This Week in Regulation for Broadcasters: November 19 to November 25, 2022

Here are some of the regulatory developments of importance to broadcasters from the previous week, with inbound links to wherever you can go to locate a lot more information and facts as to how these actions may well influence your operations.

• The FCC’s Discover of Proposed Rulemaking (“NPRM”) hunting to increase the safety of the Unexpected emergency Alert Program (“EAS”) and Wireless Crisis Alerts (“WEA”) was printed in the Federal Sign-up this week.  That publication sets the deadlines for community comment as December 23, 2022, for comments and January 23, 2023, for replies.  The FCC seeks comment on, among the other things, no matter if to have to have EAS Participants (such as broadcasters) to report to the FCC incidents of unauthorized accessibility to EAS gear in just 72 hours of when the participant realized or need to have recognised that the incident transpired, and regardless of whether EAS Participants (such as broadcasters) ought to be necessary to submit an yearly cybersecurity certification that demonstrates how the participant identifies the cyber pitfalls that it faces, the controls it takes advantage of to mitigate those threats, and how it ensures that these controls are used successfully.  We wrote a lot more thoroughly about this continuing on our Broadcast Law Site.
• The FCC’s Wireless Telecommunications Bureau and Place of work of Engineering and Technological know-how jointly issued an Buy granting an extension of the comment and reply remark deadlines for the FCC’s Notice of Inquiry on how to inspire a lot more effective and intensive use of the 12.7-13.25 GHz band.  Certified expert services in the 12.7 GHz band which could be impacted by any variations in the use of this spectrum incorporate satellite communications and cellular Television pickup operations. Feedback are now because of December 12, 2022, and reply opinions are now owing January 10, 2023.  For background on this proceeding, see our notes about preceding methods in this continuing in our content listed here and below.
• In a choice concerning the sale of radio stations by Univision Radio to Latino Media Network, the Audio Division of the FCC’s Media Bureau discussed the FCC’s longstanding prohibition on the seller of a broadcast station retaining a “reversionary interest” in the station it is offering.  In this situation, FCC workers located that the intent of the customer to enter into a Nearby Marketing Settlement by which the seller would application some of the stations just after closing was not a reversionary interest, mainly because the customer was cost-free to make put up-closing programming choices for the stations by retaining final handle in excess of the programming and station functions, including regardless of whether or not to enter into the LMA.  Experienced the LMA been a condition of the sale needed by the seller, or experienced it served as partial thought to the vendor for the sale, the FCC advised that it would have violated the prohibition in opposition to revisionary passions.  For even more info about this scenario and the FCC’s prohibition on reversionary passions, and the effects that this prohibition has on broadcast funding, see our posting listed here.
• A listing of proposed adjustments in the metropolis of license of a number of broadcast stations was posted in the Federal Sign up, location the day for the filing of any objections to these proposed modifications.  The proposed alterations outlined in the publication are: KOLT(AM), from Terrytown, NE, to Lexington, NE WWLX(AM), from Lawrenceburg, TN, to Loretto, TN KRXR(AM), from Gooding, ID, to Filer, ID KABV(FM), from Premont, TX, to Ben Bolt, TX KAMZ(FM), from Tahoka, TX, to Ropesville, TX KQXZ(FM), from Richland Springs, TX, to Adamsville, TX WKIH(FM), from Vidalia, GA, to Twin City, GA KSZX(FM), from Santa Anna, TX, to Menard, Tx and KTCY(FM), from Menard, TX, to Wall, TX.  Comments on these proposals are due to be filed at the FCC by January 27, 2023.