STATEMENT OF
COMMISSIONER MIGNON L. CLYBURN
Re: Policies to Promote Rural Radio Service and to Streamline Allotment and Assignment 
Procedures, MB Docket No. 09-52
The Commission is taking a step in the right direction today by establishing a 
priority for American Indian Tribes and Alaska Native Villages proposing FM 
allotments, and submitting AM and noncommercial educational FM filing window 
applications.  The Tribes and Villages have been woefully underrepresented among the 
radio ownership ranks, and for decades they have suffered a lack of radio programming 
addressing issues of importance to them.  As a result, many Tribal members simply do 
not have access to a critical source of information that can contribute significantly to the 
economic and community development of Native peoples.  
The importance of the Tribal Priority is further highlighted by the unique 
responsibility Tribal entities have as sovereign nations to govern, educate, and care for 
their members.  The Commission recognized the significance of this charge in its 2000 
Tribal Policy Statement.  And as Native Public Media and the National Congress of 
American Indians have recently reminded us, a Tribal Priority would be – and now is –
the Commission’s first step in implementing our Tribal Policy Statement for broadcasting 
services.  Thank you to the staffs of the Media Bureau and the Office of General Counsel 
for their hard work and attention to detail in producing this important item.