Legislative Update
Governor Whitmer Signs Legislation Expanding Open Meetings Act
On May 2, Governor Whitmer signed House Bill 4705, which expands the Open Meetings Act to require certain state public bodies to create and maintain audio recordings of their meetings, expanding transparency and accountability. This brings the total of bipartisan bills signed to 811. “Transparency and accessibility are critical to ensuring people trust their state…
Read MoreThis Week in Regulation for Broadcasters
By: David Oxenford, Wilkinson Barker Knauer LLP Here are some of the regulatory developments of significance to broadcasters from the last week (4/16-22), with links to where you can go to find more information as to how these actions may affect your operations. The FCC this week released a Public Notice announcing that it is…
Read MoreMSU Students Help With MAB’s Capitol Day
The Michigan Association of Broadcasters works hard to establish strong relationships with lawmakers in our state to ensure policies allow broadcasting in Michigan to stay impactful and to protect us against those that may hinder us from doing our jobs effectively. On May 12, the Michigan Association of Broadcasters is hosting our annual Capitol Day…
Read MoreReasonable Access and the Problem Candidate – FCC Declares a Write-In Candidate Not Entitled to Buy Radio Spots, But That May Not Be the End of the Story
By: David Oxenford, Wilkinson Barker Knauer LLP Last week, much was made of an FCC Media Bureau decision rejecting the “reasonable access” claim of a write-in candidate for a Congressional seat in Ohio against radio stations which, after initially running his spots, decided to pull those spots because he had not made a “substantial showing” of his…
Read MoreThis Week in Regulation For Broadcasters
By: David Oxenford, Wilkinson Barker Knauer LLP Here are some of the regulatory developments of significance to broadcasters from the last week (April 2-8), with links to where you can go to find more information as to how these actions may affect your operations. Broadcast operations that use uninterruptable power supply (UPS) devices as either…
Read MoreHouse of Representatives Passes MORE Act to Remove Marijuana from Schedule I – Don’t Rush to Start Airing Pot Ads Yet
By: David Oxenford, Wilkinson Barker Knauer LLP Last week, the US House of Representatives passed the MORE Act which, if enacted, would take marijuana off the list of Schedule I drugs – those drugs whose possession and distribution is a federal felony, as is the use of the radio waves to promote their use. As we have warned before…
Read MoreRep. Fred Upton Announces Retirement
U.S. Representative Fred Upton, former Chair of the House Energy and Commerce Committee and longtime supporter of local broadcasters, announced Tuesday (4/5) that he was stepping down after his current term. “Even the best stories have a last chapter,” said Upton, (R-St. Joseph). “This is it for me.” Upton has been in Congress since 1986.…
Read MoreApril Regulatory Dates for Broadcasters: TV and Radio Renewals, Quarterly Issues, New Foreign Government Sponsorship ID Rules, Revised Radio Technical Rules, EEO Audits and Filings and More
By: David Oxenford, Wilkinson Barker Knauer LLP Though this April is somewhat lighter than other months on regulatory deadlines for broadcasters, there are still dates to which broadcasters should pay attention. As noted below, all stations need to pay close attention to the quarterly obligation to post issues/programs lists to your online public file. Here…
Read MoreNPR Story Says That You are Allowed to Lie in Broadcast Political Ads – Half the Story?
By: David Oxenford, Wilkinson Barker Knauer LLP Last week, NPR ran a story with the provocative headline – “The Truth In Political Advertising – You’re Allowed to Lie.” The story talked about how the FCC does not regulate candidate advertising to decide the truth of political ads, and then quoted a former FCC Chair to say that candidates…
Read MoreNew Rules on the Identification of Foreign Government-Provided Programs Affects All Broadcasters – Now in Effect
By: David Oxenford, Wilkinson Barker Knauer LLP The FCC this week announced that broadcasters must now comply with new rules designed to identify when programming is run on U.S. stations that was provided by a foreign governmental entity pursuant to a lease of airtime. While this seems like a narrow purpose, the new rules will impose a burden…
Read More