WASHINGTON—Now that the FCC has opened a 60-day filing window for LPTV, translator and FM broadcast stations impacted by the channel repack, the commission has announced that it will hold an informational webinar on Aug. 28 to answer filers’ questions.

Scheduled for 11 a.m.-noon Eastern Time, the webinar will be hosted by the Incentive Auction Task Force and the Media Bureau and will cover topics including:

• Filing FCC Form 2100, Schedule 399 (Reimbursement Form), including the certification demonstrating that an entity meets the eligibility criteria for reimbursement (Eligibility Certification);
• Providing estimates of reimbursement costs;
• Submitting invoices for actual expenses incurred;
• Overview of the allocation and payment processes and additional topics related to the reimbursement process

Attendees will have the opportunity to submit questions via email during the live webinar and a recording of the event will be available afterwards.

The broadcasters have until Oct. 15 to submit paperwork.

Visit this link to join the webinar.

For more news and insight on the repack, visit TV Technology'srepack silo.

WASHINGTON—The National Translator Association joined its colleagues from the LPTV Coalition in praising the recent decision to open a 60-day filing window for TV translator and LPTV stations to apply for reimbursement for TV spectrum repack-related expenses.

“We are delighted to see the FCC begin the process of reimbursement for low power translators, LPTV and FM stations,” said John Terrill, president of the NTA.

TV Translators will now have until Oct. 15 to file for reimbursement, for which Congress had set aside $150 million. Terrill urges translators to file as early as possible.

Terrill notes that the NTA’s “Fast-Track” plan had some influence in the reimbursement process, saying that it allows “stations that have had to move and have purchased equipment and built their stations to skip the bid process and simply use paid invoices in requesting reimbursement.”

Additional information on the filing process is available on the NTA website.

For more news and insight on the repack, visit TV Technology'srepack silo.

WASHINGTON—So far, the tally for repacking broadcasters has come to more than $2.1 billion, exceeding the $1.75 billion set aside by Congress to reimburse qualifying TV providers displaced by the television spectrum incentive auction. Estimates of these moving costs, including those incurred by cable operators to accommodate the channel moves, were due from each affected broadcast licensee on Wednesday, July 12.

The Federal Communications Commission today released its preliminary total of those estimates, with a few tweaks to come. Jean Kiddoo, chair of the FCC’s Incentive Auction Task Force, issued the following statement:

“Based on information we have received as of 7 a.m. today, the aggregate amount of the estimated costs reported by reimbursement-eligible entities is $2,115,328,744.33. We expect to receive additional estimates from MVPDs and a small number of stations. In addition, the initial estimates that comprise this amount will be subject to a careful review by the commission and our fund administrator. The aggregate cost estimate provided today will therefore change for purposes of the initial allocation of reimbursement funds.”

The reimbursement fund was designed to cover “reasonably incurred” relocation costs based on a catalog of expenses adjusted from the December 2013 Widelity Report. The spectrum auction chased broadcasters off Chs. 38-50, reassigned those airwaves to wireless broadband and sold them to carriers for $19.8 billion in an auction that concluded in April. Broadcasters accepted a collective $10 billion to give up the channels. Those who receive auction proceeds are not eligible for reimbursements.

Only full-power and Class A TV licensees involuntarily assigned to new channel assignments are eligible, as well as cable TV operator modifications done to receive new channel assignments. Also, TV licensees that voluntarily moved from UHF to VHF, from high to low VHF, and channel-sharing hosts that have to move are eligible, according to the FCC’s May 2014 Report and Order, “Expanding the Economic and Innovation Opportunities of Spectrum Through Incentive Auctions,” and in the Code of Federal Regulations.

Initially, the commission intended to allow a drawdown of 80 percent of submitted costs for commercial licensees and 90 percent for non-coms. The commission stated previously it would distribute the funds proportionately if they exceeded the $1.75 billion set-aside. The $1.75 billion is about 83 percent of the $2.1 billion submitted.

