Community Broadcasters Protection Act of 1999

Summary: Community Broadcasters Protection Act of 1999 - Amends the Communications Act of 1934 to direct the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to prescribe regulations to establish a class A license for qualifying low-power television (LPT) stations.  Requires notification of LPT licensees of the requirements for class A designation.  Requires requesting licensees to submit to the FCC a certification of eligibility based on the requirements of this Act.  Requires the FCC to: (1) grant such certification absent a material deficiency; and (2) act to preserve the contours of LPT stations pending final resolution of such applications. Allows an LPT station to submit an application for class A designation only within 30 days after final regulations are adopted. 
Defines as a qualifying LPT station one which, during the 90 days preceding the date of enactment of this Act: (1) broadcast for at least 18 hours per day; (2) broadcast an average of at least three hours per week of programming that was produced within the market area served by such station or the market area served by a group of commonly controlled stations that carry common local or specialized programming not otherwise available to their communities; and (3) complied with other requirements applicable to LPT stations and, after the date of its license application, complies with the FCC's operating rules for full power television stations.  Allows the FCC to treat non-qualifying stations as LPT stations under this Act if public interest, convenience, and necessity would be so served. 
Provides that: (1) the FCC is not required to issue any additional licenses for advanced television services to the licensees of class A television stations; and (2) the FCC shall approve such license applications proposing facilities that will not cause interference to any other broadcast facility authorized on the date of the filing of the class A advanced television application. 
States that nothing in this Act shall preempt Federal provisions concerning the allocation and assignment of new public safety services licenses and commercial licenses. 
Prohibits the FCC from granting a class A license to an LPT station operating between 698 and 806 megahertz, but requires the FCC to provide to LPT stations assigned to and temporarily operating within such bandwidth the opportunity to meet the licensing requirements.

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Community Broadcasters Protection 
Act of 1999''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    The Congress finds that:
            (1) Since the creation of low-power television licenses by 
        the Federal Communications Commission, a number of license 
        holders have operated their stations in a manner beneficial to 
        the public good providing broadcasting to their communities 
        that would not otherwise be available.
            (2) These low-power broadcasters have operated their 
        stations in a manner consistent with the programming objectives 
        and hours of operation of full-power broadcasters providing 
        worthwhile services to their respective communities while under 
        severe license limitations compared to their full-power 
        counterparts.
            (3) License limitations, particularly the temporary nature 
        of the license, have blocked many low-power broadcasters from 
        having access to capital, and have severely hampered their 
        ability to continue to provide quality broadcasting, 
        programming, or improvements.
            (4) The passage of the Telecommunications Act of 1996 has 
        added to the uncertainty of the future status of these stations 
        by the lack of specific provisions regarding the permanency of 
        their licenses, or their treatment during the transition to 
        high definition, digital television.
            (5) It is in the public interest to promote diversity in 
        television programming formats by encouraging low power 
        television stations that serve foreign language communities. 
        These communities should not lose their access to foreign 
        language programming as a result of the transition to digital 
        television.

SEC. 3. PRESERVATION OF LOW-POWER COMMUNITY TELEVISION BROADCASTING.

