FCC Approves Low Power FM
Will Begin Accepting Applications Soon
FCC Approves Low Power FM
Will Begin Accepting Applications Soon
For the first time since 1978, the Commission, on January 20, 2000, authorized the construction of new low-power broadcast stations on the FM band. The Commission created two classes of LPFM stations; LP100, authorized for 50 to 100 watts effective radiated power at 30 meters antenna height above average terrain (HAAT), and LP10, from 1 to 10 watts at 30 meters HAAT. Any frequency on the FM band (from 88.1 MHz to 107.9 MHz) can be assigned to an LPFM station, subject to minimum distance spacings to other FM stations.
The Commission, as early as May of this year, will hold open a five-day period in which 100-watt LPFM applications will be filed, followed by a second application "window" for 10-watts LPFM applications. Details of the procedure for filing applications are pending, and will be posted on the FCC's LPFM web page (www.fcc.gov/mmb/prd/lpfm) when available.
LPFM will be strictly a non-commercial service, and will be able to accept underwriting. Any party with an attributable interest in any other broadcast station or other media will not be able to also hold an interest in any LPFM stations. License periods are for eight years, renewable. Construction permits will be effective for 18 months, and no extensions can be expected, no matter what the cause of delay. Construction permits and licenses will not be transferable.
The third-adjacent channel restriction has been eliminated for LPFM; in other words, LPFM stations will not have to protect other American stations on the third-adjacent frequencies (600 kHz on either side), whether those other stations are higher-power broadcast, translator, booster or Class D stations.
In situations where more than one application for an LPFM station in a community has been filed and only one can be granted (mutually-exclusive applications), the FCC will evaluate all applicants based on a point system. Points will be awarded based on community presence, proposed number of hours of operation, and proposed number of hours of locally originated programming. The applicant with the highest number of points will be awarded the license. If there is a tie among two or more applicants, the situation can be resolved either by settlement, in which applicants voluntarily withdraw their applications, or by a time-share agreement among the tied applicants. If a tie is not resolved through a settlement or time-share agreement, up to eight tied applicants will be awarded successive license terms of at least one year over an total period of eight years.
In the first two years of LPFM availability, only local applicants will be eligible and no one may own more than one LPFM station. In the third year, a party may own up to five LPFM stations nationwide. After three years of LPFM availability, a party may own up to 10 LPFM stations nationwide. No one will be able to own two LPFM stations separated by less than seven miles.
Other highlights of LPFM as adopted by the Commission:
· LPFM stations will be required to broadcast 36 hours a week, consisting of at least five hours a day on at least six days of each week. However, LPFM stations licensed to educational institutions will not be required to operate on weekends or to adhere to the minimum operating hours during designated vacation periods.
· LPFM stations will not be subject to main studio, public file or ownership reporting requirements. LPFM stations must, however, keep and maintain a station log.
· LP100 stations will not have to protect LP10 stations from interference, and there are no second-adjacent, third-adjacent or I.F. channel minimum distance separations between LPFM stations.
· Those that operated an unlicensed station are not eligible for an LPFM station license unless they voluntarily ceased operation by February 26, 1999, or within 24 hours of being requested to do so by the FCC.
· LPFM stations will be required to participate in the Emergency Alert System (EAS). They must install and operate FCC-certified EAS decoding equipment, and station personnel must pass any national emergency messages on to listeners in accordance with the FCC's EAS rules. The stations will not be required to install EAS encoders.
· LPFM stations proposed on Channels 201 through 220 (88.1 to 91.9 MHz) will be authorized only if certain minimum distance separations are met with respect to all TV Channel 6 stations.
· LPFM stations cannot use directional antennas, i.e., antennas designed specifically to produce a non-circular radiation pattern.
Contact Ben Evans, P.E. at Evans Associates for a frequency search in your area of interest, or to prepare an FCC application for an LPFM station.
Have questions? Contact Ben Evans, P.E.
For more information please contact:
Evans Associates
210 South Main Street
Thiensville, Wisconsin 53092
(262)242-6000
fax: (262)242-6045
http://www.evansassoc.com
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