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 Federal  Communications  Commission  FCC  03-  266 
 JOINT  STATEMENT  OF  COMMISSIONERS  KATHLEEN  Q.  ABERNATHY  AND  JOHNATHAN  S.  ADELSTEIN 
 Re:  Applications  of  Savannah  College  of  Art  and  Design  and  Diocese  of  Savannah  for  Construction  Permit  and  License  in  the  Instructional  Television  Fixed  Service  on  the  G-  Group  Channels 
 at  Bloomington,  Georgia  and  A  Group  Channels  at  Savannah,  Georgia,  File  No.  BPLIF-  951020AN 
 Upon  reviewing  the  record  in  this  proceeding,  it  is  evident  that  numerous  procedural  mistakes  were  made.  Unfortunately,  we  cannot  change  this  fact.  At  this  point  our  responsibility  is  to  determine  whether  the 
 Diocese  of  Savannah  (Diocese)  and  the  Savannah  College  of  Art  and  Design  (SCAD)  filed  valid  applications  for  the  A-  Group  channels  at  Savannah,  Georgia  and  the  G-  Group  channels  at  Bloomingdale, 
 Georgia.  Based  on  the  record  in  this  proceeding,  it  is  clear  that  the  applications  were  filed  on  a  contingent  basis.  In  fact,  the  cover  letters  of  both  applications  specifically  stated  the  applications  were 
 contingent  on  the  favorable  ruling  of  a  separate  filing,  an  outcome  which  in  fact  did  not  occur.  Since  the  Commission’s  rules  expressly  provide  that  contingent  applications  will  not  be  accepted  for  filing,  we  are 
 voting  to  support  today’s  decision. 
 We  regret  the  facts  of  this  case  bar  us  from  supporting  the  award  of  the  subject  channels  to  SCAD  and  the  Diocese  and  ensuring  the  productive  use  of  this  spectrum.  However,  we  cannot  legally  reinstate  an 
 application  that  was  fundamentally  flawed. 
 We  agree  with  the  dissent  that  the  Commission  should  not  allow  valuable  spectrum  to  lay  fallow,  especially  spectrum  designated  for  educational  broadcasting.  That  is  why  we  are  pleased  that  the 
 Chairman  has  included  as  a  top  priority  concluding  the  MMDS/  ITFS  Rulemaking  Proceeding,  as  well  as  improving  the  efficiency  of  our  licensing  processes.  With  these  efforts,  we  are  hopeful  that  the 
 Commission  in  the  future  will  not  have  to  address  unfortunate  situations  like  this  one. 
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