    (a) Section 336 of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 336) 
is amended:
            (1) by redesignating subsections (f) and (g) as subsections 
        (g) and (h), respectively; and
            (2) by inserting after subsection (e) the following new 
        subsection:
    ``(f) Preservation of Low-Power Community Television 
Broadcasting.--
            ``(1) Creation of class a licenses.--Within 120 days after 
        the date of enactment of the Community Broadcasters Protection 
        Act of 1999, the Commission shall prescribe regulations to 
        establish a class A television license to be available to 
        licensees of qualifying low-power television stations. Such 
        license shall be subject to the same license terms, and renewal 
        standards as the licenses for full-power television stations 
        except as provided in this section, and each class A licensee 
        shall be accorded primary status as a television broadcaster as 
        long as the station continues to meet the requirements for a 
        qualifying low-power station in paragraph (2). Within 30 days 
        after the date of enactment of the Community Broadcasters 
        Protection Act of 1999, the Commission shall send a notice to 
        the licensees of all low-power television licenses that 
        describes the requirements for Class A designation. Within 60 
        days after the date of enactment of the Community Broadcasters 
        Protection Act of 1999, licensees intending to seek Class A 
        designation shall submit to the Commission a certification of 
        eligibility based on the qualification requirements of this 
        Act. Absent a material deficiency, the Commission shall grant 
        certification of eligibility to apply for Class A status. The 
        Commission shall act to preserve the contours of low-power 
        television licensees pending the final resolution of a Class A 
        application. Under the requirements set forth in paragraph (2) 
        (A) and (B) and paragraph (6) of this subsection, a licensee 
        may submit an application for Class A designation under this 
        paragraph only within 30 days after final regulations are 
        adopted, except as provided for in paragraph (6)(A). The 
        Commission shall, within 30 days after receipt of an 
        application that is acceptable for filing, award such a Class A 
        television station license to any licensee of a qualifying low-
        power television station. If, after granting certification of 
        eligibility or a Class A license, unforeseen technical problems 
        arise that require an engineering solution to a station's 
        allotted parameters or channel assignment in the digital 
        television Table of Allotments, the Commission may make such 
        modifications as are necessary to ensure replication of the 
        digital television applicant's service area as provided for in 
        section 622 of the Commission's regulations (47 CFR 602).
            ``(2) Qualifying low-power television stations.--For 
        purposes of this subsection, a station is a qualifying low-
        power television station if:
                    ``(A) during the 90 days preceding the date of 
                enactment of the Community Broadcasters Protection Act 
                of 1999:
                            ``(i) such station broadcast a minimum of 
                        18 hours per day;
                            ``(ii) such station broadcast an average of 
                        at least 3 hours per week of programming that 
                        was produced within the market area served by 
                        such station, or the market area served by a 
                        group of commonly controlled stations that 
                        carry common local programming not otherwise 
                        available to their communities; and
                            ``(iii) such station was in compliance with 
                        the Commission's requirements applicable to 
                        low-power television stations; and
                    ``(B) from and after the date of its application 
                for a Class A license, the station is in compliance 
                with the Commission's operating rules for full power 
                television stations; or
                    ``(C) the Commission determines that the public 
                interest, convenience, and necessity would be served by 
                treating the station as a qualifying low-power 
                television station for purposes of this section, or for 
                other reasons determined by the Commission.
            ``(3) Common ownership.--No low-power television station 
        that is authorized as of the date of enactment of the Community 
        Broadcasters Protection Act of 1999 shall be disqualified for a 
        class A license based on common ownership with any medium of 
        mass communication.
            ``(4) Issuance of licenses for advanced television services 
        to qualifying low-power television stations.--The Commission is 
        not required to issue any additional licenses for advanced 
        television services to the licensees of the class A television 
        stations but shall accept such license applications proposing 
        facilities that will not cause interference to any other 
        broadcast facility authorized on the date of filing of the 
        Class A advanced television applications. Such new license or 
        the original license of the applicant shall be forfeited at the 
        end of the digital television transition. Low-power television 
        station licensees may, at the option of licensee, elect to 
        convert to the provision of advanced television services on its 
        analog channel, but shall not be required to convert to digital 
        operation until the end of the digital television transition.
            ``(5) No preemption of section 337.--Nothing in this 
        section preempts section 337 of this Act.
            ``(6) Interim qualification.--
                    ``(A) Stations operating within certain 
                bandwidth.--The Commission may not grant a Class A 
                license to a low power television station operating 
                between 698 and 806 megahertz, but the Commission shall 
                provide to low power television stations assigned to 
                and temporarily operating in that bandwidth the 
                opportunity to meet the qualification requirements for 
                a Class A license. When such a qualified applicant for 
                a Class A license is assigned a channel within the core 
                spectrum, the Commission shall simultaneously issue a 
                Class A license.
                    ``(B) Certain channels off-limits.--The Commission 
                may not grant a channel within the core spectrum under 
                this subsection that includes any of the 175 additional 
                channels referenced in paragraph 45 of its February 23, 
                1998, Memorandum Opinion and Order on Reconsideration 
                of the Sixth Report and Order: MM Docket No. 87-268. 
                Within 18 months after the date of enactment of the 
                Community Broadcasters Protection Act of 1999, the 
                Commission shall identify by channel, location, and 
                applicable technical parameters those 175 channels.
            ``(7) No interference requirement.--The Commission may not 
        grant a Class A license or approve a modification of a Class A 
        license unless the applicant or licensee shows that the Class A 
        station for which the license or modification is sought will 
        not cause:
                    ``(A) interference within the Grade B contour of 
                any television station (as of the date of enactment of 
                the Community Broadcasters Protection Act of 1999, or 
                as proposed in a minor change application filed on or 
                before such date) or the digital television service 
                areas provided in the digital television Table of 
                Allotments, or subsequently granted by the Commission 
                prior to the filing of a Class A application;
                    ``(B) interference within the protected contour of 
                any low power television station or low power 
                television translator station licensed, authorized by 
                construction permit, or with a pending application 
                submitted prior to the date on which the application 
                for a Class A license, or for the modification of such 
                a license, was filed; or
                    ``(C) interference within the protected contour of 
                80 miles from the geographic center of the areas listed 
                in section 22.625(b)(1) or 90.303 of the Commission's 
                regulations (47 C.F.R. 22.625(b)(1) and 90.303) for 
                frequencies in:
                            ``(i) the 470-512 megahertz bank identified 
                        in section 22.621 or 90.303 of such 
                        regulations; or
                            ``(ii) the 482-488 megahertz band in New 
                        York.''.
    (b) Section 614 of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 533) 
is amended:
            ``(1) by inserting the following in subsection (h)(2)(F) 
        after the first sentence: `A television broadcast station shall 
        not lose its status as a qualified low power station because a 
        full power television station is subsequently licensed to a 
        community within the county or other equivalent political 
        subdivision served by the cable system or because a full power 
        television station subsequently begins to provide local news 
        and information to the community.'.''

