Like sweeping away the first winter snowfall, the FCC is clearing its decks of inactive proceedings.
The commission in an order adopted and released Wednesday said it has closed 2,048 dormant dockets, the largest number of such ever terminated in a single proceeding.
The list includes expired notices and proposals, some dating back decades.
(Read the order from the FCC’s Consumer and Governmental Affairs Bureau.)
But for radio-related interests, proceedings dealing with AM revitalization and program origination for FM translators and boosters remain open for now.
Chairman Brendan Carr said the move to delete the backlog of inactive proceedings is the latest example of good governance at the commission.
“By closing dormant proceedings, the FCC can help provide the regulatory certainty needed for investments and deployments in communities across the country,” Carr said in a prepared statement.
The order, released by the Consumer & Governmental Affairs Bureau, targets cancellations of dockets involving outdated technology or services, along with cycles of comments on now concluded acquisitions and mergers of media properties.
Dormant proceedings cancelled by the FCC include an notice for proposed rule making examining the collection of regulatory fees dating back to the Fiscal Year 2008. In addition, it also terminated an effort to update FM directional antenna performance verification rules.
The FCC also officially closed the 2014 proceeding for auction for AM broadcast construction permits.
By far and away, the commission’s Wireline Competition Bureau saw the largest number of proceeding terminations.
Several radio dockets stay active
The FCC said after consultation with relevant bureaus, it decided some proceedings − originally listed in an earlier public notice − were not good candidates for termination, including:
- Revitalization of the AM radio service
- Amendment to allow for FM booster stations and FM translator stations to originate programming
- Promoting diversification of ownership in broadcasting services
- Post-incentive auction transition
The AM revitalization proceeding began in 2013 under acting FCC Chairwoman Mignon Clyburn. As part of the proceeding, the commission eventually allowed for digital-only AM stations, eliminated the AM “ratchet” rule and relaxed community coverage standards.
The diversification of ownership proceeding has been open since 2007. It seeks ways to broaden the makeup of radio station ownership.
This latest effort to remove older and stalled items by the FCC is not tied to the “Delete, Delete, Delete” initiative launched previously by Carr.
Once the order is published in the Federal Register, the proceedings will be terminated in the Electronic Comment Filing System, according to the commission.
