[Federal Register Volume 71, Number 178 (Thursday, September 14, 2006)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 54253-54255]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E6-15246]



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FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION

47 CFR Part 73

[MB Docket No 06-121; MB Docket No 02-277; FCC 06-93]


2006 Quadrennial Regulatory Review; 2002 Biennial Regulatory 
Review--Review of the Commission's Broadcast Ownership Rules

AGENCY: Federal Communications Commission.

ACTION: Proposed rule; correction.

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SUMMARY: On August 9, 2006 the Commission published the Further Notice 
of Proposed Rule Making which sought comment on how to address issues 
raised by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit with respect 
to rules, as adopted or revised in the 2002 Biennial Review of the 
Commission's broadcast ownership rules. The Further Notice of Proposed 
Rule Making also initiated the next quadrennial review of the broadcast 
ownership rules. The Commission inadvertently omitted the Supplemental 
Initial Regulatory Flexibility Analysis, which was part of the item 
adopted by the Commission, in the Federal Register publication. This 
document corrects the Federal Register as it appeared.

DATES: Comments on the Supplemental Initial Regulatory Flexibility 
Analysis are due on or before September 22, 2006, and reply comments on 
or before November 21, 2006.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments, identified by MB Docket No 06-121 
and/or MB Docket No 06-277, by any of the following methods:
     Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov. 
Follow the instructions for submitting comments.
     Federal Communications Commission's Web site: http://www.fcc.gov/cgb/ecfs/. Follow the instructions for submitting comments.
     E-mail: [email protected]. Include the following words in the 
body of the message, ``get form.'' A sample form and directions will be 
sent in response.
     Mail: Commercial overnight mail (other than U.S. Postal 
Service Express Mail and Priority Mail) must be sent to 9300 East 
Hampton Drive, Capitol Heights, MD 20743. U.S. Postal Service first-
class, Express, and Priority mail should be addressed to 445 12th 
Street, SW., Washington DC 20554.
     People with Disabilities: Contact the FCC to request 
reasonable accommodations (accessible format documents, sign language 
interpreters, CART, etc.) by e-mail: [email protected] or phone: 202-418-
0530 or TTY: 202-418-0432.
    For detailed instructions for submitting comments and additional 
information on the rulemaking process, see the SUPPLEMENTARY 
INFORMATION section of this document.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mania Baghdadi, Industry Analysis 
Division, Media Bureau, Federal Communications Commission, (202) 418-
2330.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Following is the Supplemental Initial 
Regulatory Flexibility Act analysis to be associated with the Further 
Notice of Proposed Rule Making that was published in the Federal 
Register on August 9, 2006 (71 FR 45511).
    Supplemental Initial Regulatory Flexibility Analysis. As required 
by the Regulatory Flexibility Act (RFA), the Commission incorporated an 
Initial Regulatory Flexibility Analysis (IRFA) in the Notice of 
Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM), 67 FR 65751 (October 28, 2002), in MB 
Docket No. 02-277. Additionally, the Commission has prepared this 
Supplemental Initial Regulatory Flexibility Analysis (Supplemental 
IRFA) of the possible significant economic impact on small entities of 
the proposals in the Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM), 71 
FR 45511, August 9, 2006. Written public comments are requested on this 
Supplemental IRFA. Comments must be identified as responses to the 
Supplemental IRFA and must be filed by the deadlines for comments on 
the Further Notice. The Commission has sent a copy of the Further 
Notice, including this Supplemental IRFA, to the Chief Counsel for 
Advocacy of the Small Business Administration (SBA).
    Need for, and Objectives of, the Proposed Rules. The NPRM invites 
comment on how to address the issues raised by the opinion of the U.S. 
Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit in Prometheus Radio Project v. 
FCC, and, pursuant to section 202(h) of the Telecommunications Act of 
1996, on whether the media ownership rules are ``necessary in the 
public interest as the result of competition.'' In the Prometheus 
Remand Order, the court affirmed some Commission decisions and remanded 
others for further Commission justification or modification. This 
Supplemental IRFA is issued due to the passage of time since the 
release of the NPRM in this proceeding and in order to invite comment 
on the effect on small entities of the proposals in the NPRM. We 
particularly solicit comment from all small business entities, 
including minority-owned and women-owned small businesses. We 
especially solicit comment on whether, and if so, how, the particular 
interests of these small businesses may be affected by the rules. The 
NPRM discusses the local TV ownership rule, the local radio ownership 
rule, Cross-Media Limits and the Dual Network rule; details the issues 
raised in the Prometheus Order regarding the Commission's decision with 
respect to each of these rules; and invites comment on how to address 
those issues.
    Legal Basis. This NPRM is adopted pursuant to sections 1, 2(a), 
4(i), 303, 307, 309, 310, of the Communications Act of 1934, as 
amended, 47 U.S.C. 151, 152(a), 154(i), 303, 307, 309, 310, and Section 
202(h) of the Telecommunications Act of 1996.
    Description and Estimate of the Number of Small Entities to Which 
the Proposed Rules Will Apply. The RFA directs agencies to provide a 
description of, and, where feasible, an estimate of the number of small 
entities that may be affected by the proposed rules, if adopted. The 
RFA defines the term ``small entity'' as having the same meaning as the 
terms ``small business,'' ``small organization,'' and ``small 
governmental entity'' under Section 3 of the Small Business Act. In 
addition, the term ``small business'' has the same meaning as the term 
``small business concern'' under the Small Business Act. A small 
business concern is one which: (1) Is independently owned and operated; 
(2) is not dominant in its field of operation; and (3) satisfies any 
additional criteria established by the SBA.
    Television Broadcasting. In this context, the application of the 
statutory definition to television stations is of concern. The Small 
Business Administration defines a television broadcasting station that 
has no more than $13 million in annual receipts as a small business. 
Business concerns included in this industry are those ``primarily 
engaged in broadcasting images together with sound.'' According to 
Commission staff review of the BIA Financial Network, Inc. Media Access 
Pro Television Database as of June 6, 2005, about 852 (66 percent) of 
the 1,286 commercial television stations in the United States have 
revenues of $12 million or less. However, in assessing whether a 
business entity qualifies as small under the above definition, business 
control affiliations must be included. Our estimate, therefore, likely 
overstates the number of small entities that might be affected by any 
changes to the attribution rules, because the revenue figures on which 
this estimate

