103D CONGRESS

2D SESSION H. R. 4522

AN ACT

To amend the Communications Act of 1934 to extend the

authorization of appropriations of the Federal Communications Commission, and for other purposes.

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Federal Communica5 tions Commission Authorization Act of 1994’’.

6 SEC. 2. EXTENSION OF AUTHORITY.

7 (a) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—Section

8 6 of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 156)

9 is amended to read as follows:
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1 ‘‘SEC. 6. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

2 ‘‘There are authorized to be appropriated for the ad3 ministration of this Act by the Commission $186,000,000

4 for fiscal year 1995, together with such sums as may be

5 necessary for increases resulting from adjustments in sal6 ary, pay, retirement, other employee benefits required by

7 law, and other nondiscretionary costs, for fiscal year 1995.

8 Of the sum appropriated in each fiscal year under this

9 section, a portion, in an amount determined under section

10 9(b), shall be derived from fees authorized by section 9.’’.

11 (b) TRAVEL AND REIMBURSEMENT PROGRAM.—Sub12 section (g) of section 4 of the Communications Act of

13 1934 (47 U.S.C. 154) is amended—

14 (1) by striking paragraph (2), and

15 (2) by redesignating paragraph (3) as (2).

16 (c) COMMUNICATIONS SUPPORT FROM OLDER AMER17 ICANS.—Section 6(a) of the Federal Communications

18 Commission Authorization Act of 1988 (47 U.S.C. 154

19 note) is amended by striking ‘‘fiscal years 1992 and 1993’’

20 and inserting ‘‘fiscal year 1995’’.

21 (d) HAWAII MONITORING STATION.—Section 9(a) of

22 the Federal Communications Commission Authorization

23 Act of 1988 (Public Law 100–594; 102 Stat. 3024) is

24 amended by striking ‘‘1991, 1992, 1993, and 1994’’ and

25 inserting ‘‘1995,’’.
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1 SEC. 3. APPLICATION FEES.

2 (a) SCHEDULE OF APPLICATION FEES FOR PCS.—

3 The schedule of application fees in section 8(g) of such

4 Act is amended by adding, at the end of the portion under

5 the heading ‘‘COMMON CARRIER SERVICES’’, the following

6 new item:

‘‘23. Personal communications services

‘‘a. Initial or new application ....................................................... 230

‘‘b. Amendment to pending application ....................................... 35

‘‘c. Application for assignment or transfer of control ................. 230

‘‘d. Application for renewal of license .......................................... 35

‘‘e. Request for special temporary authority ............................... 200

‘‘f. Notification of completion of construction ............................. 35

‘‘g. Request to combine service areas .......................................... 50’’.

7 (b) VANITY CALL SIGNS.—

8 (1) LIFETIME LICENSE FEES.—

9 (A) AMENDMENT.—The schedule of appli10 cation fees in section 8(g) of such Act is further

11 amended by adding, at the end of the portion

12 under the heading ‘‘PRIVATE RADIO SERVICES’’,

13 the following new item:

‘‘11. Amateur vanity call signs ........................................................ 150.00’’.

14 (B) TREATMENT OF RECEIPTS.—Moneys

15 received from fees established under the amend16 ment made by this subsection shall be deposited

17 as an offsetting collection in, and credited to,

18 the account providing appropriations to carry

19 out the functions of the Commission.

20 (2) TERMINATION OF ANNUAL REGULATORY

21 FEES.—The schedule of regulatory fees in section
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1 9(g) of such Act (47 U.S.C. 159(g)) is amended by

2 striking the following item from the fees applicable

3 to the Private Radio Bureau:

‘‘Amateur vanity call-signs ....................................................................... 7’’.

4 (c) DESCRIPTION OF APPLICATION FUNCTIONS.—

5 Section 8(b) of such Act is amended by adding at the end

6 the following new paragraph:

7 ‘‘(3) Any fees established under this section shall be

8 assessed and collected to recover the costs of performing

9 application activities, including all executive and legal

10 costs incurred by the Commission in the discharge of these

11 activities.’’.

12 SEC. 4. REGULATORY FEES.

13 (a) EXECUTIVE AND LEGAL COSTS.—Section 9(a)(1)

14 of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 159(a)(1))

15 is amended by inserting before the period at the end the

16 following: ‘‘, and all executive and legal costs incurred by

17 the Commission in the discharge of these functions’’.

18 (b) ESTABLISHMENT AND ADJUSTMENT.—Section

19 9(b) of such Act is amended—

20 (1) in paragraph (4)(B), by striking ‘‘90 days’’

21 and inserting ‘‘45 days’’; and

22 (2) by adding at the end the following new

23 paragraph:

24 ‘‘(5) EFFECTIVE DATE OF ADJUSTMENTS.—The

25 Commission may continue to collect fees at the prior
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1 year’s rate until the effective date of any fee adjust2 ment or amendment of that fee under this section.’’.

3 (c) REGULATORY FEES FOR SATELLITE TV OPER4 ATIONS.—The schedule of regulatory fees in section 9(g)

5 of such Act is amended, in the fees applicable to the mass

6 media bureau, by inserting after each of the items pertain7 ing to construction permits in the fees applicable to VHF

8 commercial and UHF commercial TV the following new

9 item:

‘‘Terrestrial television satellite operations ................................................ 500’’.

10 (d) GOVERNMENTAL ENTITIES USE FOR COMMON

11 CARRIER PURPOSES.—Section 9(h) of such Act is amend12 ed by adding at the end the following new sentence: ‘‘The

13 exceptions provided by this subsection for governmental

14 entities shall not be applicable to any services that are pro15 vided on a commercial basis in competition with another

16 carrier.’’.

