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Though school may be letting out for many, the FCC does not take a summer recess.  Instead, regulation continues with the filing of Annual EEO Public File Reports due for some broadcasters on June 1.  There are also several other regulatory and comment deadlines coming up this June, including the deadline for all commercial full power TV, Class A TV, and AM and FM radio stations to begin complying with the FCC’s new foreign sponsorship identification requirements (with some exceptions), and comment deadlines in the FCC’s proceedings concerning its fiscal year 2026 regulatory fees, next year’s auction of vacant FM allotments, and the TV Parental Guidelines ratings system.  And there are political windows that open in June for elections that will occur in July and August. 

June 1 is the deadline for radio and television station employment units in Arizona, the District of Columbia, Idaho, Maryland, Michigan, Nevada, New Mexico, Ohio, Utah, Virginia, West Virginia, and Wyoming with five or more full-time employees to upload their Annual EEO Public File Report to their stations’ Online Public Inspection Files (OPIFs).  A station employment unit is a station or cluster of commonly controlled stations serving the same general geographic area with at least one common employee.  For employment units with five or more full-time employees, the annual report covers hiring and employment outreach activities for the prior year.  A link to the uploaded report must also be included on the home page of each station’s website, if the station has a website.  Be timely getting these reports into your station’s OPIF, as even a single late report can lead to FCC fines (see our article here about a $26,000 fine for a single late EEO report).  Note that, for radio stations in Maryland, Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia, this EEO Report will be one of the two assessed by the FCC in its review of their license renewal applications that will be due by June 1, 2027 – the start of a new license renewal cycle for radio and, a year later, for TV. 

The filing of the Annual EEO Public File Reports by TV station employment units with five or more employees triggers a Mid-Term EEO Review that analyzes the last two Annual Reports for compliance with the FCC’s EEO requirements.  The Mid-Term EEO Review begins June 1 for these larger TV station employment units in Arizona, Idaho, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah, and Wyoming subject to this review.  See our articles here and here on broadcasters’ Mid-Term EEO Review reporting requirements.

Continue Reading June 2026 Regulatory Dates for Broadcasters – Foreign Sponsorship Identification Requirements Compliance Deadline, Annual EEO Public File Reports, Comment Deadlines, Political Windows, and more

While May is one of those months that does not have any routine, scheduled FCC filing deadlines, there are still some regulatory dates and deadlines in May of which broadcasters should be aware.  As detailed below, this includes comment deadlines in an FCC proceeding concerning the state of competition in the video and audio marketplaces…

  • The FCC’s Media Bureau released a Public Notice purporting to remind broadcasters about their lowest unit charge (LUC) obligations for
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With April showers come routine regulatory dates for broadcasters, including the requirement for posting Quarterly Issues/Programs Lists to the Online Public Inspection Files of all full-power radio and TV stations, and EEO Public File Reports for stations in a number of states.  Among the other dates in April is the reply comment deadline in the…

March may not have any of the regular FCC filing deadlines, but there are still plenty of regulatory activities going on this month that should grab the attention of any broadcast or media company.  There are a few FCC proceedings in which there are dates in March worth noting, including the main event in the process that the FCC has been going through to give Class A TV, LPTV, and TV Translator operators the opportunity for major changes and, this month, applications for new  LPTV and TV translator stations. Here is a look at some of the important broadcast regulatory dates in March, and a look ahead to the filing deadlines in early April.    

Daylight Savings Time resumes on March 8, and thus AM daytime-only radio stations and stations operating with pre-sunrise and/or post-sunset authority should check their sign-on and sign-off times on their current FCC authorizations to ensure compliance with the requirements set out in those authorizations.  As all times listed in FCC licenses are Standard Time, don’t be fooled into thinking that your daytime-only station has extra time to keep operating once Daylight Savings time kicks in.

Continue Reading March 2026 Regulatory Dates for Broadcasters – Daylight Savings Time, Applications for New LPTV/TV Translator Stations, Political Windows, and More

2026 has begun, so it is time to look at the regulatory dates of importance to broadcasters in the new year.  Later this week, we will look ahead at some of the broadcast issues likely to be tackled by the FCC and Congress in this new year.  But today, we will look at dates and…

Today, we would normally publish our look back at the prior week’s regulatory activity of importance to broadcasters but, as we noted last week, we are taking this week off and will publish a summary of the regulatory activity during the two week holiday period next Sunday.  But, as the start of a new month is upon us, we instead offer our regular look ahead at regulatory dates and deadlines for January.   

With each New Year, there are a host of new regulatory deadlines to keep broadcasters busy.  In January, this includes some recurring FCC deadlines like Quarterly Issues/Programs lists for all full power broadcasters, and a host of other quarterly obligations that are not as widely applicable.  For TV broadcasters, the month brings obligations including the annual children’s television reports on educational and informational programming and a public file certification on commercial limits, as well as the extension to stations in 10 additional markets of the audio description requirements. 