NAB President and CEO Gordon Smith issued the following statement after the FCC announced the $2.1 billion repack estimate:
“Congress’s passage of the voluntary broadcast TV incentive auction legislation was premised on a promise that no TV station would be punished for not participating in the auction. Today’s release of total estimated costs for the ‘TV repack’ shows a shortfall of over $365 million in available repacking funds, with a number of television stations and MVPDs not yet included in the total. That number could grow as stations amend cost estimates due to changed circumstances.

“NAB will work closely with Congress to address this issue, and to additionally ensure that no TV viewer or radio listener loses access to the entertainment and lifeline local broadcast programming they rely on today.”

Also see…
April 13, 2017 “987 Stations Displaced, 175 Broadcasters to Split $10 Billion”
The auction results are in and the new TV channel assignments are out.

April 3, 2017
“$1.75 Billion Reimbursement Process Outlined”
Eligible commercial licensees initially will be able to “draw down” expenses for up to 80 percent of their estimated costs, and non-commercial licensees, up to 90 percent.

Oct. 4, 2016
“FCC Launches TV Station Reimbursement Beta Test”
The beta environment automatically will be open to all broadcasters with an active facility associated with their FCC registration number and password in the commission’s License and Management System database.

March 25, 2016,
“Repack Reimbursement Process Outlined,”
Pre-auction planning expenses may comprise tower mapping or other engineering consultation work.

WASHINGTON—Last week’s auction payment public notice also addressed reimbursement payments to eligible broadcasters and pay TV operators. Congress set aside $1.75 billion out of the $19.8 billion in auction proceeds to reimburse displaced broadcasters and affected pay TV providers for “reasonably incurred” moving costs.

These reimbursements are to be trued up “within three years” of when the “Closing and Reassignment Public Notice” is released. In the meantime, the FCC’s Media Bureau will make initial allocations available. These will be based on reimbursement estimates submitted by the stations and affected parties. Eligible commercial licensees initially will be able to “draw down” expenses for up to 80 percent of their estimated costs, and non-commercial licensees, up to 90 percent.

The reimbursement estimates will be due around mid-July, using FCC Form 2100, Form 399, released by the Media Bureau on Oct. 30, 2015. These forms are due 90 days after the “Closing and Reassignment Public Notice” is issued in mid-April, or approximately mid-July. Reimbursement applicants will be able to update cost estimates as they adjust purchase plans during the TV channel repack.

The reimbursement process is similar to the payment process for winners in the reverse auction. (See “$10 Billion Payment Process Specified.”) Reimbursement instructions must be communicated to the commission by designated, authorized individuals who must enter bank account information in the Commission’s Registration System, or CORES, Incentive Auction Financial Module. With reimbursements, no more than two authorized individuals per Facility ID can be designated, and no third parties may accept payments in an applicant’s stead.

Bank account information must be submitted bothelectronically into the CORES system by the designated individual and via signed and notarized hard copy on FCC Form 1876. This form will be available for download from the CORES system. A “separate, original” signed and notarized hard-copy Form 1876 must be submitted for “each reassigned station and for each [pay TV provider] that incurs reimbursable costs.”

Hard copy forms must be mailed to:
Federal Communications Commission
Travel & Operations Group, Attn: Chief of TOG
9300 East Hampton Dr.
Capitol Heights, MD 20743

The entire process must be undertaken again to modify bank account information or change it in the event that a station is sold and issued a new Facility ID number.

For more TV Technology coverage, see our spectrum auction silo.

Also see…
Oct. 4, 2016
“FCC Launches TV Station Reimbursement Beta Test”
The beta environment automatically will be open to all broadcasters with an active facility associated with their FCC registration number and password in the commission’s License and Management System database.

March 25, 2016,
“Repack Reimbursement Process Outlined,”
Pre-auction planning expenses may comprise tower mapping or other engineering consultation work.

