FCC Fees

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The FCC today released a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking asking for public comment on its proposed Regulatory Fees for 2008.  These fees are paid annually by most commercial entities that are regulated by the FCC for the privilege of being regulated.  Noncommercial broadcasters are exempt from the fees.  The fees are normally paid in August or September, during a period of several days that will be established by the Commission after receiving comments on this proposed fee schedule.  The fees for broadcasters are, as they seemingly always do, increasing.  The Commission is also asking for comment on one specific change in how broadcast fees are collected, asking if it should collect fees from AM station licensees who have expanded band stations for both the expanded band station and the in-core channel, if the licensee is still operating both.  Currently, fees are only paid once by expanded band licensees. 

Broadcast fees are based on Class of Service and the population covered by a station.  For AM stations, the proposed fees are to increase from $400 per station for the least powerful stations in the smallest market to $450, and from $7275 for high-powered stations in the largest markets  to $7925.  For FM stations, the least powerful stations in the smallest markets are proposed to increase from $575 to $600.  For high power stations in big markets, the increase is from $9125 to $10,200.  For TV stations, the fees range from $1875 for a UHF station in the smallest markets, up to $69,400 for a VHF station in the largest markets, up from $1750 and $64,300 last year.  Continue Reading FCC Proposes 2008 Regulatory Fee Schedule

Here we are, almost a full month into the new year, and a number of important dates for broadcasters are already upon us.  As we wrote here, for instance, the payment of a minimum fee to SoundExchange by radio stations streaming their signals on the Internet is due today.  Lowest unit rates are in…

On Friday, the FCC issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking to establish the fees and collection procedures for the 2007 regulatory fees – the amount that entities regulated by the FCC pay for the privilege of being regulated.  These fees reimburse the US Treasury for the cost of the regulation.  While no one likes to pay these fees, the total amount to be collected by the FCC is actually slightly less than last year, meaning that the proposed regulatory fees for broadcasters are not proposed to increase from the fees paid last year. The proposed fees for broadcasters for 2007, and the fees that were paid in 2006, are found in the attachment to the FCC’s Notice.  Fees will be paid at a date to be established later, sometime in August or September.

For radio stations, the fees are based on the Class of station, and the population served by that station.  These fees range from $400 for a Class C AM station serving less than 25,000 people, to $9125 for a Class B or C2 or higher FM station serving over 3,000,000 people.  For AM stations, population is computed based on the 5 mv/m service area.  For FM stations, it is based on the 70 dbu contour.

TV stations will pay between $64,300 for a VHF station in the Top 10 markets, to $1750 for UHF stations in markets below 100.  LPTV stations and TV translators will pay $450.  For each broadcast auxiliary license, a broadcaster will pay $10.Continue Reading FCC Regulatory Fees for 2007 Proposed – No Inflation Here

Today, the FCC released an Order announcing the rules for the regulatory fees that will be due in September.  The exact dates for filing will be announced in a subsequent public notice.  But today’s Order sets out the amount of the fees that will be due for broadcasters and other services.

For AM stations, these fees will range from $400 to $7375, depending on the Class of Station and the population that the FCC estimates that the station serves.  For FM stations, the rates range from $575 to $9750.  UHF Television stations will owe between $1775 to $20,750, while VHF stations will pay between $3400 and $64,775.  Satellite television stations, which simply rebroadcast the signals of other stations, need pay only $1150.

All fees are based on the status of the station as of October 1, 2005.  So stations which have upgraded in the interim, or have gone from a construction permit to a licensed station after that date, will not have to pay for their new facilities until next year.  However, even if there has been a change in ownership since October 1, 2005, the current licensee is responsible for the fee.

Continue Reading FCC Announces Regulatory Fees For 2006