Federal Communications Commission

Federal Communications Commission
FCC
official seal
logo
Agency overview
Formed	June 19, 1934
Preceding agency	Federal Radio Commission
Agency executive	Julius Genachowski, Chairman
Website
fcc.gov

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is an independent agency of the United States government, created, directed, and empowered by Congressional statute (see 47 U.S.C. § 151 and 47 U.S.C. § 154), and with the majority of its commissioners appointed by the current President. The FCC works towards six goals in the areas of broadband, competition, the spectrum, the media, public safety and homeland security, and modernizing the FCC.^[1]

The FCC was established by the Communications Act of 1934 as the successor to the Federal Radio Commission and is charged with regulating all non-federal government use of the radio spectrum (including radio and television broadcasting), and all interstate telecommunications (wire, satellite and cable) as well as all international communications that originate or terminate in the United States. It is an important factor in U.S. telecommunication policy. The FCC took over wire communication regulation from the Interstate Commerce Commission. The FCC's mandated jurisdiction covers the 50 states, the District of Columbia, and U.S. possessions. Due however to close geographic proximity to the United States, the FCC also provides varied degrees of cooperation, oversight, and leadership for similar communications bodies in other countries of North America. The FCC has a 2009 proposed budget of $466 million which is funded by $1 million in taxpayer appropriations and the rest in regulatory fees. It has 1,899 "full-time equivalent" federal employees.^[2]

On 14 November 2008, Barack Obama appointed Susan P. Crawford and Kevin Werbach to lead the review of the FCC. The review team will review the commission to aid the new administration in its planning decisions.^[3] The team "will ensure that senior appointees have the information necessary to complete the confirmation process, lead their departments, and begin implementing signature policy initiatives immediately after they are sworn in."^[4]

Mission and strategy

As specified in section one of the Communications Act as amended by the Telecommunications Act of 1996 (amendment to 47 U.S.C. §151) it is the FCC's mission to "make available so far as possible, to all the people of the United States, without discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, or sex, rapid, efficient, Nation-wide, and world-wide wire and radio communication services with adequate facilities at reasonable charges."[sic] The Act furthermore provides that the FCC was created "for the purpose of the national defense" and "for the purpose of promoting safety of life and property through the use of wire and radio communications."^[1]

Consistent with the objectives of the Act as well as the 1993 Government Performance and Results Act (GPRA), the FCC has identified six goals in its 2006-2011 Strategic Plan. These are:

• Broadband: "All Americans should have affordable access to robust and reliable broadband products and services. Regulatory policies must promote technological neutrality, competition, investment, and innovation to ensure that broadband service providers have sufficient incentives to develop and offer such products and services."
• Competition: "Competition in the provision of communication services, both domestically and overseas, supports the Nation's economy. The competitive framework for communications services should foster innovation and offer consumers reliable, meaningful choice in affordable services."
• Spectrum: "Efficient and effective use of non-federal spectrum domestically and internationally promotes the growth and rapid development of innovative and efficient communication technologies and services."
• Media: "The Nation's media regulations must promote competition and diversity ^{[disambiguation needed]} and facilitate the transition to digital modes of delivery."
• Public Safety and Homeland Security: "Communications during emergencies and crisis must be available for public safety, health, defence, and emergency personnel, as well as all consumers in need. The Nation's critical communications infrastructure must be reliable, interoperable, redundant, and rapidly restorable."
• Modernize the FCC: "The Commission shall strive to be highly productive, adaptive, and innovative organization that maximises the benefits to stakeholders ^{[disambiguation needed]}, staff, and management from effective systems, processes, resources, and organizational culture."^[1]

History

FCC logo used today in addition to the official seal.

Communications Act of 1934

In 1934 Congress passed the Communications Act, which abolished the Federal Radio Commission and transferred jurisdiction over radio licensing to a new Federal Communications Commission, including in it also the telecommunications jurisdiction previously handled by the Interstate Commerce Commission. Title II of the Communications Act focused on telecommunications using many concepts borrowed from railroad legislation and Title III contained provisions very similar to the Radio Act of 1927.