In addition to comments in rulemaking proceedings described below, January brings some new obligations.  For commercial broadcasters streaming audio programming on the Internet, there are new SoundExchange royalties that cover performances made on and after January 1, and a requirement for a higher minimum fee due at the end of the month.  There is also a freeze that will be imposed on applications for major changes by existing LPTV stations and TV translators related to a window that will open in March, the first window in well over a decade for the filing of applications for new LPTV stations. 

Let’s look at some of the specific dates and deadlines for broadcasters in January, starting with the routine deadlines that come up every January, and then moving to some of new obligations for 2026.  After that we provide January deadlines for comments in rulemaking proceedings (including reply comments on proposed changes to the FCC’s ownership rules and initial comments on proposals to speed the ATSC 3.0 conversion), a look at lowest unit rate windows that open in January for 2026 elections, and finally a few deadlines in early February.

Continue Reading January 2026 Regulatory Dates for Broadcasters – Quarterly Issues/Programs Lists, Children’s Television Programming Reporting, New Webcasting Royalties, Expansion of Audio Description Requirements, Comment Deadlines, Political Windows, and More

The deadline for candidates in Texas to file for a place on the March 3 primary ballot was this week.  Deadlines for filing to become a qualified candidate in other states will follow soon for other primaries that occur in March, and then throughout the first part of 2026.  As a result, broadcast stations and cable companies across the country will be dealing with all of the FCC political rules that become important once you have legally qualified candidates.  Even before the deadline for candidates to file for their place on the ballot, stations are dealing with buys from potential candidates, PACs, and other third-party groups looking to establish positions for the important 2026 elections. Spending on political advertising is sure to increase as the new year rolls around, and some suggest that it could rival or even exceed the record amounts spent in prior elections. What should broadcast stations be thinking about now to get ready for the 2026 elections?

The week before Thanksgiving I did a webinar for over 20 state broadcast associations on these issues (check with your state association to see if they have access to an archived copy of that webinar).  We have also written about some of the issues that broadcasters should already be considering in our Political Broadcasting Guide (which we plan to update shortly). But there are many issues that broadcasters need to consider now.  Some of those are discussed below.

Continue Reading Getting Ready for the 2026 Election – Steps Broadcasters Should Be Taking Now to Avoid Legal Issues with Political Broadcasting

Although many, including Congress, take the last of their summer vacations in August, there are still many dates to which broadcasters should be paying attention this month.  One deadline that most commercial broadcasters should be anticipating is the FCC’s order that will set the amount of their Annual Regulatory Fees, which will be paid sometime in September before the October 1 start of the federal government’s new fiscal year.  As we noted here, the FCC proposed to decrease fees this year for broadcasters from the amounts paid in prior years.  Also, as we noted here, the FCC has adopted a new regulatory fee calculation methodology for earth stations.  Watch for the announcement of the final amounts for the Annual Regulatory Fees, along with an announcement of the deadline for their payment.  These announcements usually come in late August or in the first few days of September. 

Here are some of the other regulatory deadlines this month:

August 1 the deadline for radio and television station employment units in California, Illinois, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Wisconsin with five or more full-time employees to upload their Annual EEO Public File Report to their stations’ Online Public Inspection Files.  A station employment unit is a station or cluster of commonly controlled stations serving the same general geographic area having at least one common employee.  For employment units with five or more full-time employees, the annual report covers hiring and employment outreach activities for the prior year.  A link to the uploaded report must also be included on the home page of each station’s website, if the station has a website.  Be timely getting these reports into your station’s OPIF, as even a single late report has in the past lead to significant FCC fines (see our article here about a recent $26,000 fine for a single late EEO report).

Continue Reading August 2025 Regulatory Dates for Broadcasters – Watching for the Annual Reg Fee Announcement, EEO Annual Filings, Comment Deadlines, and Political Windows

Though school may be letting out for many, the FCC does not take a summer recess.  Instead, regulation continues.  Perhaps most importantly, Chairman Carr will have a Republican majority on the FCC for the first time since the change in administration, as Democratic Commissioner Starks has said that he is leaving the Commission before its June meeting.  See our article from earlier in the week for our views on some of the issues that may be prioritized once the Chairman’s majority is in place.  In addition, there are some routine deadlines – including EEO filing deadlines for broadcasters in several states across the country and deadlines for comments or reply comments in a number of rulemaking proceedings.  And there are political windows that open in June, principally for elections that will occur in August.

June 2 is the deadline for radio and television station employment units in Arizona, the District of Columbia, Idaho, Maryland, Michigan, Nevada, New Mexico, Ohio, Utah, Virginia, West Virginia, and Wyoming with five or more full-time employees to upload their Annual EEO Public File Report to their stations’ Online Public Inspection Files.  A station employment unit is a station or cluster of commonly controlled stations serving the same general geographic area having at least one common employee.  For employment units with five or more full-time employees, the annual report covers hiring and employment outreach activities for the prior year.  A link to the uploaded report must also be included on the home page of each station’s website, if the station has a website.  Be timely getting these reports into your station’s OPIF, as even a single late report can lead to FCC fines (see our article here about a recent $26,000 fine for a single late EEO report).

Continue Reading June 2025 Regulatory Dates for Broadcasters – Annual EEO Public File Reports, Comment Deadlines, and More