DA 21-1140

WHAT YOU OWE – CABLE TELEVISION SYSTEMS, IPTV, and 
DIRECT BROADCAST SATELLITE (DBS) FEES FOR FY 2021

On August 26, 2021, the Federal Communications Commission (Commission) released Assessment and Collection of Regulatory Fees for Fiscal Year (FY) 2021, Report and Order and Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, FCC 21-98 (FY 2021 Regulatory Fees Report and Order).  This document is available for viewing at http://www.fcc.gov/regfees.  The Commission’s automated filing and payment system (Fee Filer) is now available for filing and viewing of FY 2021 regulatory fees.  Regulatory fee payments MUST BE RECEIVED by the Commission no later than 11:59 PM, Eastern Daylight Time, on September 24, 2021. The Commission has instituted a mandatory electronic payment policy, which means that licensees will not be able to make regulatory fee payments by check, money order, or cashier’s check.  Only credit card, ACH, debit cards, and wire transfer payments will be accepted.  Please make sure that your electronic fee payment is made and the transaction is complete by the due date of FY 2021 regulatory fees.  
  While FY 2021 regulatory fees will not become effective until the rulemaking is published in the Federal Register, regulatees, at their own discretion, may submit payments at any time before the FY 2021 regulatory fees due date.  For detailed information concerning FY 2021 fees, please consult the FY 2021 Regulatory Fees Report and Order.

· Cable television systems operating on October 1, 2020 must pay a regulatory fee per subscriber 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).
 for all of the community units (CUIDs) in which they operate.  The number of basic cable subscribers that were served on December 31, 2020 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.  

· Internet Protocol TV (IPTV) subscribers are to be included in the Cable Television Systems fee category and assessed a regulatory fee at the same rate as cable television fees. See FY 2013 Report and Order, 28 FCC Rcd at 12363, para. 33.   
  The number of IPTV subscribers that were served on December 31, 2020 should be used as the basis from which to calculate the fee payment.

· Direct Broadcast Satellites (DBS) are to be included in the Cable Television Systems fee category and assessed a regulatory fee at the same rate as IPTV and cable television fees. See Assessment and Collection of Regulatory Fees for Fiscal Year 2013, Report and Order, 28 FCC Rcd 12351, 12363, para. 33.   
  The number of DBS subscribers that were served on December 31, 2020 should be used as the basis from which to calculate the fee payment.  

· 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, 2020, even if a facility’s license expired after October 1, 2020.  In instances where a license or authorization is transferred or assigned after October 1, 2020, 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. 

· The following chart provides the fees due for FY 2021.


TYPE OF FEE

REGULATORY FEE PAYMENT
PAYMENT TYPE (PTC) CODE
Cable System Subscriber Fee, Including
IPTV and DBS Subscribers
Note: DBS providers should pay their fees using PTC Code 2171, not 2192
$.98 per subscriber
2171
CARS License
$1,555 per license
2170


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 FCC Registration Number (FRN) and password and follow the online prompts to review their data and submit an electronic fee payment.  Use of the online Fee Filer system is mandatory, and payments in the form of checks, money orders, and cashier’s checks will not be accepted. 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.
  In making a wire transfer, please fax the “Wire Transfer Instructions” from Fee Filer to the Federal Communications Commission at (202) 418-2843, or send an e-mail to RROGWIREFAXES@fcc.gov at least one hour before initiating the wire transfer (but on the same business day) so as not to delay crediting their account.  These Wire Transfer Instructions contain valuable information (e.g. FRN, Voucher Number, Payer Name, and the Amount of the Wire) that will help to post the payment more quickly, and avoid costly delays that could result in penalties and interest for missing the payment due date.  Please note that most wire transfers initiated after 6:00 p.m. (EDT) will be credited the next business day.

LIMITATIONS ON CREDIT CARD TRANSACTIONS

In accordance with U.S. Treasury Announcement No. A-2014-04 (July 2014), the amount that can be charged on a credit card for transactions with federal agencies is $24,999.99. Customers who owe an amount on a bill, debt, or other obligation due to the federal government are prohibited from splitting the total amount due into multiple payments.  Splitting an amount owed into several payment transactions violates the credit card network and Fiscal Service rules.  An amount owed that exceeds the Fiscal Service maximum dollar amount, $24,999.99, may not be split into two or more payment transactions in the same day by using one or multiple cards.  Also, an amount owed that exceeds the Fiscal Service maximum dollar amount may not be split into two or more transactions over multiple days by using one or more cards.
  Transactions greater than $24,999.99 will be rejected.  This limit applies to single payments or bundled payments of more than one bill.  Multiple transactions to a single agency in one day may be aggregated and treated as a single transaction subject to the $24,999.99 limit.  Customers who wish to pay an amount greater than $24,999.99 should consider available electronic alternatives such as Visa or MasterCard debit cards, ACH debits from a bank account, and wire transfers.  Each of these payment options is available after filing regulatory fee information in Fee Filer. Further details will be provided regarding payment methods and procedures at the time of FY 2020 regulatory fee collection in Fact Sheets, available at https://www.fcc.gov/regfees.

Regulatory fee payments that exceed the U.S. Treasury limit and are rejected by Treasury, causing a payment to not meet the required payment deadline, will be subject to interest, fees, and a 25 percent late payment penalty.

DE MINIMIS REGULATORY FEE LEVEL
Regulatees whose total FY 2021 annual regulatory fee liability, including all categories of fees for which payment is due, is $1,000 or less are exempt from payment of FY 2021 regulatory fees.  The de minimis threshold applies only to filers of annual regulatory fees (not regulatory fees paid through multi-year filings), and it is not a permanent exemption.  Rather, each regulatee will need to re-evaluate and re-calculate its regulatory fee liability each year in order to determine whether they meet the de miminis exemption.  Regulatees are responsible for calculating their own total fee obligation to determine whether they qualify for this de minimis exemption.  The Commission reserves the right to request documentation that supports a de minimis exemption claim.


- FCC -
3