Report on Chain Broadcasting

In 1940 the Federal Communications Commission issued the "Report on Chain Broadcasting." The major point in the report was the breakup of NBC (National Broadcasting Company), which ultimately led to the creation of ABC (American Broadcasting Company), but there were two other important points. One was network option time, the culprit here being CBS. The report limited the amount of time during the day, and what times the networks may broadcast. Previously a network could demand any time it wanted from an affiliate. The second concerned artist bureaus. The networks served as both agents and employees of artists, which was a conflict of interest the report rectified.

The "Freeze" of 1948

In assigning television stations to various cities after World War II, the FCC found that it placed many stations too close to each other, resulting in interference. At the same time, it became clear that the designated VHF channels, 2 through 13, were inadequate for nationwide television service. As a result, the FCC stopped giving out construction permits for new licenses in October 1948. Most expected this "Freeze" to last six months, but as the allocation of channels to the emerging UHF technology and the eagerly-awaited possibilities of color television were debated, the FCC's re-allocation map of stations did not come until April 1952, with July 1, 1952 as the official beginning of licensing new stations.

The FCC's "Sixth Report & Order" ended the Freeze. It would take five years for the U.S. to grow from 108 stations to more than 550. New stations came on line slowly, only five by the end of November, 1952. The Sixth Report and Order required some existing TV stations to change channels, but only a few existing VHF stations were required to move to UHF, and a handful of VHF channels were deleted altogether in smaller media markets like East Peoria, Fresno, and Bakersfield to create markets which were UHF "islands." The report also set aside a number of channels for the newly emerging field of educational television, which hindered struggling ABC and DuMont's quest for affiliates in the more desirable markets where VHF channels were reserved for non-commercial use.

The Sixth Report and Order also provided for the "intermixture" of VHF and UHF channels in most markets; UHF transmitters in the 1950s were not yet powerful enough, nor receivers sensitive enough (if they included UHF tuners at all - they were not formally required until the 1960s All-Channel Receivers Act), to make UHF viable against entrenched VHF stations. In markets where there were no VHF stations and UHF was the only TV service available, UHF survived. In other markets, which were too small to financially support a television station, too close to VHF outlets in nearby cities, or where UHF was forced to compete with more than one well-established VHF station, UHF had little chance for success.

Denver had been the largest U.S. city without a TV station by 1952. Senator Edwin Johnson (D-Colorado), chair of the Senate's Interstate and Foreign Commerce Committee, had made getting Denver the first post-Freeze station his personal mission. He had pressured the FCC, and proved ultimately successful as the first new station (a VHF station) came on-line a remarkable ten days after the Commission formally announced the first post-Freeze construction permits. KFEL (now KWGN-TV)'s first regular telecast was on July 21, 1952.^[5][6]

Telephone Monopoly to Competition

The important relationship of the FCC and the American Telephone and Telegraph (AT&T) Company has evolved over several years. For many years, the FCC and state officials agreed to regulate the telephone systems as a natural monopoly. The FCC controlled telephone rates to limit the profits of AT&T and ensure nondiscriminatory pricing. In the 1960s, the FCC began allowing other long-distance companies, namely MCI, to offer specialized services. In the 1970s, the FCC allowed other companies to expand offerings to the public. A lawsuit in 1982 led by the Justice Department after AT&T underpriced other companies, resulted in the split of the Bells from AT&T. Beginning in 1984, the FCC implemented a new goal that all long-distance companies had equal access to the local phone companies' customers.

Telecommunications Act of 1996

In 1996 Congress enacted the Telecommunications Act of 1996, in the wake of the break-up of AT&T resulting from the U.S. Justice Department's antitrust suit against AT&T. In part, the 1996 legislation attempted to create more competition in local telephone service by requiring Incumbent Local Exchange Carriers to provide access to their facilities for Competitive Local Exchange Carriers.