WASHINGTON—The comment period has been extended for weighing in on the TV channel repack reporting requirements proposed Jan. 10 by the Federal Communications Commission. Comments are now due Feb. 17 with replies due Feb. 27.

“The Media Bureau hereby extends the filing deadlines for public comment in the pending proceeding proposing to require certain broadcast television stations that are not eligible to receive reimbursement from the TV Broadcast Relocation Fund but must transition to new channels during the post-auction transition period to provide progress reports,” the commission said in a Feb. 6 Public Notice.

The comment deadline was initially set for Feb. 6, but the Public Notice was not published in the Federal Registeruntil Feb. 2.

The proposed rules would require periodic progress reports from all auction-eligible TV stations, including those not eligible for reimbursement from the $1.75 billion relocation fund to be set aside from auction proceeds. Stations eligible for reimbursement comprise all full-power and some Class A stations involuntarily assigned to a new channel. Stations ineligible for reimbursements include reverse auction winners, non-Class A low-power TV stations and translators.

For more TV Technology coverage, see our spectrum auction silo.

Also see...
Jan 27.2017
“NAB Asks for Repack Reporting Tweaks”
Yes or no does not always the question answer, the National Association of Broadcasters told the folks at the Federal Communications Commission regarding a proposed form for periodic channel-repacking reports. 

Jan. 10, 2017
“FCC Seeks Feedback on Repack Reporting Process”
Stations eligible for reimbursement comprise all full-power and some Class A stations involuntarily assigned to a new channel. The PN said a “small number of Class A stations are not protected during the repacking process, and if displaced as a result of repacking will not be eligible for reimbursement.”

WASHINGTON—The Federal Communications Commission proposed its game plan for reimbursing TV stations displaced by the spectrum incentive auction, now in a fourth stage. (Editor’s Note No. 1: A commission spokesman asked TV Technology to clarify that it proposed repack reporting requirements for all auction-eligible stations, including those not eligible for reimbursement.)

The commission issued a Public Notice describing the proposed requirements for periodic progress reports from broadcasters eligible for reimbursements, as well as for ineligible displaced those stations not eligible for reimbursement—“in the same manner and on the same schedule as reimbursement-eligible television stations,” the PN stated. 

Comments are due on the proposal by Jan. 25, 2017, with replies due Feb. 6, 2017.

Congress authorized a $1.75 billion relocation reimbursement fund in the 2012 Spectrum Act for TV stations involuntarily displaced by the auction. The current stage of the auction seeks to reassign 84 out of roughly 300 MHz of TV spectrum, at UHF Chs. 38-51, for wireless broadband, so stations on those frequencies will have to move if the auction closes at 84 MHz.

Stations eligible for reimbursement comprise all full-power and some Class A stations involuntarily assigned to a new channel. The PN said a “small number of Class A stations are not protected during the repacking process, and if displaced as a result of repacking will not be eligible for reimbursement.”

Stations ineligible for reimbursements include reverse auction winners, non-Class A low-power TV stations and translators—used primarily in sparsely populated areas. (Editor’ note No. 2: Only auction-eligible stations would be subject to the proposed reporting requirement, not inclusive of non-Class A LPTVs and translators.) Additionally, LPTVs and translators are not guaranteed a channel assignment after the auction.

Another proposal in accordance with the Spectrum Act allows eligible stations to opt out of a reimbursement for a waiver of FCC service rules “to permit the licensee, subject to interference protections, to make flexible use of the spectrum assigned to the licensee to provide services other than broadcast television services. Such waiver shall only remain in effect while the licensee provides at least one broadcast television program stream on such spectrum at no charge to the public.” (Stat. 227)

Eligible stations seeking reimbursements for relocation expenses will be required to provide quarterly reports to the FCC on construction progress how the funds are being spent. The proposed form for these reports (Appendix A of the PN) asks about the need for approval and permits, environmental impact reviews, tower modifications, what equipment is needed and whether or not it will be available in time for the station to meet its construction deadline.

