WASHINGTON—As the federal government shut down comes to an end, the Federal Communications Commission has further extended some filing deadlines and issued some guidance on its plans for restoring the agency to normal operations.

On Sept. 30, the FCC issued a Public Notice providing guidance on FCC operations in the event of a partial lapse in funding. As part of that plan, the FCC said that all filings that would have been due during the suspension of operations would become due on the business day following the resumption of normal operations.

In its new guidance, the agency said that “we now further extend deadlines for all filings that would have been due from October 1, 2025, through November 17, 2025. The deadline for all such filings is now extended at least until Tuesday, November 18, 2025. The FCC and components of the FCC will issue further guidance prior to November 18, 2025, that will provide additional flexibility on filing deadlines for certain specific systems, matters, and programs, including the FCC’s Universal Licensing System and Equipment Authorization System.”

The agency also noted that given the unprecedented length of the shutdown, they anticipated that the public will have an exceptionally large number of filings and submissions that they will want to file in a relatively short period of time as the FCC resumes normal operations.

In response to that potential backlog, the agency said “FCC staff will work in good faith with parties to resolve and address issues that arise with an influx of new filings and requests. We anticipate that complications may arise in some cases. FCC staff will bring a flexible, commonsense approach to resolving the range of issues that may arise upon re-opening in these circumstances.”

The FCC also said that they would “waive the Commission’s rules to the extent necessary to effectuate this extension. This extension of filing deadlines does not apply to filings in the Network Outage Reporting System (NORS) and Disaster Information Reporting System (DIRS) or to filings related to spectrum auction activities authorized by section 309(j).”

In addition the agency said that “any Special Temporary Authorities (STAs) that would have expired from October 1, 2025, through November 17, 2025, are extended at least until November 18, 2025, except to the extent that such STAs relate to activities authorized under section 309(j).”

Finally, “until such further guidance is issued, we ask parties to limit filings and submissions except where immediate authority is needed and to refrain from submitting filings seeking additional relief from filing deadlines for the time being,” the agency said.

WASHINGTON—The FCC has announced it has permanently closed the filing window at the current FCC headquarters. In addition, the commission said that there will be no filing window located at its new headquarters, leaving only one place for hand-delivering files.

This decision was originally shared in an Order earlier this year and published in the Federal Register on June 30.

The new, and only, address for filing of paper documents will be at 9050 Junction Drive, Annapolis Junction, Md., 20701. When restrictions from COVID-19 are lifted, the filing window will be open from 8 a.m.-4 p.m. Monday through Friday. Hand-carried filings will not be accepted outside of those hours, including ones for the commission’s secretary.

Other details for the updated filing policy include:

• Originals and copies of each official filing must be held together with rubber bands or fasteners;
• Hand-carried filings may not be submitted in envelopes or boxes; 
• “Stamp and return” copies will be provided as long as each individual filing is accompanied by a self-addressed, stamped return envelope; 
• Confidential documents should be clearly labeled as “Confidential” on the document and the cover letter; and 
• Documents intended to be received by specific staff members within Bureaus and Offices must be clearly labeled on the first page of the document or with a cover sheet indicating the destination 

The FCC says that these changes are designed to boost security measures as it prepares for its upcoming relocation to its new headquarters (45 L St., NE, Washington, D.C., 20554) later this year.

The commission also encourages filers to utilize the Electronic Comment Filing System online for applicable documents. 

WASHINGTON—The window is open and now it's time to file.

The Federal Communications Commission has opened the 2017 filing window for broadcasters to submit biennial broadcast ownership report. The window opened on Dec. 1 and all ownership reports must be filed by March 2, 2018.

All licensees of commercial and noncommercial LPTV and Class A TV stations (as well as AM and FM stations) are required to file one of two forms—either Former 323 for commercial stations or Form 323-E for noncommercial stations. The filing must include information that reflects ownership interests that existed as of Oct. 1, 2017.

And it's not just licensees that are required to file: Any entity with an attributable interest in one of the above-mentioned stations must file as well.

Filers must make sure to file their Form 323 or 323-E electronically using the commission's Licensing and Management System database. Keep in mind that no paper submissions will be accepted.

For those looking for assistance in filing, check out the FCC's FAQ page here. The page also contains a link to a recent information session during which Media Bureau staff demonstrated how to draft and file commercial and noncommercial biennial broadcast ownership reports in LMS.

For those who need assistance logging into LMS or accessing the forms, the commission can be reached by phone at 877-480-3201, online or via email at form323@fcc.gov.

This story first appeared on TVT's sister publication Radio World. 

WASHINGTON—The FCC’s Incentive Auction Task Force and Media Bureau have announced the second filing window for TV stations that want to file alternate channels or expanded facilities in the post broadcast incentive auction repack. The window will open on Oct. 3 and close at 11:59 p.m. on Nov. 2. The first, priority window for such applications closed on Sept. 15.

To find out more, read the full story on TVT’s sister publication B&C.

For more information on the repack, visit TV Technology's repack silo.