§ 73.3527   Local public inspection file of noncommercial educational stations.

   (a) Responsibility to maintain a file. The following shall maintain for
   public inspection a file containing the material set forth in this section.

   (1)  Applicants  for  a  construction  permit for a new station in the
   noncommercial  educational  broadcast services shall maintain a public
   inspection file containing the material, relating to that station, described
   in paragraph (e)(2) and (e)(11) of this section. A separate file shall be
   maintained for each station for which an application is pending. If the
   application is granted, paragraph (a)(2) of this section shall apply.

   (2)  Every  permittee  or  licensee of an AM, FM, or TV station in the
   noncommercial  educational  broadcast services shall maintain a public
   inspection file containing the material, relating to that station, described
   in paragraphs (e)(1) through (e)(11) of this section. In addition, every
   permittee  or licensee of a noncommercial educational TV station shall
   maintain for public inspection a file containing material, relating to that
   station, described in paragraphs (e)(12) of this section. A separate file
   shall  be  maintained  for  each station for which an authorization is
   outstanding, and the file shall be maintained so long as an authorization to
   operate the station is outstanding.

   (b) Location of the file. The public inspection file shall be located as
   follows:

   (1) For radio licensees, a hard copy of the public inspection file shall be
   maintained at the main studio of the station. An applicant for a new station
   or change of community shall maintain its file at an accessible place in the
   proposed community of license or at its proposed main studio.

   (2) A noncommercial educational television station licensee or applicant
   shall place the contents required by paragraph (e) of this section of its
   public inspection file on the Commission's Web site, with the exception of
   the political file as required by paragraph (e)(5) of this section, which
   may be retained at the station in the manner discussed in paragraph (b)(1)
   of  this  section  until July 1, 2014. Effective July 1, 2014, any new
   political file material shall be placed on the Commission's Web site, while
   the material in the political file as of July 1, 2014, if not placed on the
   Commission's Web site, shall continue to be retained at the station in the
   manner discussed in paragraph (b)(1) of this section until the end of its
   retention period. However, any noncommercial educational station that is not
   required to place its political file on the Commission's Web site before
   July 1, 2014 may choose to do so instead of retaining the political file at
   the station in the manner discussed in paragraph (b)(1) of this section. A
   station must provide a link to the public inspection file hosted on the
   Commission's Web site from the home page of its own Web site, if the station
   has a Web site, and provide contact information for a station representative
   on its Web site that can assist any person with disabilities with issues
   related to the content of the public files. A station also is required to
   include in the online public file the station's main studio address and
   telephone number, and the email address of the station's designated contact
   for questions about the public file. To the extent this section refers to
   the  local  public inspection file, it refers to the public file of an
   individual station, which is either maintained at the station or on the
   Commission's Web site, depending upon where the documents are required to be
   maintained under the Commission's rules.

   (3)  The Commission will automatically link the following items to the
   electronic version of all licensee and applicant public inspection files, to
   the  extent  that  the  Commission  has  these  items  electronically:
   Authorizations; applications; contour maps; ownership reports and related
   materials; portions of the Equal Employment Opportunity file held by the
   Commission; and “The Public and Broadcasting”.

   (c) Access to material in the file. (1) The file shall be available for
   public inspection at any time during regular business hours. All or part of
   the file may be maintained in a computer database, as long as a computer
   terminal is made available, at the location of the file, to members of the
   public who wish to review the file. Material in the public inspection file
   shall be made available for printing or machine reproduction upon request
   made  in person. The applicant, permittee, or licensee may specify the
   location for printing or reproduction, require the requesting party to pay
   the reasonable cost thereof, and may require guarantee of payment in advance
   (e.g., by requiring a deposit, obtaining credit card information, or any
   other reasonable method). Requests for copies shall be fulfilled within a
   reasonable period of time, which generally should not exceed 7 days.

