David Oxenford

By: David Oxenford, Wilkinson Barker Knauer

While May is one of those months that does not have any routine, scheduled FCC filing deadlines, there are still a number of regulatory dates and deadlines that are worthy of note for broadcasters.  As detailed below, this includes comment deadlines in several FCC rulemaking proceedings, the effective date of the FCC’s application fee increases (including fees for broadcast station applications), the deadline for LPTV to Class A conversion applications, and the tentative deadline for TV stations to begin complying with the FCC’s audible crawl rule if it is not extended again.  As always, remember to keep in touch with your legal and regulatory advisors to make sure that you don’t overlook any other regulatory deadlines we may have missed here or ones that are specific to your station.

One May date with potential broad interest is May 23 – the effective date of the FCC’s January Order increasing its application fees by an average of more than 17%, including those for broadcast station applications, to reflect changes in the Consumer Price Index.  We previously provided more details on our Broadcast Law Blog on the increases and suggested that, where possible (e.g., in connection with internal company reorganizations or for planned technical changes), broadcasters file applications as soon as possible to beat the implementation of these increased fees.

The EAS rules also have broad application.  May 2 is the deadline for comments responding to the NAB’s petition for rulemaking requesting that the FCC amend its Emergency Alert Service (EAS) rules to permit EAS participants, including broadcasters, to use software-based EAS encoder/decoder devices instead of legacy hardware EAS devices to process EAS messages.  The NAB requests that the FCC act promptly on its request because one of the two remaining legacy EAS device vendors recently decided to cease production of its EAS device due to difficulties in acquiring parts for legacy EAS hardware devices leaving many broadcasters, especially radio stations, facing significant challenges in replacing or upgrading their EAS devices.  The NAB states that using software-based devices would safely and reliably mitigate these issues and do so quickly as the software-based system can operate on many legacy EAS devices.

There is another emergency-related deadline this month, though it may be postponed. May 27 is the tentative deadline for all commercial and noncommercial full-power TV, Class A TV, LPTV, and TV translator stations to begin using the station’s secondary audio channel to provide aural descriptions of visual but non-textual emergency information (e.g., a weather radar image showing areas of severe thunderstorms or possible tornadoes) broadcast during non-news programming.  This requirement has been consistently delayed since being adopted by the FCC in 2013 because there is no technology to provide automated conversion of this graphic information into speech.  In November 2024, the NAB filed a petition for rulemaking proposing that the FCC allow TV stations to comply with the FCC’s audible crawl rule by providing “textual crawls that provide emergency information duplicative or equivalent to the information conveyed by the visual image.”  In December 2024, the Media Bureau retroactively extended the waiver of this requirement from November 26 (when it went into effect after the previous waiver expired) through the earlier of May 27, 2025 or when the FCC rules on the NAB’s proposal.  See our discussion here, here, and here.  As the FCC has not acted on the NAB’s proposed resolution, look to see if another extension is granted before the May 27 deadline.

There are numerous other comment deadlines in FCC proceedings.  May 7 is the deadline for comments responding to the NAB’s petition for rulemaking asking for a hard deadline for full-power TV stations to complete the transition to the new ATSC 3.0 transmission standard.  The NAB proposes that the transition occur in two phases: TV stations in the top 55 markets would be required to transition by February 2028; and TV stations in remaining markets would have a transition deadline of February 2030.  The NAB asks for several rule changes to assist with the transition, including requiring that new TV sets sold after February 2028 be ATSC 3.0-compatible, and updating the MVPD carriage rules to reflect the proposed transition deadlines.  The NAB also proposes that the FCC eliminate the “substantially similar” requirement (requiring that stations’ ATSC 3.0 principal broadcast stream replicate their ATSC 1.0 broadcast) earlier than the current July 17, 2027 sunset date.  Reply comments are due June 6.