The reporting requirement will be triggered by the FCC’s Closing Auction and Reassignment Public Notice announcing the close of the auction, starting with the first full calendar quarter after the notice with a deadline of the 10th day of the succeeding calendar quarter.

In addition to the quarterly reports, stations seeking reimbursement will have to file transition progress reports 10 weeks before their construction deadline; 10 days after construction is completed, and five days after they cease broadcasting on their pre-auction channel assignment. All reports will be filed electronically.

Again, comments are due on the proposal by Jan. 25, 2017, with replies due Feb. 6, 2017 on MB Docket No. 16-306, GN Docket No. 12-268.

Also see...
Oct. 4, 2016
FCC Launches TV Station Reimbursement Beta Test
Television stations reassigned to new channels and the multichannel video distributors that carry those stations will file Form 399 to claim reimbursements from the $1.75 billion TV Broadcaster Relocation Fund for expenses they “reasonably incur” in the post-incentive auction repack.

March 25, 2016
Repack Reimbursement Process Outlined
Assuming the auction does close, the statute requires reimbursement within three years of that time.

March 15, 2010
FCC Proposes Reallocating 40 Percent of Broadcast Spectrum
Broadcasters stand to lose 40 percent of their spectrum under the FCC’s new National Broadband Plan.

See more TV Technology coverage at our spectrum auction silo.

WASHINGTON—The Federal Communications Commission’s Media Bureau announces a limited beta test of the Incentive Auction Broadcaster Relocation Reimbursement System—FCC Form 2100, Schedule 399. Television stations reassigned to new channels and the multichannel video distributors that carry those stations will file Form 399 to claim reimbursements from the $1.75 billion TV Broadcaster Relocation Fund for expenses they “reasonably incur” in the post-incentive auction repack. (Form 399 was released by the Media Bureau on Oct. 30, 2015. )

Reimbursements will be calculated according to those published an updated version of the Widelity Report, first issued two years ago. An official with the commission said on Friday that the update would be published “very soon.” (See, “FCC Proposes DMA-Level Phased Repack,” Sept. 30, 3016.)

Beginning today, broadcasters will have access to a test environment where they will be able to interact and familiarize themselves with an updated version of the Form 399. Parties accessing the Form 399 beta test environment are invited to provide feedback on the form and the test environment by Nov. 4, 2016. The beta environment automatically will be open to all broadcasters with an active facility associated with their FCC registration number and password in the commission’s License and Management System database.

The FCC noted that parties interested in taking part in the Form 399 beta test should note:

· The test environment can be accessed at this portal.

· A quick start guide is available here.

· Users should submit feedback and report bugs by e-mailing form399beta@fcc.gov.

The commission noted that the beta environment is under active development, so there may be periodic outages. It suggests retrying the system before notifying the devs at the FCC via the email address provided. The commission said the bugs will be worked out before the formal release of Form 399, hence the beta.

Also see...
March 25, 2016,
“Repack Reimbursement Process Outlined,”
Assuming the auction does close, the statute requires reimbursement within three years of that time.

WASHINGTON—The post-auction TV station relocation reimbursement process is taking shape. The reimbursement form has received the federal seal of approval from the Office of Management and Budget. Broadcasters who wish to tap into the $1.75 billion relocation fund set aside by Congress from expected incentive auction revenues will need to use an interactive online version of FCC Form 2100, Schedule 399, (the “paper” representation of the form sent to the OMB for approval, which was announced via publication in the Federal Register March 24.)

The debut date of the live, interactive form has not yet been announced. The auction is set to commence Tuesday, March 29.

The OMB OK’d both the form and directions, which state that Form 2100 can be used by TV stations and cable operators for advance estimates, for actual costs and for the final accounting.

