FCC Unanimously Votes Out Leftover DTV Transition Rules; 5-0 Vote Also Seen for Filing NPRM
The FCC unanimously approved one media deregulation item from the upcoming January commissioners’ meeting agenda (see 1801090050) Wednesday. The second is also expected to be voted 5-0, officials said in interviews. An order doing away with rules left over from the DTV transition didn't change substantively from the draft, and the draft NPRM on filing requirements isn't expected to, either. "These revisions delete rule provisions that are without current legal effect and are therefore obsolete," said Wednesday's order.
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It was voted before the next week's meeting to save time, an FCC official told us. Removing the now useless rules is seen as noncontroversial, industry and FCC officials said. Doing away with rules for analog full-power stations doesn’t have much practical effect since they no longer apply, said Fletcher Heald broadcast attorney Frank Jazzo. The item said it didn’t need the notice and comment periods required for most FCC rules because it removes obsolete regulations. Some things nixed by the order include DTV principal community coverage minimum field strength requirements and the full-power analog table of allotments.
A draft NPRM that proposes allowing broadcasters to make contract documents such as articles of incorporation available in their online file is also expected to be approved unanimously, officials said. Currently, such documents must be physically sent to the FCC for filing. The item also seeks comment on allowing international broadcasters to produce such documents on request, since they aren't bound by the same online public file rules. The draft NPRM also seeks comment on doing away with other "redundant" broadcaster filing requirements.
Broadcast lawyers said they support the item as the first step toward removing an unnecessary burden. Wilkinson Barker's David Oxenford would like to see the FCC go further in a future rulemaking. Filing contract documents and limited liability agreements isn’t mostly a day-to-day obligation, so the proposed rule change would make only a “marginal difference,” he said. The agency should look at eliminating such filing requirements altogether, Oxenford said.