Federal Communications Commission	"FCC  XX-XXX"


STATEMENT OF
CHAIRMAN BRENDAN CARR

Re: 	Advancement of the Commission’s Rules to Advance the Low Power Television, TV Translator and Class A Television Service, MB Docket No. 24-148, Report and Order (Dec. 18, 2025).

As part of the Build America Agenda, we have prioritized streamlining and modernizing rules—turning over stones that haven’t been looked at in years and diving deep to find ways to improve American lives every day. 
	
	Today’s item continues that effort.  In 1982, the Commission created LPTV Service to bring local television to viewers who were “otherwise unserved or underserved” by full power television broadcasters.  Fast-forward to 2025, these stations are an established component of the nation’s television system, delivering free, over-the-air, including locally produced programming, to millions of viewers in both rural and urban communities. 
	
Yet despite the many changes in broadcasting over the last forty years, our LPTV Service rules have not been updated to keep pace with industry realities or to address regulatory uncertainties where they exist.  That changes today.  

Today’s action modernizes the LPTV regulatory framework so licensees can make informed business decisions about their station operations, while ensuring the American people continue to benefit from their services.  Among the actions taken to achieve this goal, the item streamlines and formalizes regulatory processes, takes steps to preserve existing and promote new service, establishes a level playing field by eliminating inconsistencies within our rules, and provides certainty for licensees by establishing clear rules of the road.  The rules we adopt will ensure that the LPTV Service continues to flourish and serve the public interest well into the future.  I look forward to seeing the positive results of this action and continuing to monitor the steps that broadcasters take to address the needs of local communities across the nation.

For their great work on today’s item, I want to thank Mark Colombo, Kevin Harding, Shaun Maher, Evan Morris, Susan Aaron, Andrea Kelly, and Dave Konczal.
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