This policy has thus far had limited success and much criticism. See. e.g. Robert Crandall The development of the Internet, cable services and wireless services has raised questions whether new legislative initiates are needed as to competition in what has come to be called 'broadband' services. Congress has monitored developments but as of 2009 has not undertaken a major revision of applicable regulation. The Local Community Radio Act in the 111th Congress has gotten out of committee and will go before the house floor with bi-partisan support,^[7] and unanimous support of the FCC.^[8]

Consolidation permissivity, indecency crackdowns

The inauguration of Ronald Reagan as President of the United States in 1981 accelerated an already on-going shift in the FCC towards a decidedly more market-oriented stance. A number of regulations felt to be outdated were removed, most controversially the Fairness Doctrine in 1987. The FCC also took steps to increase competition to broadcasters, fostering broadcast alternatives such as cable television. It's worth also noting that in terms of indeceny fines, there was not action taken by the FCC from Pacifica V. USA until 1987, about ten years later.

In the early 2000s, the FCC began stepping up censorship and enforcement of indecency regulations again, most notably following the Janet Jackson "wardrobe malfunction" that occurred during the halftime show of Super Bowl XXXVIII. However, the FCC's regulatory domain with respect to indecency remains restricted to the public airwaves, notably VHF and UHF television and AM/FM radio.

On June 15, 2006, President George W. Bush signed into law the Broadcast Decency Enforcement Act of 2005 sponsored by Senator Sam Brownback, a former broadcaster himself, and endorsed by Congressman Fred Upton of Michigan who authored a similar bill in the United States House of Representatives. The new law stiffens the penalties for each violation of the Act. The Federal Communications Commission will be able to impose fines in the amount of $325,000 for each violation by each station that violates decency standards. The legislation raised the fine tenfold over the previous maximum of $32,500 per violation.^[9][10]

Organization

The FCC is organized into seven Bureaus and ten Staff Offices.

Bureaus

'The Bureaus’ include processing applications for licenses and other filings, analyzing complaints, conducting investigations, developing and implementing regulations, and participating in hearings.

• The Consumer & Governmental Affairs (CGB) develops and implements the FCC's consumer policies, including disability access. CGB serves as the public face of the FCC through outreach and education, as well as through their Consumer Center, which is responsible for responding to consumer inquiries and complaints. CGB also maintains collaborative partnerships with state, local, and tribal governments in such areas as emergency preparedness and implementation of new technologies.
• The Enforcement Bureau (EB) is responsible for enforcement of provisions of the Communications Act 1934, FCC rules, FCC orders, and terms and conditions of station authorizations. Major areas of enforcement that are handled by the Enforcement Bureau are consumer protection, local competition, public safety, and homeland security.
• The International Bureau (IB) develops international policies in telecommunications, such as coordination of frequency allocation and orbital assignments so as to minimize cases of international electromagnetic interference involving U.S. licensees. The International Bureau also oversees FCC compliance with the international Radio Regulations and other international agreements.
• The Media Bureau (MB) develops, recommends and administers the policy and licensing programs relating to electronic media, including cable television, broadcast television, and radio in the United States and its territories. The Media Bureau also handles post-licensing matters regarding direct broadcast satellite service.
• The Wireless Telecommunications Services (WCS) such as Advanced Wireless Services (AWS) and fixed, mobile, and broadcast services on the 700 MHz Band.
• The Wireline Competition Bureau (WCB) develops policy concerning wireline ^{[disambiguation needed]} telecommunications. The Wireline Competition Bureau’s main objective is to promote growth and economical investments in wireline technology infrastructure, development, markets, and services.
• The Public Safety and Homeland Security Bureau was launched in 2006.

Offices

The FCC's Offices provide support services to the Bureaus. Though the Bureaus and Offices have their individual functions, they regularly work together on FCC issues.

