[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 5365 Introduced in House (IH)]

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116th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 5365

 To require the Federal Communications Commission to approve or deny a 
  license transfer application within 180 days of submission, and for 
                            other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            December 9, 2019

   Mr. Flores (for himself, Mr. Long, and Mr. Steube) introduced the 
   following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and 
                                Commerce

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To require the Federal Communications Commission to approve or deny a 
  license transfer application within 180 days of submission, and for 
                            other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``License Transfer Modernization Act 
of 2019''.

SEC. 2. TIME LIMITS FOR COMMISSION ACTION ON TRANSFERS AND ASSIGNMENTS.

    Title IV of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 401 et seq.) 
is amended by adding at the end the following:

``SEC. 417. TIME LIMITS FOR COMMISSION ACTION ON TRANSFERS AND 
              ASSIGNMENTS.

    ``(a) Definition.--In this section, the term `covered application' 
means an application for the transfer of control or assignment of any 
license or authorization subject to the jurisdiction of the Commission.
    ``(b) Requirements.--
            ``(1) In general.--Notwithstanding any other provision of 
        law, including section 309(e), the Commission--
                    ``(A) shall approve or deny a covered application; 
                and
                    ``(B) may not designate a covered application for 
                hearing, unless the Commission first determines by a 
                majority vote that a material factual question exists 
                about misrepresentation or lack of candor by the 
                applicant.
            ``(2) Determination.--Except as provided in paragraph (3), 
        the Commission shall make a determination to approve or deny a 
        covered application during the period that begins on the date 
        on which the applicants provide to the Commission the last 
        submission relating to the application before the Commission 
        issues the initial public notice seeking comment on the 
        application and ends 180 days thereafter.
            ``(3) Extensions.--
                    ``(A) In general.--
                            ``(i) Request.--During the 180-day review 
                        period described under paragraph (2)(A), the 
                        Commission may apply to the United States 
                        District Court for the District of Columbia for 
                        an extension of that period for an additional 
                        30 days by filing a motion to extend that 
                        references this section.
                            ``(ii) Court determination.--The court may 
                        grant an extension of the 180-day review period 
                        requested under clause (i) if--
                                    ``(I) the court finds that the 
                                applicants for the transfer of control 
                                or assignment have not substantially 
                                complied in a timely manner with a 
                                reasonable request by the Commission 
                                for information;
                                    ``(II) the Commission shows, by 
                                clear and convincing evidence, that the 
                                Commission is unable to complete review 
                                within the 180-day review period; or
                                    ``(III) an Executive agency (as 
                                defined in section 105 of title 5, 
                                United States Code) has requested in 
                                writing that the Commission delay a 
                                determination pending the Executive 
                                agency's national security review of 
                                the transfer of control or assignment.
                    ``(B) Additional extensions.--The Commission may 
                request, and the court may grant, additional 30-day 
                extensions in the same manner as an initial extension 
                under subparagraph (A).
    ``(c) Approval Absent Commission Action.--
            ``(1) In general.--A covered application shall be deemed 
        approved without conditions if the Commission does not approve 
        or deny the application or apply for an extension during the 
        applicable period under subsection (b).
            ``(2) Pending litigation.--
                    ``(A) In general.--Except as provided in 
                subparagraph (B), if the 180-day review period under 
                subsection (b)(2) has expired, the Commission may not 
                deny a covered application or approve a covered 
                application with conditions, during the pendency of any 
                litigation relating to a request by the Commission for 
                an extension under subsection (b)(3) with respect to 
                the covered application, including any time during 
                which a court has entered a stay pending appeal or 
                administrative stay of such litigation.
                    ``(B) Extension request denied after 180-day review 
                period.--If a request for an extension under subsection 
                (b)(3) is denied after the expiration of the 180-day 
                review period under subsection (b)(2)--
                            ``(i) the Commission shall make a 
                        determination to approve or deny the covered 
                        application not later than 10 days after the 
                        date on which the extension request is denied; 
                        and
                            ``(ii) the covered application shall be 
                        deemed approved without conditions if the 
                        Commission does not approve or deny the 
                        application during the 10-day period described 
                        in clause (i).
    ``(d) Burden of Persuasion Shifted.--Notwithstanding any other 
provision of law, including section 706 of title 5, United States Code, 
in a judicial appeal of a Commission decision to deny a covered 
application, the Commission shall bear the burden of persuasion to 
demonstrate that the decision is--
            ``(1) permitted under applicable statutes and regulations; 
        and
            ``(2) supported by the required amount of factual 
        evidence.''.

SEC. 3. TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMENDMENT.

    Section 310(d) of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 310(d)) 
is amended, in the second sentence, by inserting before the semicolon 
the following: ``, except as otherwise provided in section 417''.

SEC. 4. EFFECTIVE DATE.

    The amendment made by section 1 shall apply with respect to any 
covered application that is submitted to the Federal Communications 
Commission on or after the date of the enactment of this Act.
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