WELCOME
Update: Government Shutdown & the FCC Public File
​
NPM informed you that the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) was going to be releasing an order providing further details on the deadlines for pleadings and other documents that were due during the government shutdown. That Public Notice was released on Tuesday, and further postponed many filing deadlines which fell during the shutdown.
​
First, filings that were due at the very beginning of the shutdown, from January 3-7, will still be due January 30, as noted in prior FCC releases.
​
Second, documents due January 8 through February 7, will have a new filing deadline of February 8.
​
Third, the station public inspection files due January 10, are now due February 11.
​
Fourth, comments in proceedings such as the FCC’s proceeding on Class A AM stations will be covered by the new February 8 filing deadline.
​
Fifth, for broadcasters, the FCC may do away with the need for filing the FCC Form 397 EEO mid-term report at its February 14 meeting. Stay tuned.
​
Finally, the FCC will vote on a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking looking at the process for issuing new construction permits to noncommercial broadcast stations and LPFMs.
​
For now, broadcasters have more time to file documents that were delayed by this year’s first government shutdown.
​