• The Office of Administrative Law Judges (OALJ) is responsible for conducting hearings ordered by the Commission. The hearing function includes acting on interlocutory requests filed in the proceedings such as petitions to intervene, petitions to enlarge issues, and contested discovery requests. An Administrative Law Judge, appointed under the Administrative Procedure Act, presides at the hearing during which documents and sworn testimony are received in evidence, and witnesses are cross-examined. At the conclusion of the evidentiary phase of a proceeding, the presiding Administrative Law Judge writes and issues an Initial Decision which may be appealed to the Commission.
• The Office of Communications Business Opportunities (OCBO) promotes telecommunications business opportunities for small, minority-owned, and women-owned businesses. OCBO works with entrepreneurs, industry, public interest organizations, individuals, and others to provide information about FCC policies, increase ownership and employment opportunities, foster a diversity of voices and viewpoints over the airwaves, and encourage participation in FCC proceedings.
• The Office of Engineering and Technology (OET) advises the Commission concerning engineering matters.
  • Its chief role is to manage the electromagnetic spectrum, specifically frequency allocation and spectrum usage. OET conducts technical studies of advanced phases of terrestrial and space communications and administers FCC rules regarding radio devices, experimental radio services, and industrial, scientific, and medical equipment.
  • OET organizes the Technical Advisory Council, a committee of FCC advisors from major telecommunication and media corporations.
  • OET operates the Equipment Authorization Branch, which is tasked with overseeing equipment authorization for all devices using the electromagnetic energy from 9 kHz to 300 GHz. OET maintains an electronic database of all Certified equipment which can be easily accessed by the public.
• The Office of General Counsel serves as the chief legal advisor to the Commission. The General Counsel also represents the Commission in litigation in United States federal courts, recommends decisions in adjudicatory matters before the Commission, assists the Commission in its decision making capacity and performs a variety of legal functions regarding internal and other administrative matters.
• The Office of the Inspector General (OIG) recommends policies to prevent fraud in agency operations. The Inspector General recommends corrective action where appropriate, referring criminal matters to the United States Department of Justice for potential prosecution.
• The Office of Legislative Affairs (OLA) is the FCC’s liaison to the United States Congress, providing lawmakers with information about FCC regulations. OLA also prepares FCC witnesses for Congressional hearings, and helps create FCC responses to legislative proposals and Congressional inquiries. In addition, OLA is a liaison to other Federal agencies, as well as state and local governments.
• The Office of the Managing Director (OMD) is responsible for the administration and management of the FCC, including the agency's budget, personnel, security, contracts, and publications.
• The Office of Media Relations (OMR) is responsible for the dissemination of Commission announcements, orders, proceedings, and other information per media requests. OMR manages the FCC Daily Digest, website, and Audio Visual Center.
• The Office of the Secretary (OSEC) oversees the receipt and distribution of documents filed by the public through electronic and paper filing systems and the FCC Library collection. In addition, OSEC publishes legal notices of Commission decisions in the Federal Register and the FCC Record.
• The Office of Strategic Planning & Policy Analysis (OSP), essentially a think tank within the FCC, identifies policy objectives for the agency. OSP works closely with the FCC Chairman and is responsible for monitoring the state of the communications industry to identify trends, issues and overall industry health. OSP acts as expert consultants to the Commission in areas of economic, business, and market analysis. The Office also reviews legal trends and developments not necessarily related to current FCC proceedings, such as intellectual property law, the Internet, and electronic commerce. Previously OSP was called the Office of Plans and Policy (OPP). Catherine Bohigian has been the chief of the OSP since 2005.^[11]
• The Office of Workplace Diversity (OWD) develops policy to provide a full and fair opportunity for all employees, regardless of non-merit factors such as race, religion, gender, color, age, disability, sexual orientation or national origin, to carry out their duties in the workplace free from unlawful discriminatory treatment, including sexual harassment and retaliation for engaging in legally protected activities.

Broadcast licensing

An additional logo

As a regulator of over-the-air broadcast station ^{[disambiguation needed]}s, FCC has one major regulatory instrument, revoking broadcast licenses, but short of that has limited leverage except for fines. (see FCC MB Docket 04-232). Sanctions run a report-basis system. Additionally, broadcast licenses are to be renewed if the station meets the "public interest, convenience, or necessity". However, the Federal Communications Commission now rarely checks except for some obvious and outstanding reason; the burden of proof would be on the complainant in a petition to deny. Fewer than 1% of station renewals are not immediately granted, and only a small fraction of those are ultimately denied.

The Federal Communications Commission also licenses amateur radio operators and repeater stations, and does use its power to fine amateur radio operators who flagrantly violate its rules. It also licenses commercial operators who operate and repair certain radiotelephone, television, radar, and Morse code radio stations. In recent years it has also licensed people who maintain or operate GMDSS stations. While the FCC maintains control of the written and Morse testing standards, it no longer administers the exams, having delegated that function to private organizations.