   (2) The applicant, permittee, or licensee who maintains its main studio and
   public file outside its community of license shall:

   (i) Make available to persons within its geographic service area, by mail
   upon  telephone  request,  photocopies  of  documents in the file (see
   § 73.3527(c)(1)), excluding the political file (see § 73.3527(e)(5)), and the
   station shall pay postage;

   (ii) Mail the most recent version of “The Public and Broadcasting” to any
   member of the public that requests a copy; and

   (iii)  Be  prepared to assist members of the public in identifying the
   documents  they  may  ask  to be sent to them by mail, for example, by
   describing to the caller, if asked, the period covered by a particular
   report and the number of pages included in the report.

   Note to paragraph (c)(2): For purposes of this section, geographic service
   area includes the area within the protected service contour in a particular
   service: Grade B contour for TV, 1 mVm contour for all FM station classes
   except .7 mV/m for Class B1 stations and .5 mV/m for Class B stations, and
   .5 mV/m contour for AM stations.

   (d) Responsibility in case of assignment or transfer. (1) In cases involving
   applications for consent to assignment of broadcast station construction
   permits or licenses, with respect to which public notice is required to be
   given under the provisions of § 73.3580 or § 73.3594, the file mentioned in
   paragraph (a) of this section shall be maintained by the assignor. If the
   assignment is consented to by the FCC and consummated, the assignee shall
   maintain  the  file  commencing  with  the date on which notice of the
   consummation of the assignment is filed with the FCC. The assignee shall
   retain public file documents obtained from the assignor for the period
   required under these rules.

   (2) In cases involving applications for consent to transfer of control of a
   permittee  or  licensee  of a broadcast station, the file mentioned in
   paragraph  (a) of this section shall be maintained by the permittee or
   licensee.

   (e)  Contents  of  the file. The material to be retained in the public
   inspection file is as follows:

   (1) Authorization. A copy of the current FCC authorization to construct or
   operate the station, as well as any other documents necessary to reflect any
   modifications thereto or any conditions that the FCC has placed on the
   authorization. These materials shall be retained until replaced by a new
   authorization, at which time a copy of the new authorization and any related
   materials shall be placed in the file.

   (2) Applications and related materials. A copy of any application tendered
   for filing with the FCC, together with all related material, including
   supporting documentation of any points claimed in the application pursuant
   to § 73.7003, and copies of FCC decisions pertaining thereto. If petitions to
   deny  are  filed  against  the application and have been served on the
   applicant,  a  statement  that such a petition has been filed shall be
   maintained in the file together with the name and address of the party
   filing the petition. Applications shall be retained in the public inspection
   file until final action has been taken on the application, except that
   applications for a new construction permit granted pursuant to a waiver
   showing and applications for assignment or transfer of license granted
   pursuant to a waiver showing shall be retained for as long as the waiver is
   in effect. In addition, license renewal applications granted on a short-term
   basis shall be retained until final action has been taken on the license
   renewal application filed immediately following the shortened license term.

   (3) Contour maps. A copy of any service contour maps, submitted with any
   application  tendered for filing with the FCC, together with any other
   information in the application showing service contours and/or main studio
   and transmitter location (State, county, city, street address, or other
   identifying information). These documents shall be retained for as long as
   they reflect current, accurate information regarding the station.

   (4) Ownership reports and related materials. A copy of the most recent,
   complete ownership report filed with the FCC for the station, together with
   any subsequent statement filed with the FCC certifying that the current
   report is accurate, and together with all related material. These materials
   shall be retained until a new, complete ownership report is filed with the
   FCC, at which time a copy of the new report and any related materials shall
   be placed in the file. The permittee or licensee must retain in the public
   file either a copy of the contracts listed in such reports in accordance
   with § 73.3615(d)(3), or an up-to-date list of such contracts. Licensees and
   permittees who choose to maintain a list of contracts must provide a copy of
   any contracts to requesting parties within 7 days.

   (5) Political file. Such records as are required by § 73.1943 to be kept
   concerning broadcasts by candidates for public office. These records shall
   be retained for the period specified in § 73.1943 (2 years).

   (6) Equal Employment Opportunity file. Such information as is required by
   § 73.2080 to be kept in the public inspection file. These materials shall be
   retained until final action has been taken on the station's next license
   renewal application.

   (7) The Public and Broadcasting. At all times, a copy of the most recent
   version of the manual entitled “The Public and Broadcasting.”