PRE-AUCTION EXPENSES
The Federal Communications Commission has not yet determined if pre-auction planning expenses will be reimbursable, but a decision is expected any time. Pre-auction planning expenses may comprise tower mapping or other engineering consultation work.

Even if pre-auction planning expenses are deemed reimbursable, they will not be paid until after the auction closes. If the auction does not raise enough money at any clearing target to cover administrative expenses and the relocation reimbursement fund, as well as reaching a spectrum-price threshold, it will not close and broadcasters could be on the hook for pre-auction expenses. The FCC has set a graduated range of clearing targets from 126 MHz down to 42 MHz. If the initial clearing target is 126 and that auction stage fails to close, then the commission will drop to a lower target and resume the auction.

Assuming the auction does close, the statute requires reimbursement within three years of that time.

The rules of eligibility and reimbursement are included in the FCC’s May 2014 Report and Order, “Expanding the Economic and Innovation Opportunities of Spectrum Through Incentive Auctions,” and in the Code of Federal Regulations.

ELIGIBILITY
Only full-power and Class A TV licensees are eligible, as well as cable TV plant modifications made “in order to continue to carry the signal of a broadcast television licensee” reassigned to a new channel in the repack: 

(1) Full-power or Class A TV stations involuntarily reassigned in the repacking process;
(2) Channel-sharer stations involuntarily reassigned in the repacking process;
(3) Broadcast TV licensees that voluntarily move from a UHF to a VHF channel;
(4) Broadcast TV licensees that voluntarily move from a high VHF to a low VHF; and
(5) Broadcast TV licensees that voluntarily relinquish spectrum usage rights to share a channel with another licensee.

Only the host TV station in a channel-sharing arrangement is eligible for repacking reimbursement, and only if the shared facility receives a new channel assignment. “Sharees” are those stations relinquishing spectrum in the auction and will not be reimbursed for moving to a shared facility. Moving expenses for broadcast auxiliary service operations are not eligible for reimbursement. Wireless mic users and non-Class A low-power TV licensees are ineligible as well.

ALLOCATION
Broadcasters and cable operators who submit estimates will receive an initial allocation of up to 80 percent of estimated costs. A cost catalog of equipment and services—based on the December 2013 Widelity Report—will be embedded in the online version of Form 2100. Given the date of the report, the commission intends to seek comment on how to adjust those prices accordingly.

If an item is not in the cost catalog or a price differential occurs in estimating expenses, a broadcaster may submit “supporting evidence and certify that the estimate is made in good faith.”

Broadcasters who receive an initial allocation will be able to draw against it as they incur moving expenses. These must then be submitted as “actual costs” with receipts, invoices and other documentation by a date to be determined by the FCC’s Media Bureau. Final accountings will take place thereafter. Should the $1.75 billion not cover 100 percent of aggregate repacking expenses, it will be distributed proportionally.

‘REASONABLY INCURRED’
The Spectrum Act states that relocation costs must be “reasonably incurred” to qualify for reimbursement. The commission interpreted “reasonably incurred” in the 2014 R&O as follows:

“We interpret the Spectrum Act’s mandate to reimburse ‘costs reasonably incurred’ to require that we reimburse costs that are reasonable to provide facilities comparable to those that a broadcaster or [multichannel video provider] had prior to the auction that are reasonably replaced or modified following the auction, as a result of the repacking process, in order to allow the broadcaster to operate on a new channel or to allow the MVPD to carry the signal of a broadcaster on a new channel.”

The commission also said it expects that stations will not always be able to replace older, legacy equipment with “comparable” equipment when, for example, manufacturers no longer support older models, and because of advances in technology. The commission said it would recognize that some reimbursable technology may include “improved functionality,” but that it does intend to reimburse applicants for new, optional features in equipment, “unless the station or MVPD documents that the feature is already present in the equipment that is being replaced.”

Finally, the commission said that stations and MVPDs can upgrade on their own dime, and it will reimburse for the cost minus the upgrade.