The FCC has been criticized for awarding a digital TV (DTV) channel to each holder of an analog TV station license without an auction, as well as trading auctionable spectrum to Nextel to resolve public safety RF interference problems. Conversely, it has also been criticized for forcing stations to buy and install all new equipment (transmitters, TV antennas, and even entirely new broadcast towers), and operate for years on both channels at once. This was at great expense to every TV station, and without government compensation for the regulatory taking, despite 20 billion dollars brought in by taking more than 25% of the TV broadcast band (and the part most valuable for mobile TV, the future of broadcasting) away and auctioning it. On June 12, 2009, all full-power analog terrestrial TV licenses in the U.S. were terminated, with terrestrial television subsequently available only from the digital channels and a few low-power LPTV stations, leaving stations and the viewing public with millions of dollars in useless analog equipment, and with a reduced audience that could not or would not get the necessary DTV converter boxes. See DTV transition in the United States.

Controversies

Unreleased reports

2003 study of commercial radio concentration

In 2003, the FCC Media Bureau produced a draft report analyzing the impact of deregulation in the radio industry.^[12] The report stated that from March 1996 through March 2003, the number of commercial radio stations on the air rose 5.9 percent while the number of station owners fell 35 percent. The concentration of ownership followed a 1996 rewrite of telecommunications law that eliminated a 40-station national ownership cap.

The report was never made public, nor have any similar analyses followed, despite the fact that radio industry reports were released in 1998, 2001 and 2002. In September 2006, Senator Barbara Boxer, who had received a copy of the report, released it.^[13]

2004 study of television media concentration

In 2004, the FCC ordered its staff to destroy all copies of a draft study by Keith Brown and Peter Alexander, two economists in the FCC's Media Bureau. The two had analyzed a database of 4,078 individual news stories broadcast in 1998, showed local ownership of television stations adds almost five and one-half minutes of total news to broadcasts and more than three minutes of "on-location" news.

The conclusion of the study was at odds with FCC arguments made when it voted in 2003 to increase the number of television stations a company could own in a single market. (In June 2004, a federal appeals court rejected the agency's reasoning on most of the rules and ordered it to try again.)

In September 2006, Senator Barbara Boxer, who had received a copy of the report "indirectly from someone within the FCC who believed the information should be made public," wrote a letter to FCC Chairman Kevin Martin, asked whether any other commissioners "past or present" knew of the report's existence and why it was never made public. She also asked whether it was "shelved because the outcome was not to the liking of some of the commissioners and/or any outside powerful interests?" Boxer's office said if she does not receive adequate answers to her questions, she will push for an investigation by the FCC inspector general.^[14]

Action by FCC Chairman

In a letter in response to Senator Boxer, FCC Chairman Martin said "I want to assure you that I too am concerned about what happened to these two draft reports." The letter also said "I have asked the inspector general of the FCC to conduct an investigation into what happened to these draft documents and will cooperate fully with him." Martin added that he was not chairman at the time the reports were drafted, and that neither he nor his staff had seen them.^[13]

NSA wiretapping

When it emerged in 2006 that AT&T, BellSouth and Verizon may have broken U.S. laws by aiding the National Security Agency in possible illegal wiretapping of its customers, Congressional representatives called for an FCC investigation into whether or not those companies broke the law. The FCC declined to investigate, however, claiming that it could not investigate due to the classified nature of the program– a move that provoked the criticism of members of Congress.