   (8) Issues/Programs lists. For nonexempt noncommercial educational broadcast
   stations, every three months a list of programs that have provided the
   station's  most  significant  treatment of community issues during the
   preceding three month period. The list for each calendar quarter is to be
   filed by the tenth day of the succeeding calendar quarter (e.g., January 10
   for the quarter October-December, April 10 for the quarter January-March,
   etc.). The list shall include a brief narrative describing what issues were
   given  significant  treatment  and  the programming that provided this
   treatment. The description of the programs shall include, but shall not be
   limited to, the time, date, duration, and title of each program in which the
   issue was treated. The lists described in this paragraph shall be retained
   in the public inspection file until final action has been taken on the
   station's next license renewal application.

   (9) Donor lists. The lists of donors supporting specific programs. These
   lists shall be retained for two years from the date of the broadcast of the
   specific program supported.

   (10)  Local public notice announcements. Each applicant for renewal of
   license shall, within 7 days of the last day of broadcast of the local
   public notice of filing announcements required pursuant to § 73.3580(h),
   place in the station's local public inspection file a statement certifying
   compliance with this requirement. The dates and times that the pre-filing
   and post-filing notices were broadcast and the text thereof shall be made
   part of the certifying statement. The certifying statement shall be retained
   in the public file for the period specified in § 73.3580 (for as long as the
   application to which it refers).

   (11) Material relating to FCC investigation or complaint. Material having a
   substantial bearing on a matter which is the subject of an FCC investigation
   or complaint to the FCC of which the applicant, permittee, or licensee has
   been  advised.  This  material  shall be retained until the applicant,
   permittee, or licensee is notified in writing that the material may be
   discarded.

   (12) Must-carry requests. Noncommercial television stations requesting
   mandatory  carriage  on any cable system pursuant to § § 76.56, 76.1614,
   76.1620, and 76.1709 of this chapter shall place a copy of such request in
   its  public  file  and  shall  retain  both  the  request and relevant
   correspondence for the duration of any period to which the request applies.

   (13)  DTV  transition  education reports. For full-power noncommercial
   educational TV broadcast stations, both analog and digital, on a quarterly
   basis, a completed Form 388, DTV Consumer Education Quarterly Activity
   Report. The Report for each quarter is to be placed in the public inspection
   file by the tenth day of the succeeding calendar quarter. By this date, a
   copy of the Report for each quarter must be filed electronically using the
   Commission's Consolidated DataBase System (CDBS). Stations electing to
   conform to the requirements of § 73.674(b) must also provide the form on the
   station's public Web site, if such exists. The Report shall be separated
   from  other materials in the public inspection file. The first Report,
   covering the first quarter of 2008, must be filed no later than April 10,
   2008. The Reports must continue to be included up to and including the
   quarter in which a station concludes its education campaign. These Reports
   shall be retained in the public inspection file for one year. Licensees and
   permittees  shall publicize in an appropriate manner the existence and
   location of these Reports.

   Note 1 to paragraph (e): For purposes of this section, a decision made with
   respect to an application tendered with the FCC becomes final when that
   decision is no longer subject to reconsideration, review, or appeal either
   at the FCC or in the courts.

   Note 2 to paragraph (e): For purposes of this section, the term “all related
   material” includes all exhibits, letters, and other documents tendered for
   filing with the FCC as part of an application, report, or other document,
   all amendments to the application, report, or other document, copies of all
   documents incorporated therein by reference and not already maintained in
   the public inspection file, and all correspondence between the FCC and the
   applicant pertaining to the application, report, or other document, which
   according to the provisions of § § 0.451 through 0.461 of the rules are open
   for public inspection at the offices of the FCC.

   [ 63 FR 49499 , Sept. 16, 1998, as amended at  64 FR 35947 , July 2, 1999;  65 FR 7457 , Feb. 15, 2000;  65 FR 36378 , June 8, 2000;  65 FR 53614 , Sept. 5, 2000;
    73 FR 15450 , Mar. 24, 2008;  73 FR 36283 , June 26, 2008;  76 FR 71269 , Nov.
   17, 2011;  77 FR 27656 , May 11, 2012]

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