Noncommercial Broadcasting Freedom of Expression Act of 2000

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Noncommercial Broadcasting Freedom 
of Expression Act of 2000''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    The Congress finds the following:
            (1) In the additional guidance contained in the Federal 
        Communication Commission's memorandum opinion and order in WQED 
        Pittsburgh (FCC 99-393), adopted December 15, 1999, and 
        released December 29, 1999, the Commission attempted to impose 
        content-based programming requirements on noncommercial 
        educational television broadcasters without the benefit of 
        notice and comment in a rulemaking proceeding.
            (2) In doing so, the Commission did not adequately consider 
        the implications of its proposed guidelines on the rights of 
        such broadcasters under First Amendment and the Religious 
        Freedom Restoration Act.
            (3) Noncommercial educational broadcasters should be 
        responsible for using the station to primarily serve an 
        educational, instructional, cultural, or religious purpose in 
        its community of license, and for making judgments about the 
        types of programming that serve those purposes.
            (4) Religious programming contributes to serving the 
        educational and cultural needs of the public, and should be 
        treated by the Commission on a par with other educational and 
        cultural programming.
            (5) Because noncommercial broadcasters are not permitted to 
        sell air time, they should not be required to provide free air 
        time to commercial entities or political candidates.
            (6) The Commission should not engage in regulating the 
        content of speech broadcast by noncommercial educational 
        stations.

SEC. 3. CLARIFICATION OF SERVICE OBLIGATIONS OF NONCOMMERCIAL 
              EDUCATIONAL OR PUBLIC BROADCAST STATIONS.

    (a) Service Conditions.--Section 309 of the Communications Act of 
1934 (47 U.S.C. 309) is amended by adding at the end the following new 
subsection:
    ``(m) Service Conditions on Noncommercial Educational and Public 
Broadcast Stations.--
            ``(1) In general.--A nonprofit organization shall be 
        eligible to hold a noncommercial educational radio or 
        television license if the station is used primarily to 
        broadcast material that the organization determines serves an 
        educational, instructional, cultural, or religious purpose (or 
        any combination of such purposes) in the station's community of 
        license, unless that determination is arbitrary or 
        unreasonable.
            ``(2) Additional content-based requirements prohibited.--
        The Commission shall not--
                    ``(A) impose or enforce any quantitative 
                requirement on noncommercial educational radio or 
                television licenses based on the number of hours of 
                programming that serve educational, instructional, 
                cultural, or religious purposes; or
                    ``(B) impose or enforce any other requirement on 
                the content of the programming broadcast by a licensee, 
                permittee, or applicant for a noncommercial educational 
                radio or television license that is not imposed and 
                enforced on a licensee, permittee, or applicant for a 
                commercial radio or television license, respectively.
            ``(3) Rules of construction.--Nothing in this subsection 
        shall be construed as affecting--
                    ``(A) any obligation of noncommercial educational 
                television broadcast stations under the Children's 
                Television Act of 1990 (47 U.S.C. 303a, 303b); or
                    ``(B) the requirements of section 396, 399, 399A, 
                and 399B of this Act.''.
    (b) Political Broadcasting Exemption.--Section 312(a)(7) of the 
Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 312(a)(7)) is amended by 
inserting ``, other than a noncommercial educational broadcast 
station,'' after ``use of a broadcasting station''.
    (c) Audit of Compliance With Donor Privacy Protection 
Requirements.--Section 396(l)(3)(B)(ii) of the Communications Act of 
1934 (47 U.S.C. 396(l)(3)(B)(ii)) is amended--
            (1) in subclause (I), by inserting before the semicolon the 
        following: ``, and shall include a determination of the 
        compliance of the entity with the requirements of subsection 
        (k)(12)''; and
            (2) in subclause (II), by inserting before the semicolon 
        the following: ``, except that such statement shall include a 
        statement regarding the extent of the compliance of the entity 
        with the requirements of subsection (k)(12)''.
    (d) Implementation.--Consistent with the requirements of section 4 
of this Act, the Federal Communications Commission shall amend sections 
73.1930 through 73.1944 of its rules (47 CFR 73.1930-73.1944) to 
provide that those sections do not apply to noncommercial educational 
broadcast stations.

SEC. 4. RULEMAKING.

    (a) Limitation.--After the date of the enactment of this Act, the 
Federal Communications Commission shall not establish, expand, or 
otherwise modify requirements relating to the service obligations of 
noncommercial educational radio or television stations except by means 
of agency rulemaking conducted in accordance with chapter 5 of title 5, 
United States Code, and other applicable law (including the amendments 
made by section 3).
    (b) Rulemaking Deadline.--The Federal Communications Commission 
shall prescribe such revisions to its regulations as may be necessary 
to comply with the amendment made by section 3 within 270 days after 
the date of the enactment of this Act.

            Passed the House of Representatives June 20, 2000.

            Attest:

                                                 JEFF TRANDAHL,

                                                                 Clerk.

                            By Martha C. Morrison,

                                                          Deputy Clerk.


                                                       

Summary: Prohibits the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) from: (1) imposing or enforcing any quantitative requirement on NCE licenses based on the number of hours of programming that serve such purposes. Or (2) imposing or enforcing any other programming content requirement on an NCE license that is not imposed on a licensee, permittee, or applicant for a commercial radio or television license. Specifies that NCE licensees remain subject to applicable provisions of the Children's Television Act and the requirements of the Public Broadcasting Act. Exempts NCE stations from requirements to make broadcast stations accessible to political candidates and directs the FCC to amend its rules governing political broadcasting to provide that such rules do not apply to NCE stations. Requires each public telecommunications entity that receives funds from donors to undergo an annual audit which shall include a determination of such entity's compliance with donor privacy protection requirements. Prohibits the FCC from establishing, expanding, or otherwise modifying requirements relating to the service obligations of noncommercial educational radio or television stations except by means of agency rulemaking.