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is based do not include or aggregate revenues from affiliated 
companies. In addition, an element of the definition of ``small 
business'' is that the entity not be dominant in its field of 
operation. The Commission is unable at this time and in this context to 
define or quantify the criteria that would establish whether a specific 
television station is dominant in its market of operation. Accordingly, 
the foregoing estimate of small businesses to which the rules may apply 
does not exclude any television stations from the definition of a small 
business on this basis and is therefore over-inclusive to that extent. 
An additional element of the definition of ``small business'' is that 
the entity must be independently owned and operated. It is difficult at 
times to assess these criteria in the context of media entities, and 
our estimates of small businesses to which they apply may be over-
inclusive to this extent.
    Radio Broadcasting. The Small Business Administration defines a 
radio broadcasting entity that has $6.5 million or less in annual 
receipts as a small business. Business concerns included in this 
industry are those ``primarily engaged in broadcasting aural programs 
by radio to the public.'' According to Commission staff review of the 
BIA Financial Network, Inc. Media Access Radio Analyzer Database as of 
June 6, 2005, about 10,425 (95 percent) of 11,000 commercial radio 
stations in the United States have revenues of $6 million or less. We 
note, however, that in assessing whether a business entity qualifies as 
small under the above definition, business control affiliations must be 
included. Our estimate, therefore, likely overstates the number of 
small entities that might be affected by any changes to the ownership 
rules, because the revenue figures on which this estimate is based do 
not include or aggregate revenues from affiliated companies. In this 
context, the application of the statutory definition to radio stations 
is of concern. An element of the definition of ``small business'' is 
that the entity not be dominant in its field of operation. We are 
unable at this time and in this context to define or quantify the 
criteria that would establish whether a specific radio station is 
dominant in its field of operation. Accordingly, the foregoing estimate 
of small businesses to which the rules may apply does not exclude any 
radio station from the definition of a small business on this basis and 
is therefore over-inclusive to that extent. An additional element of 
the definition of ``small business'' is that the entity must be 
independently owned and operated. We note that it is difficult at times 
to assess these criteria in the context of media entities, and our 
estimates of small businesses to which they apply may be over-inclusive 
to this extent.
    Daily Newspapers. The SBA has developed a small business size 
standard for the census category of Newspaper Publishers; that size 
standard is 500 or fewer employees. Census Bureau data for 2002 show 
that there were 5,159 firms in this category that operated for the 
entire year. Of this total, 5,065 firms had employment of 499 or fewer 
employees, and an additional 42 firms had employment of 500 to 999 
employees. Therefore, we estimate that the majority of Newspaper 
Publishers are small entities that might be affected by our action.
    Description of Projected Reporting, Recordkeeping and Other 
Compliance Requirements. Depending on the rules adopted as a result of 
this Notice of Proposed Rule Making, the Report and Order (R&O) 
ultimately adopted in this proceeding may contain new or modified 
information collections. We anticipate that none of the changes would 
result in an increase to the reporting and recordkeeping requirements 
of broadcast stations, newspapers, or applicants for licenses. As noted 
above, we invite small business entities to comment in response to the 
NPRM.
    Steps Taken to Minimize Significant Economic Impact on Small 
Entities and Significant Alternatives Considered. The RFA requires an 
