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from: Lasar's Letter

Radio blog: One step closer to a non-commercial educational radio (NCE) filing window?

by Matthew Lasar Mar 16 2007 - 7:00pm Noncommercial

A new wave of non-commercial radio applicants will get their chance this year, it seems.

The Federal Communications Commission has announced that at its upcoming March 22nd meeting, "the Commission will consider a Memorandum Opinion and Order evaluating approximately 200 applications (comprising 76 mutually exclusive groups) to construct new or modified NCE FM broadcast stations."

What this means in English is that the Commission may approve construction and expansion licenses for 200 non-commercial radio station applications that have been backlogged for a decade.

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Interested parties expect that once the FCC disposes of these cases, the agency will be able to open a new filing window for more non-commercial educational (NCE) stations.

Broadcasting attorney Michael Couzens told me that he hopes that this move will "clear the decks" for a filing opportunity in the fall. "We are working to get people up to speed to apply for the stations," he said.

Couzens recommends that people interested in the process contact the Prometheus Radio Project or the National Federation of Community Broadcasters. Prometheus' Hannah Sassaman recommends GetRadio as a good place to get started.

Pigs and pythons

In July of 2006 I attended an FCC sponsored Indian Telecommunications workshop held in San Diego. There FCC attorney Michael Wagner explained the long legal process that has caused the delay in opening a new application window for non-commercial stations.

Successful court challenges, a lack of consensus within the Commission on how to pick applicants, and an ultimately unsuccessful challenge by American Family Radio contributed to the delay, Wagner explained.

But he also said the Commission was poised to clear the backlog, and predicted resolution around now.

"We're hoping that in mid-2007 we can have the pig digested by the python and invite new pigs in the parlor," Wagner told the conference.

"We're standing at the trough!" one member of the audience shouted.