FCC gives the gift of time for biennial reports

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Form 323 is due late this year for owners and operators for all commercial radio and television stations, including low power and Class A television stations. It must contain information on licensees and entities with an attributable stake in a license. The FCC has provided an extra month to get them completed and filed.


The information is expected to be accurate as of 10/1/11, and that will be the case despite the change in deadline.

But the due date is now 12/1/11, a month past the original due date of 11/1/11.

The goal of the project is to provide the FCC with additional data with the ultimate aim of increasing licensee diversity. It said it was acting on a motion from its own Media Bureau, rather than a request from stakeholders. The FCC simply is acting on its own sense that licensees with multiple holdings may require a little extra time to go through forms for a large number of stations.

“In particular, we are aware that some licensees and parent entities of multiple stations may be required to file numerous forms and the extra time is intended to permit adequate time to prepare such filings,” stated the FCC. “We believe it is in the public interest to provide additional time to ensure that all filers provide the Commission with accurate and reliable data on which the Commission may rely for research and other purposes.”

Nevertheless, it asks that licensees not all wait until the last minute. “Filers are encouraged to submit ownership reports as early as possible and to complete their Form 323 filings well in advance of the extended deadline whenever possible. This extension applies only to the 2011 biennial filing requirement.”