A federal court in Cal. ruled that municipal govts. aren’t immune from federal lawsuits over local zoning and land-use regulations that allegedly violate Telecom Act Sec. 253 and other federal laws. The U.S. Dist. Court, San Diego, ruled that Sprint PCS can sue San Diego County for wireless tower siting regulations that Sprint claims are hindering its ability to operate there. The court said Sprint has a private right of action under Sec. 253, and also can seek financial damages for violations of the federal Civil Rights Act. San Diego County had claimed the state courts, not federal, had primary jurisdiction over municipal land use decisions. Sprint hailed the ruling for giving wireless carriers a new venue for fighting unreasonable local restrictions on their services and networks. The ruling didn’t address the merits of Sprint’s claims; it addressed only the issue of where those claims may be heard.
The FCC Wireless Bureau is seeking comments on a waiver request by Access Spectrum to deploy a land mobile base station in the Grade B contour of an analog broadcast station. Comments are due May 17, replies May 27. Access Spectrum, which owns guard band spectrum at 700 MHz, sought a waiver for Sec. 27.60 of the FCC’s rules, which provide protection criteria for base, fixed, control and mobile transmitters operating at 698-764 MHz and 776-794 MHz to reduce potential interference to public reception of signals of existing TV and DTV stations on Channels 51-68. The rule also outlines protection criteria and methods for determining the minimum separation distance between a co-channel or adjacent channel land mobile station and a TV and DTV broadcast station. Access Spectrum submitted an application to the FCC in which it seeks to deploy a trunked land mobile base station in the Grade B contour of analog broadcast station KZJL, which operates on adjacent channel 61 in Houston. Access Spectrum submitted an engineering study that it said demonstrates that any possibility of interference to the off-air reception of KZJL is virtually non-existent. The FCC’s notice said the transmitting frequencies for Access Spectrum’s proposed base station are about 5.5 MHz removed from the lower channel edge of KZJL. Access Spectrum has argued this separation distance will result in sufficient protection to the reception of KZJL.
On April 2, 2004, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) issued its third version of Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) and responses regarding the inbound portion of its final rule requiring the advance electronic presentation of information pertaining to cargo (sea, air, rail, or truck) prior to its being brought into, or sent from, the U.S.
Timeframes
Clear Channel permanently pulled Howard Stern off the air Thurs. in the wake of a proposed FCC $495,000 fine for indecent content on the shock jock’s show, the company said. “Unfortunately, the FCC’s latest action, combined with deafening silence from the Stern show on their future plans to comply with the law, leave us no choice but to abandon the program for good,” said Clear Channel’s Pres.-CEO John Hogan. In Feb. Clear Channel suspended the show in 6 markets and asked the show’s syndicator that steps be taken to ensure FCC compliance. The FCC fined Clear Channel’s stations WBGG(FM) Ft. Lauderdale, WTKS(FM) Cocoa Beach, Fla., WTFX(FM) Louisville, KIOZ(FM) San Diego, WNVE(FM) Honeoye Falls, N.Y., and WXDX(FM) Pittsburgh, the maximum $27,500 for each of 18 total indecency violations. Clear Channel was fined $247,500, Citicasters Licenses $165,000, and Capstar TX $82,500. The FCC also asked the Enforcement Bureau to investigate Infinity Bcstg., which originates the show. “For the first time, the Commission assesses a fine against more than a single utterance, rather than counting an entire program as one utterance,” Comr. Copps said. FCC’s action also “makes clear” that indecency enforcement will address not only the station that is the subject of the compliant but any other station that aired the same programming, Copps said. At issue was Stern’s show that aired around 7:30 a.m. April 9, 2003, when a cast member mentioned anal sex. Stern expressed revulsion at the thought of a naked, sweaty, obese man engaging in cunnilingus. The fines, the 4th largest for indecency, were expected. The FCC last month imposed a $27,500 fine against Infinity for airing indecent material on Stern’s show. Stern said he wasn’t surprised by the fines: “It is pretty shocking that governmental interference into our rights and free speech takes place in the U.S. It’s hard to reconcile this with the land of the free and the home of the brave.” Separately, the FCC affirmed a $14,000 fine against Emmis Radio for airing indecent material over station WKQK(FM) Chicago during “Mancow’s Morning Madness” program. The FCC rejected Emmis’ arguments that the complaints didn’t include enough information to support indecency findings. Copps said the fines should be higher for repeat offenders like Emmis.
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has issued a document entitled, Compliance Summary Information: Prior Notice, which describes prior notice (PN) submissions received during the first two months after the interim final rule requiring prior notice of imported foods became effective December 12, 2003.
The FCC Wireless Bureau plans to auction 20 automated maritime telecom system (AMTS) licenses Sept. 15. The AMTS service is a specialized system of coast stations that offer integrated marine voice and data communications, similar to cellular service, for tugs, barges and other vessels. The FCC public notice said service to units on land is allowed, “so long as marine-originating communications receive priority.” The FCC plans to auction two 500 kHz blocks of paired spectrum at 217/219 MHz in each of 10 AMTS areas. The FCC sought comment on reserve prices or minimum opening bids and other auction procedures by April 23, with replies due April 30.
News Corp.’s NDS Technologies subsidiary expects to forge an alliance with an unidentified CE company within 2 weeks to develop product compliant with the fledgling Secure Video Processor (SVP) digital content protection standard developed with STMicroelectronics, NDS executives told Consumer Electronics Daily.
On April 1, 2004, a bipartisan group led by the House Ways and Means Committee Chairman introduced H.R. 4103, the African Growth and Opportunity (AGOA) Acceleration Act. (This bill is referred to by some as "AGOA III.")
Nextel on Fri. rebutted a proposal Verizon Wireless made to the FCC, which suggested the agency adopt an 800 MHz in- band realignment to fix public safety interference, instead of the consensus plan. “Verizon’s anti-competitive proposal merely represents its latest effort to improve its bottom line at the expense of public safety communications,” Nextel said. In part, Nextel assailed the Verizon Wireless proposal as “vague and incomplete,” saying it left out important details about implementation. Nextel raised concerns about Verizon’s argument that the FCC can compel Nextel to cover all the relocation costs of incumbents, citing PCS band- clearing efforts and 800 MHz specialized mobile radio overlay decisions. “In these cases, the Commission gave new licensees the right, at their own discretion and expense, to relocate affected site-licensed incumbents within their licensed geographic areas,” Nextel said. “In contrast, Verizon’s proposal would require incumbent licensees to move to alternative channels to effectuate a Commission-mandated 800 MHz spectrum band realignment made necessary by an out- of-date Commission-adopted band plan; in this process, Nextel itself would be displaced and relocated to alternative spectrum.” Nextel cited arguments Verizon Wireless made in 2002 at the FCC, when it said relocation funding obligations for commercial mobile radio service operators at 800 MHz couldn’t be justified on the basis of requiring applicants for a new service, as a licensing condition, to agree to pay band-clearing costs. “Verizon had it right then -- the Commission cannot force Nextel or other commercial licensees to pay for retuning private wireless and public safety incumbents in a realignment of the 800 MHz Land Mobile Radio band, whether wholly in-band or otherwise.”