“Today the watchdog agency that oversees the country’s telecommunications industry refused to investigate the nation’s largest phone companies’ reported disclosure of phone records to the NSA," said Rep. Edward Markey (D-Mass.) in response to the decision. "The FCC, which oversees the protection of consumer privacy under the Communications Act of 1934, has taken a pass at investigating what is estimated to be the nation’s largest violation of consumer privacy ever to occur. If the oversight body that monitors our nation’s communications is stepping aside then Congress must step in.”^[15]

Diversity

With the major demographic shifts occurring in the country in terms of the racial-ethnic composition of the population, the FCC has also been criticized for ignoring the issue of decreasing racial-ethnic diversity of the media. This includes charges that the FCC has been watering down the limited affirmative action regulations it had on the books, including no longer requiring stations to make public their data on their minority staffing and hiring. In the second half of 2006, groups such as the National Hispanic Media Coalition, the National Latino Media Council, the National Association of Hispanic Journalists, the National Institute for Latino Policy, the League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) and others held town hall meetings in California, New York and Texas on media diversity as its affects Latinos and minority communities. They documented widespread and deeply-felt community concerns about the negative effects of media concentration and consolidation on racial-ethnic diversity in staffing and programming. See El Diario La Prensa's editorial on media diversity. At these Latino town hall meetings, the issue of the FCC's lax monitoring of obscene and pornographic material in Spanish-language radio and the lack of racial and national-origin diversity among Latino staff in Spanish-language television were other major themes. President Obama appointed Mark Lloyd to the FCC in the newly created post of Associate General Counsel/Chief Diversity Officer.^[16][17]

Use of white space

On October 15, 2008, FCC Chairman Kevin Martin announced his support for the use of white spaces within the radio frequency spectrum. White spaces are airwaves that will go unused after the federally mandated transformation of analog TV signal goes digital. He said he is “hoping to take advantage of utilizing these airwaves for broadband services to allow for unlicensed technologies and new innovations in that space.”^[18] While technology innovators such as Google and Microsoft are vying for the use of this white-space to support innovation in Wi-Fi technology, broadcasters and wireless microphone manufacturers fear that the use of white-space would “disrupt their broadcasts and the signals used in sports events and concerts.”^[19] Cell phone providers such as T-Mobile USA have mounted pressure on the FCC to instead offer up the white-space for sale to boost competition and market leverage.

On November 4, 2008, the FCC unanimously agreed to open up unused broadcast TV spectrum for unlicensed use.^[20][21]

Network neutrality

The FCC has claimed some jurisdiction over the issue of network neutrality (see Network neutrality in the United States) and has laid down guideline rules that it expects the telecommunications industry to follow. On February 11, 2008 Rep. Ed Markey and Rep. Chip Pickering introduced HR5353 "To establish broadband policy and direct the Federal Communications Commission to conduct a proceeding and public broadband summit to assess competition, consumer protection, and consumer choice issues relating to broadband Internet access services, and for other purposes."^[22] On 1 August 2008 the FCC formally voted 3-to-2 to upholding a complaint against Comcast, the largest cable company in the US, ruling that it had illegally inhibited users of its high-speed Internet service from using file-sharing software. The FCC imposed no fine, but required Comcast to end such blocking in 2008. FCC chairman Kevin J. Martin said the order was meant to set a precedent that Internet providers, and indeed all communications companies, could not prevent customers from using their networks the way they see fit unless there is a good reason. In an interview Martin stated that “We are preserving the open character of the Internet” and “We are saying that network operators can’t block people from getting access to any content and any applications.” The case highlighted broader issues of whether new legislation is needed to force Internet providers to maintain network neutrality, i.e. treat all uses of their networks equally. The legal complaint against Comcast related to BitTorrent, software that is commonly used for downloading larger files.^[23]

Proprietary standards

The FCC has also been criticized for ignoring international open standards, and instead choosing proprietary closed standards, or allowing communications companies to do so and implement the anticompetitive practice of vendor lock-in, thereby preventing a free market.

In the case of digital TV, it chose the ATSC standard, even though DVB was already in use around the world, including DVB-S satellite TV in the U.S. Unlike competing standards, the ATSC system is encumbered by numerous patents, and therefore royalties that make TV sets and DTV converters much more expensive than in the rest of the world. Additionally, the claimed benefit of better reception in rural areas is more than negated in urban areas by multipath ^{[disambiguation needed]}, which other systems are nearly immune to. It also cannot be received while in motion for this reason, while all other systems can, even without dedicated mobile TV signals or receivers.