SEC. 4. COMPETITIVE BIDDING EXCEPTIONS.

    Section 309(j)(2) of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 
309(j)(2)) is amended:
            (1) by striking ``or'' at the end of subparagraph (B);
            (2) by striking the period at the end of subparagraph (C) 
        and inserting ``; or''; and
            (3) by adding at the end the following new subparagraph:
                    ``(D) for low power television stations if at least 
                one of the mutually exclusive applicants qualifies as a 
                Class A licensee. Under such circumstances:
                            ``(i) if only one of the mutually exclusive 
                        applicants qualifies as a Class A licensee, the 
                        Commission shall assign the license to that 
                        applicant;
                            ``(ii) if more than one of the mutually 
                        exclusive applicants qualify as Class A 
                        licensees, the Commission shall assign the 
                        license to an applicant who serves an 
                        underserved area or population. An area or 
                        population is underserved if:
                                    ``(I) at least 25 percent of the 
                                area within the station's primary 
                                service contour does not receive 
                                primary service from more than two 
                                commercial television stations licensed 
                                under part 73 of title 47 of the Code 
                                of Federal Regulations; or
                                    ``(II) the station's programming is 
                                broadcast in a foreign language that is 
                                spoken by a significant proportion of 
                                population within the station's primary 
                                service contour;
                            ``(iii) if more than one applicant 
                        primarily broadcasts programming to underserved 
                        areas or populations, or more than one 
                        applicant is a Class A licensee and no 
                        applicant primarily broadcasts programming to 
                        underserved areas or populations, then the 
                        Commission shall notify affected parties and 
                        provide them with no fewer than 60 days to 
                        develop an engineering solution so that the 
                        applications are not mutually exclusive. If the 
                        applicants do not reach an engineering solution 
                        to resolve mutual exclusivity, the Commission 
                        shall establish a bidding credit which 
                        encourages, to the extent possible, localism, 
                        diversity of programming, and programming for 
                        underserved communities.''.