agency to describe any significant alternatives that it has considered 
in reaching its proposed approach, which may include the following four 
alternatives (among others): (1) The establishment of differing 
compliance or reporting requirements or timetables that take into 
account the resources available to small entities; (2) the 
clarification, consolidation, or simplification of compliance or 
reporting requirements under the rule for small entities; (3) the use 
of performance, rather than design, standards; and (4) an exemption 
from coverage of the rule, or any part thereof, for small entities. We 
are directed under law to describe any alternatives we consider, 
including alternatives not explicitly listed above. This NPRM initiates 
the next quadrennial review of the media ownership rules and seeks 
public comment on the issues raised by the Prometheus Remand Order. 
Thus, it invites comment on how to address the court's decisions in the 
Prometheus Remand Order with respect to the local TV ownership rule, 
the local radio ownership rule, and the cross-media limits. In 
addition, the NPRM asks for comment on whether the dual network rule 
remains necessary in the public interest as a result of competition. 
The NPRM also seeks comment on the minority ownership proposals made by 
Minority Media and Telecommunications Council in comments in the 2002 
biennial ownership proceeding. Parties' discussions of alternatives 
that are in their submitted comments will be fully considered. We 
especially encourage small entity comment.
    Federal Rules that May Duplicate, Overlap, or Conflict with the 
Commission's Proposals. None.
    Comment Information. Pursuant to sections 1.415 and 1.419 of the 
Commission's rules, 47 CFR 1.415, 1.419, interested parties may file 
comments and reply comments on or before the dates indicated on the 
first page of this document. Comments may be filed using: (1) The 
Commission's Electronic Comment Filing System (ECFS), (2) the Federal 
Government's eRulemaking Portal, or (3) by filing paper copies. 
Electronic Filers: Comments may be filed electronically using the 
Internet by accessing the ECFS: http://www.fcc.gov/cgb/ecfs/ or the 
Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov. Filers should 
follow the instructions provided on the Web site for submitting 
comments. Paper Filers: Parties who choose to file by paper must file 
an original and four copies of each filing. If more than one docket or 
rulemaking number appears in the caption of this proceeding, filers 
must submit two additional copies for each additional docket or 
rulemaking number. Filings can be sent by hand or messenger delivery, 
by commercial overnight courier, or by first-class or overnight U.S. 
Postal Service mail (although we continue to experience delays in 
receiving U.S. Postal Service mail). All filings must be addressed to 
the Commission's Secretary, Office of the Secretary, Federal 
Communications Commission. The Commission's contractor will receive 
hand-delivered or messenger-delivered paper filings for the 
Commission's Secretary at 236 Massachusetts Avenue, NE., Suite 110, 
Washington, DC 20002. The filing hours at this location are 8 a.m. to 7 
p.m. All hand deliveries must be held together with rubber bands or 
fasteners. Any envelopes must be disposed of before entering the 
building. Commercial overnight mail (other than U.S. Postal Service 
Express Mail and Priority Mail) must be sent to 9300 East Hampton 
Drive, Capitol Heights, MD 20743. U.S. Postal Service first-class, 
Express, and Priority mail should be addressed to 445

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12th Street, SW., Washington DC 20554. People with Disabilities: To 
request materials in accessible formats for people with disabilities 
(Braille, large print, electronic files, audio format), send an e-mail 
to [email protected] or call the Consumer & Governmental Affairs Bureau at 
202-418-0530 (voice), 202-418-0432 (tty).

Federal Communications Commission.
Marlene H. Dortch,
Secretary.
 [FR Doc. E6-15246 Filed 9-13-06; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6712-01-P