For digital radio, the FCC chose proprietary HD Radio, which crowds the existing FM broadcast band and even AM broadcast band with in-band adjacent-channel sidebands, which create noise in other stations. This is in contrast to worldwide DAB, which uses unused TV channels in the VHF band III range. This too has patent fees, while DAB does not. Enormous expense is involved in converting each station, largely from these fees, and so it is completely prohibitive for community radio and most other non-commercial educational stations.

Satellite radio (also called SDARS by the FCC) uses two proprietary standards instead of DAB-S, which requires users to change equipment when switching from one provider to the other, and prevents other competitors from offering new choices as stations can do on terrestrial radio. Had the FCC picked DAB-T for terrestrial radio, no separate satellite receiver would have been needed at all, and the only difference from DAB receivers in the rest of the world would be in software, where it would need to tune S band instead of L band.

In mobile telephony, the FCC abandoned the "any lawful device" principle decided against AT&T landlines, and has instead allowed each mobile phone company to dictate what its customers can use.

Local broadcasting

After being successful in opening the FM band as a superior alternative to the AM band by allowing colleges and other schools to start ten-watt LPFM stations, the FCC banned new ones around 1980, at the behest of the powerful commercial radio stations of the National Association of Broadcasters, and the then-new National Public Radio. The exception to the ban is for NAB/NPR member stations (and now religious radio) to construct broadcast translators, which raises issues about equal protection of free speech, because it bans technically-identical stations just for originating their own programming. Commercial station groups are now also using "translator" stations to circumvent caps on local media ownership, be feeding them a signal that is also broadcast on an AM station or "HD" channel that cannot otherwise be heard.

The concept of the city of license has also become a nearly meaningless legal fiction over the years, as stations no longer have any requirement to air any local content.

FCC broadcasting tower database

The FCC database of broadcasting towers^[24] provides information about the height and year built of broadcasting towers in the USA. It does not contain information about the structural types of towers or about the height of towers used for non-broadcasting purposes like NDBs, LORAN-C transmission towers or VLF transmission facilities of the US Navy, or about towers not used for transmission like the BREN Tower. These are instead tracked by the Federal Aviation Administration as obstructions to air navigation.

FCC commissioners

The FCC is directed by five commissioners appointed by the U.S. president and confirmed by the U.S. Senate for five-year terms, except when filling an unexpired term. The president designates one of the commissioners to serve as chairperson. Only three commissioners may be members of the same political party. None of them may have a financial interest in any FCC-related business.^[25]

Current chairman and commissioners

• Julius Genachowski, Chairman
• Michael J. Copps, Commissioner
• Robert M. McDowell, Commissioner
• Meredith Attwell Baker, Commissioner
• Mignon Clyburn, Commissioner

Only three commissioners can be from the same political party. All are appointed by the President to five year terms, or to finish out vacated five year terms.^[26]

Past chairmen

The following is a complete list of past chairmen:

