Radio License Renewals Have Come and Gone.  Phew!

We'll leave some of the earlier renewal information on the page (see below) but, by and large, it's over.  The fat lady's aria is done. There are some petitions to deny for a few to deal with, a couple of short term renewals and some that just haven't been completed but not a huge number.

A lot of the big issues were really non-technical.  Ever had a client ask, "Hey, what's an FRN?"  Like the station's Social Security number and I don't understand how some made it to now without having one.  Then of course, there was confusion about the transition to ULS and its integration with FRN, CDBS, and CORES.  That's subsiding.  But wait.  There's more.  With TV repacking, many FMs were affected, resulting in changes in antenna, antenna height, STA's, and downtime resulting from moves on a tower and the safety of climbers. 

If you received that little watermarked renewal notice, make sure it goes where your other required forms are.  If you're keeping a public file parallel to the FCC's online one, make sure it's in there, too.  Then take a few minutes and pat yourself on the back.  Time's up. Back to work.

Welllllll....if you scroll down, you'll find a lot of info about the 2012 renewals.  Who'da thought that we're already gearing up for the 2020 Renewal.  Also keep in mind that some renewals will begin in 2019, as early as June for DC, Virginia and others.  Subtract from that the 4 months lead time for filing and the time necessary for public announcements and, uh, we're there!

It may seem like a long time off but it isn't.  In fact, there are some items you may already be past due on.  For example, station logs.  Do the math on required retention period (2 years) and time to renewal and you'll discover that you need to make absolutely sure that logs are in order from at least last January on.  Sure, they're all supposed to be in order but it's doubly important during a license renewal period. 

If you were to be "filed on top of" and the challenger said that you've been operating after daylight hours on your daytime AM, do you have the logs that - day by day - show that you were compliant?  That's just one example, you can think of a number of others.  So, have the Designated Chief Operator or Assistant Designated Chief Operator make sure to review each log, sign and date, and make any corrections.  What's that I hear?  Someone said they don't have the Designated Chief Operator or Assistant.  You need to fix that, too.

Here are some important pages from the FCC:

Renewal Dates by State

FCC General Walk-thru for License Renewal

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The month varies by state but 2012 is renewal year for radio stations.   Being late is not an option. They'll know you're late and it's a sure fine!

Here are some links to FCC info on license renewal:

FCC summary and dates

FCC Form 303S and instructions

FCC Rules on Public Inspection Files (Commercial Stations)

FCC Rules on Public Inspection Files (Non-commercial Stations)

The FCC's The Public and Broadcasting (Required in public file)

Important Disclaimer: Scope+Focus, Inc. is an engineering and technical consulting and field service company. We can provide service in clarifying or correcting technical issues - out of tolerance? Wrong tower coordinates? AM NRSC measurements? We can help. However, we are NOT attorneys and do not offer legal advice. The links and suggestions provided herein are provided as a courtesy.  If you have legal questions, contact your communications lawyer!