc.) paying at the basic subscriber rate + Number of bulk-rate customers + Number of courtesy and free service. (NOTE: Bulk-Rate Customers = total annual bulk rate charge ¸ basic annual subscription rate for individual households). 2TYPE OF FEE REGULATORY FEE PAYMENT PAYMENT TYPE CODE Cable System Subscriber Fee $1.02 per subscriber 1371 CARS License $510 per license 1370 MANDATORY USE OF FEE FILER The use of the online Fee Filer system for filing regulatory fees has not changed since the process was first initiated in FY 2009: licensees and regulatees must first enter the Commission’s Fee Filer system with a valid FRN and password, and follow the online prompts to generate a Form 159-E voucher to be submitted, with the appropriate regulatory fee payment, to the designated entity, U.S. Bank. Use of the online Fee Filer system is mandatory, and only Form 159-E vouchers generated from Fee Filer may be submitted with regulatory fee payments to U.S. Bank. Instructions on the use and submission of Form 159-E payments also are available on the Commission’s website in the publication, Who Owes Fees & What Is My FY 2013 Fee, referenced above. Licensees and regulatees paying regulatory fees by check should note that beginning on October 1, 2013, the Commission will no longer accept checks (including money orders and cashier’s checks) and the accompanying hardcopy forms (e.g., Form 159’s, Form 159-B’s, Form 159-E’s, Form 159-W’s) for the payment of regulatory fees. As of October 1, 2013 all payments must be made by online ACH payment, online credit card, or wire transfer. Any other form of payment (e.g., checks) will be rejected and sent back to the payor. For wire transfers, a Form 159-E should be transmitted via FAX ((314) 418-4232) to U.S. Bank so that the Commission can associate the wire payment with the corresponding regulatory fee payment. This change will affect all payments of regulatory fees made on or after October 1, 2013.2 LIMITATIONS ON CREDIT CARD TRANSACTIONS The U.S Treasury will no longer process credit card transactions greater than $49,999.99. Treasury Financial Manual (TFM) No. A-2012-02 (http://tfm.fiscal.treasury.gov/v1/announc/a-12-02.html), February 2012, directs agencies to limit credit card collections amounts not to exceed $49,999.99. The revised policy, effective June 30, 2012, lowers the maximum dollar amount of $99,999.99 formerly allowed for a credit card transaction to $49,999.99 and eliminates the maximum dollar limit for a debit card transaction. In addition, the U.S. Treasury will reject multiple credit card transactions from a single credit card in a single day that total more than $49,999.99. The system will also reject transactions charged to a credit card on that day that exceed the total daily dollar limit of 2 Payors should note that this change will mean that entities that have previously paid both regulatory fees and application fees at the same time by paper check will no longer be able to do so because regulatory fees payments by paper check will no longer be accepted. 3$49,999.00. The FCC policy will conform to the U.S. Treasury policy. Fee payors needing to remit amounts of $50,000.00 or greater must use alternative methods of payment: check, debit card, ACH or FedWire. Beginning on October 1, 2013, the alternative methods of payment for amounts $50,000 or greater will be limited to debit cards and ACH or FedWire payments. The FCC will post warnings on FCC websites to remind licensees of the U.S. Treasury policy. Additional information can be found at http://transition.fcc.gov/fees/regfees.html. Regulatory fee payments that exceed the U.S. Treasury limit and are rejected by Treasury, causing a payment not to meet the required payment deadline, will be subject to interest, fees, and a 25% late payment penalty. Regulatory fee payments that exceed the U.S. Treasury limit and are rejected by Treasury, causing a payment not to meet the required payment deadline, will be subject to interest, fees, and a 25% late payment penalty. - FCC -