Get ready to fork over more dollars to the FCC as part of your regulatory fees — unless the NAB can sway the Commission to adjust a hike the broadcasting industry’s key advocacy group calls “staggering.”
A Notice for Proposed Rulemaking was quietly released by the Commission on Thursday (6/2) that opens up a comment period for public input on its suggested FY 2022 regulatory fees.
The NAB wasted no time in blasting the proposed rates, with NAB President/CEO Curtis LeGeyt saying the regulatory fee proposal “subjects local radio broadcasters to a staggering 13% fee increase from last fiscal year.”
The entire 141-page NPRM can be viewed here. Of particular dislike to the NAB are AM and FM broadcast radio station fees as shown below:
By comparison, here is the 2021 regulatory fee schedule:
Meanwhile, AM Radio Construction Permits carry a $690 fee, rising from $610; FM Radio Construction Permits have a $1,210 fee, up from $1,070. FM translators and boosters have a $340 fee, rising from $320.
LeGeyt added that the Commission continues to “unlawfully” require broadcasters to subsidize the Commission’s broadband activities, a refrain from prior comments NAB leadership has made to the FCC. “For these local stations that are still recovering from the pandemic and face unique economic challenges in today’s media landscape, such an unjustified increase is devastating and risks undermining the unique locally-focused service that our communities rely upon. NAB stands ready and willing to work with the Commission to ensure a fair and lawful payment regime.”
The NAB was silent on the fee amount assigned to full-service broadcast television stations, which is also found as “Appendix G” in the NPRM.