• Kevin J. Martin (R-NC) (March 18, 2005 - January 19, 2009)
• Michael K. Powell (R-VA) (January 22, 2001 - March 17, 2005)
• William E. Kennard (D-CA) (November 3, 1997 - January 19, 2001) - Managing director of the Global Telecommunications Group for The Carlyle Group
• Reed E. Hundt (D-MD) (November 29, 1993 - November 3, 1997) - Senior advisor on information industries at McKinsey & Company
• James H. Quello (D-MI) (February 5, 1993 - November 28, 1993; served on the Commission from 1974 - 1997) - Consultant for Wiley Rein, LLP
• Alfred C. Sikes (R-MO) (August 8, 1989 - January 19, 1993) - Chair of the Trinity Foundation and a business consultant for the Hearst Corporation
• Dennis R. Patrick (R-CA) (April 18, 1987 - August 7, 1989) - Chair of National Geographic Ventures
• Mark S. Fowler (R-CA) (May 18, 1981 - April 17, 1987)
• Charles D. Ferris (D-MA) (October 17, 1977 - February 4, 1981) - Chairman of the Federal Law Section and member of the Policy Committee at Mintz, Levin, Ferris, Glovsky and Popeo, P.C.
• Richard E. Wiley (R-IL) (March 8, 1974 - October 13, 1977) - Partner at Wiley Rein, LLP
• Rosel H. Hyde (R-ID) (Chairman, June 27, 1966 - October 31, 1969; Acting Chairman, May 1, 1966 - June 26, 1966; Acting Chairman, April 19, 1954 - October 3, 1954; Chairman, April 18, 1953 - April 18, 1954)
• Dean Burch (R-AZ) (October 13, 1969 - March 8, 1974)
• E. William Henry (D-TN) (June 2, 1963 - May 1, 1966)
• Newton N. Minow (D-IL) (March 2, 1961 - June 1, 1963) - Senior Counsel at Sidley Austin LLP
• Frederick W. Ford (R-WV) (March 15, 1960 - March 1, 1961)
• George McConnaughey (R-OH) (October 4, 1951 - June 30, 1957)
• Robert E. Lee (R-IL) (Chairman, April 13, 1981 - May 18, 1981; Interim Chairman, February 5, 1981 - April 12, 1981) - Served as on the Commission from 1953-1981
• John C. Doerfer (R-WI) (July 1, 1957 - March 10, 1960)
• Wayne Coy (D-IN) (December 29, 1947 - February 21, 1952)
• Charles R. Denny (D-DC) (Chairman, December 4, 1946 - October 31, 1947; Acting Chairman, February 26, 1946 - December 3, 1946)
• Paul A. Porter (D-KY) (December 21, 1944 - February 25, 1946)
• Ewell K. Jett (I-MD) (Interim Chairman, November 16, 1944 - December 20, 1944)
• James Lawrence Fly (D-TX) (September 1, 1939 - November 13, 1944)
• Frank McNinch (D-NC) (October 1, 1937 - August 31, 1939)
• Anning S. Prall (D-NY) (March 9, 1935 - July 23, 1937)
• Paul A. Walker (D-OK) (Chairman, February 28, 1952 - April 17, 1953; Acting Chairman, November 3, 1947 - December 28, 1947)
• Eugene O. Sykes (D-MS) (July 11, 1934 - March 8, 1935)

Past commissioners

A complete list of commissioners is available on the FCC website. Notable commissioners have included:

• Frieda B. Hennock (D-NY)
• Eugene O. Sykes (R-MS)
• Paul A. Walker (D-OK)
• Anning S. Prall (D-NY)
• Frank McNinch (D-NC)
• James Lawrence Fly (D-TX)
• Paul A. Porter (D-KY)
• Charles R. Denny (D-DC)
• Rosel H. Hyde (R-ID)
• Wayne Coy (D-IN)
• John C. Doerfer (R-WI)
• Robert E. Lee (R-IL)
• George McConnaughey (R-OH)
• Frederick W. Ford (R-WV)
• Newton N. Minow (D-IL) 1961-
• Dean Burch (R-AZ) 1969-1974
• Richard E. Wiley (R-IL) 1974-1977
• Charles Ferris (D-MA) 1977-1981
• Mark Fowler (R-CA) 1981-1989 Eliminated fairness doctrine
• Alfred Sikes (R-MO) 1989-1993
• James H. Quello(D-MI) 1993-1993
• Reed E. Hundt (D-CA) 1993-1997
• William E. Kennard (D-CA) 1997-2001
• Michael Powell (R-VA) 2001-2005

See also

• National broadband plans from around the world
• Fairness doctrine
• Frequency assignment authority
• Mercedes divide
• Open spectrum
• List of telecommunications regulatory bodies

References

External links

• FCC website
• Frequency Coordinator
• Antenna Geocode Locator
• Enforcement Policies Regarding Broadcast Indecency
• FCC Rules(CFR Title 47) On-Line at GPO
• The FCC Record online at the UNT Libraries Digital Collections
• New Wave: The case for killing the FCC and selling off spectrum By Jack Shafer, 17 January 2007
• Federal Communications Commission Meeting Notices and Rule Changes from The Federal Register RSS Feed
• Cybertelecom :: FCC and the Internet
• FCC Daily Digest provided as an RSS feed
• Papers of Robert E. Lee, Commissioner of the FCC, 1953-1981, Dwight D. Eisenhower Presidential Library