The FCC Media Bureau rejected Beanpot License’s objections to WGBH Education Foundation’s decision to abandon a planned channel change and surrender an FM translator construction permit, said an MB letter to the companies involved Friday. The MB approved a channel change for WGBH’s translator W242AA, Beacon Hill, Massachusetts, but the foundation opted to cancel the change and turn in the construction permit after another broadcaster filed against it over possible interference. The bureau had also approved a modification for Beanpot’s translator W243DC Needham, Massachusetts, that was contingent on WGBH’s move, and Beanpot filed in opposition to WGBH’s reversal. Channel-change approvals for full-service stations require a modification of the station’s license, while translator licenses aren’t modified until the new facility is constructed, the Media Bureau said. This means full-power stations are obligated to change channels once a request is approved, but translators aren't. “If a translator permittee determines prior to permit expiration that it will not construct as authorized, the Commission will routinely cancel its construction permit upon request,” the letter said.

Schwab Multimedia appealed the FCC’s January denial of Schwab’s objection to a Media Bureau decision to deny Schwab a construction permit extension for a Culver City, California, AM station, said a U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit notice of appeal Friday (see 2201060048). Schwab argued COVID-19 delays prevented it from building the station.

NAB said its 2022 legislative priorities include passage of the Journalism Competition and Preservation Act (HR-1735/S-673) and legislation aimed at bringing back the FCC’s minority broadcast ownership tax certificate program. Lawmakers “should support laws and policies” like HR-1735/S-673 “that recognize and uphold broadcasters' unique and essential role in democracy and a free press,” NAB said. The House and Senate Judiciary committees are sorting through how to tweak HR-1735/S-673, which would let small news outlets negotiate revenue-sharing with online platforms (see 2202020068). “Reinstating the Tax Certificate Program at the FCC would encourage investment in broadcast station ownership for women and people of color and dramatically help underrepresented voices realize their dreams of radio and television station ownership,” NAB said. It backs the Expanding Broadcast Opportunities Act (HR-4871) and Broadcast Varied Ownership Incentives for Community Expanded Service Act (S-2456), which both would reinstate the program. The group opposes legislation to change the tax treatment of advertising spending, which is currently fully deductible as a necessary business expense, because “it would hurt consumers and small businesses, impact jobs and harm broadcasters' ability to serve their local communities.” NAB also touted its support for the Local Radio Freedom Act (House Concurrent Resolution 33/S-Con-Res 9), which opposes any new performance royalty on broadcast radio.

The FCC’s January order updating political recordkeeping rules takes effect March 14, said a Media Bureau public notice in docket 21-93 Thursday. The order updates FCC rules to conform to the language in the 2002 Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act and adds an online presence to the list of considerations broadcasters take into account when determining whether a write-in political candidate should receive political candidate ad pricing.

Oral argument in the broadcaster challenge of the FCC’s disclosure rules for foreign-sponsored broadcast content will be April 12, said a U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit order Wednesday (see 2201110063). The court hasn't ruled on a motion to stay the FCC’s rule from petitioners NAB, the Multicultural Media, Telecom and Internet Council, and the National Association of Black Owned Broadcasters.

Bidding in Auction 112, which involves construction permits for 27 full-power TV stations, will start June 7, said a public notice in docket 21-449 Thursday (see 2111190052). The permits are for channels that have been allotted but for which there isn’t a current license, and include allotments in Syracuse; Great Falls, Montana; and Flagstaff, Arizona. The short-form application window for the auction opens March 17 and closes March 30, and upfront payments are due May 6.

Geotargeted radio broadcasts aren’t similar to an iHeartMedia tool that allows broadcast advertisers to select which markets will hear their ads, said iHeart in an FCC ex parte filing posted Tuesday in docket 20-401 (see 2201200068). The iHeart AdBuilder doesn’t let advertisers target specific areas of a station’s coverage area, and offers ads at market rates, iHeart said. A GeoBroadcast Solutions filing comparing the two is a “desperate attempt” that “further reinforces that the Commission should be especially wary of GBS’s advocacy of an interference-generating, proprietary technology and business model,” iHeart said.

The American Music Fairness Act “will hurt the very artists that it claims to help” by harming local radio stations, blogged NAB President Curtis LeGeyt Tuesday, restating many points he made at a House Judiciary hearing last week (see 2202020070. “Want to ensure artists get less airtime? Pass the AMFA,” LeGeyt wrote. The proposed bill addresses only one element of a complex system, which deserves “a holistic look,” LeGeyt said. NAB has argued that digital fees should be reduced if artist fees are introduced. “By lowering barriers to entry and making streaming more affordable for broadcasters, we can allow more radio stations to invest in online delivery of music and grow the pot of digital revenues for music creators,” LeGeyt wrote.

The FCC Media Bureau designated the renewal application of an Idaho AM station for hearing over the station’s “extended periods of silence,” said an order listed in Tuesday’s Daily Digest. Snake River Radio’s KPCQ Chubbuck was silent for 1,077 days, 80% of its license term, which began in 2018. The station was operating for only two days in 2019, and one day in 2020, the order said. Snake River told the FCC the silences were due to the station having its tower dismantled in 2018, and then multiple construction accidents, the hearing designation order said. The order notes discrepancies in Snake River’s FCC filings and said it's possible the station’s license has already expired due to a failure to operate with its authorized facilities. “It is improbable that SRR was able to resume operation with the station’s licensed facilities after dismantling its tower,” the order said.

Gray Television will buy low-power Telemundo affiliate WKTB-CD Norcross Georgia from Capital Media, said a news release Monday. Along with the station, Gray is buying video production agency Surge Digital Media, the release said. “Upon closing this transaction, Gray will own Telemundo affiliates in 12 markets, including the largest affiliate in the Eastern US, as well as 7 markets in Texas,” it said. The deal is expected to close in the next few months, pending regulatory approval, the release said. Terms weren't disclosed. Gray already owns full-power CBS affiliate WGCL-TV Atlanta and WPCH-TV Atlanta.