REC Networks has filed comments with the FCC in MB Docket 17-264.

The Communications Act requires broadcast applicants (existing and new entrants) to make public notice of certain types of broadcast applications at the time they are accepted for filing at the FCC.  Currently, those notices are made through purchasing ads in newspapers.  In an effort to modernize the rules and to reflect the current state of media, the FCC has proposed to eliminate the newspaper requirement and replace with an online announcement.   The FCC also proposes changes to the public notice announcements heard over the air and officially implements public notices for LPFM.  The LPFM implementation was an oversight from 19 years ago.

"I do find it very disappointing that there is not one person on this committee who is representing the 2,186 licensed LPFM broadcast stations, many of which provide very diverse and in many cases, localized content on the fronts of ethnicity, gender, LGBT and religion. In addition, there is no representation of independent LPFM and community based full-service noncommercial educational (NCE) broadcasters at the upcoming symposium on the broadcast industry.

Across the country, community-focused secular and faith-based LPFM stations as well as smaller full-service NCE stations are providing unique and localized content not available elsewhere on the dial or even in the larger media landscape.  Its time for these thousands of broadcast licensees to be taken seriously and properly represented at the Commission as members of the media landscape."

In response to the FCC Notice of Proposed Rulemaking in MB Docket 19-193, REC Networks, the author of most of the items in the proceeding has filed comments with the FCC to support the various items the Commission has agreed to move forward and has also petitioned to have several items that were tentatively rejected brought back into discussion.

During testing of the new LMS application entry for construction permit modifications for LPFM stations, we have noticed that LMS is calculating height above average terrain incorrectly.  This can result in the application being given a higher or lower HAAT than what would be appropirate. This has been reported to staff.