May 7 is also the deadline for comments responding to the NAB-led Future of Television Initiative Report, released in January, detailing the findings of a process initiated by the NAB and FCC to bring together stakeholders from across the TV industry (including consumer advocates) to make recommendations for the successful deployment of the ATSC 3.0 standard (see our discussion here).  Reply comments are also due June 6.

May 8 is the deadline for reply comments responding to the FCC’s Notice of Proposed Rulemaking proposing to update several broadcast rules, including: allowing AM stations seeking to improve their facilities at their current transmitter sites to request power increases of less than 20% (the current rules prohibit power increases of less than 20% to eliminate burdens on FCC staff); permitting directors or designated employees to sign FCC applications, not just officers; and allowing STAs authorizing stations to operate with temporary facilities because of technical or equipment problems to be granted for 180 days, rather than just 90 days.  Comments were due April 23.

May 13 is the deadline for reply comments responding the FCC’s Notice of Inquiry exploring how the FCC can support industry efforts to develop new Positioning, Navigation, and Timing (PNT) technologies, including the Broadcast Positioning System (BPS) provided by TV stations operating with the ATSC 3.0 transmission standard.  PNT data is crucial to national security, public safety, and economic stability as it supports government and military operations and commercial activities.  Currently, the satellite-based Global Positioning System (GPS) is the primary source of PNT data in the United States, but the FCC seeks to develop complementary and alternative technologies to ensure continuity and resilience in critical operations in case GPS signals are disrupted or degraded.  Along with other technologies noted in the NOI, the FCC seeks comment on whether BPS can complement or replace GPS, using ATSC 3.0 to deliver PNT data that is not as vulnerable to intentional interference as GPS.  Comments were due April 28.

May 30 is the deadline for eligible LPTV stations to file applications to convert to Class A status.  As we discussed here, and here, in December 2023, the FCC released a Report and Order providing eligible LPTV stations located in DMAs ranked 178 (Elmira-Corning, NY) through 210 (Glendive, MT) with a limited opportunity to apply for Class A status under the January 2023 Low Power Protection Act.   LPTV stations seeking Class A status must show their eligibility by showing that between October 7, 2022 and January 5, 2023, they broadcast at least 18 hours per day; broadcast an average of at least 3 hours per week of programming produced within either the station’s commonly controlled LPTV stations’ market area; and complied with the FCC’s LPTV rules. After filing for Class A status, a station must meet all Class A service requirements even before their application is granted.

In addition to the dates set out above, we again warn stations of their continuing political broadcasting obligations.  In prior listings of monthly regulatory dates, we have noted political windows already open in which broadcasters should be charging lowest unit rates to political candidates in their service areas.  Additional political windows open for two high profile political races this month – for primaries for New York City mayor and for Virginia’s primaries for its statewide elections.  Broadcasters located in Arkansas, Delaware, New York, and Virginia should also be aware of the opening of the following political windows tied to state and local elections occurring in June and July – meaning that Lowest Unit Rates apply to advertising sales to candidates and their authorized committees (see our article here on the basics of computing LUR):

* Will be held if there are races in which no one receives a majority of the vote in the May 13, 2025 election.

As a refresher, in the 45 days before a primary election, and 60 days before a general or special election, broadcasters must extend to legally qualified candidates their lowest unit rate and continue to follow all other applicable political broadcasting rules.  For a deeper dive on how to prepare for the 2025 elections, see our post here, which also includes a link to our comprehensive Political Broadcasting Guide.  Also, take a look at our 2025 Broadcasters’ Calendar to see if your state has any upcoming primary, general, or special election (though confirm these dates locally as some dates have changed since the calendar was prepared).

As always, consult your own legal and technical advisors for other dates of importance that might apply to your stations in the upcoming month.

David Oxenford is MAB’s Washington Legal Counsel and provides members with answers to their legal questions with the MAB Legal Hotline. Access information here. (Members only access). There are no additional costs for the call; the advice is free as part of your MAB membership.