FCC 2019 Regulatory Fee NPRM Not Up to Standard, NAB Says
The NPRM on 2019 regulatory fees “does not meet the barest of standards to which the FCC holds itself and to which Congress holds the Commission” and doesn’t include sufficient information for broadcasters to comment, NAB said in a call…
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with Office of Managing Director staff, the group filed, posted Monday in FCC docket 19-105. The notice proposes a 20 percent increase for radio stations without justifying the jump, NAB said. “The Notice makes no attempt to explain or justify this increase in the Notice, even though the fee hikes will be an unexpected and substantial burden for many broadcasters." The FCC’s 2019 budget increase of 5.2 percent doesn’t explain the 20 percent shift, NAB said. “An overall budget hike simply does not explain the newly proposed fee hike for the radio industry.” The NPRM doesn’t explain why it says that radio stations have decreased in number, the trade group said. Media Bureau’s statistics AM and commercial FMs total increased by one in 2019, NAB said. “Until this is clarified, there is simply no way broadcasters can meaningfully comment.” The commission should issue another notice, NAB said.