17 (e) INFORMATION REQUIRED IN CONNECTION WITH

18 ADJUSTMENT OF REGULATORY FEES.—Title I of such

19 Act is amended—

20 (1) in section 9, by striking subsection (i); and

21 (2) by inserting after section 9 the following

22 new section:
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1 ‘‘SEC. 10. ACCOUNTING SYSTEM AND ADJUSTMENT INFOR2 MATION.

3 ‘‘(a) ACCOUNTING SYSTEM REQUIRED.—The Com4 mission shall develop accounting systems for the purposes

5 of making any adjustments authorized by sections 8 and

6 9. The Commission shall annually prepare and submit to

7 the Congress an analysis of such systems and shall annu8 ally afford interested persons the opportunity to submit

9 comments concerning the allocation of the costs of per10 forming the functions described in sections 8(b)(3) and

11 9(a)(1).

12 ‘‘(b) INFORMATION REQUIRED IN CONNECTION

13 WITH ADJUSTMENT OF APPLICATION AND REGULATORY

14 FEES.—

15 ‘‘(1) SCHEDULE OF REQUESTED AMOUNTS.—

16 No later than May 1 of each calendar year, the

17 Commission shall prepare and transmit to the Com18 mittees of Congress responsible for the Commis19 sion’s authorization and appropriations a detailed

20 schedule of the amounts requested by the Presi21 dent’s budget to be appropriated for the ensuing fis22 cal year for the activities described in sections

23 8(b)(3) and 9(a)(1), allocated by bureaus, divisions,

24 and offices of the Commission.

25 ‘‘(2) EXPLANATORY STATEMENT.—If the Com26 mission anticipates increases in the application fees
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1 or regulatory fees applicable to any applicant, li2 censee, or unit subject to payment of fees, the Com3 mission shall submit to the Congress by May 1 of

4 each calendar year a statement explaining the rela5 tionship between any such increases and either (A)

6 increases in the amounts requested to be appro7 priated for Commission activities in connection with

8 such applicants, licensees, or units subject to pay9 ment of fees, or (B) additional activities to be per10 formed with respect to such applicants, licensees, or

11 units.

12 ‘‘(3) DEFINITION.—For purposes of this sub13 section, the term ‘amount requested by the Presi14 dent’s budget’ shall include any adjustments to such

15 requests that are made by May 1 of each calendar

16 year. If any such adjustment is made after May 1,

17 the Commission shall provide such Committees with

18 updated schedules and statements containing the in19 formation required by this subsection within 10 days

20 after the date of any such adjustment.’’.

21 SEC. 5. INSPECTION OF SHIP RADIO STATIONS.

22 (a) CONTRACTING OUT INSPECTIONS.—Section

23 4(f)(3) of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C.

24 154(f)(3)) is amended by adding at the end the following:

25 ‘‘Notwithstanding the preceding provisions of this para-
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1 graph, the Commission may designate an entity to make

2 the inspections referred to in this paragraph instead of

3 using engineers in charge, radio engineers, or other field

4 employees.’’.

5 (b) ANNUAL INSPECTION REQUIRED.—Section

6 362(b) of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C.

7 360(b)) is amended—

8 (1) by striking ‘‘as may’’ in the third sentence

9 and inserting ‘‘as the Commission determines to’’,

10 and

11 (2) by striking ‘‘thereby’’ in the fourth sentence

12 and all that follows and inserting the following:

13 ‘‘thereby—

14 ‘‘(1) waive the annual inspection required under

15 this section for a period of up to 90 days for the sole

16 purpose of enabling a vessel to complete its voyage

17 and proceed to a port in the United States where an

18 inspection can be held, or

19 ‘‘(2) waive the annual inspection required under

20 this section for a vessel that is in compliance with

21 the radio provisions of the Safety Convention and

22 that is operating solely in waters beyond the juris23 diction of the United States, but the inspection shall

24 be performed within 30 days after the vessel’s return

25 to the United States.’’.
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1 (c) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 385 of the

2 Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 385) is amend3 ed—

4 (1) by inserting ‘‘or an entity designated by the

5 Commission’’ after ‘‘Commission’’, and

6 (2) by striking out ‘‘as may’’ and inserting ‘‘as

7 the Commission determines to’’.

8 SEC. 6. EXPEDITED ITFS PROCESSING.

9 Section 5(c)(1) of the Communications Act of 1934

10 (47 U.S.C. 155(c)(1)) is amended by striking the last sen11 tence and inserting the following: ‘‘Except for cases involv12 ing the authorization of service in the Instructional Tele13 vision Fixed Service, or as otherwise provided in this Act,

14 nothing in this paragraph shall authorize the Commission

15 to provide for the conduct, by any person or persons other

16 than persons referred to in paragraph (2) or (3) of section

17 556(b) of title 5, United States Code, of any hearing to

18 which such section applies.’’.

19 SEC. 7. TARIFF REJECTION AUTHORITY.

20 Section 203(d) of the Communications Act of 1934

21 (47 U.S.C. 203(d)) is amended by inserting after the first

22 sentence the following new sentences: ‘‘The Commission

23 may, after affording interested parties an opportunity to

24 comment, reject a proposed tariff filing in whole or in

25 part, if the filing or any part thereof is patently unlawful.
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1 In evaluating whether a proposed tariff filing is patently

2 unlawful, the Commission may consider additional infor3 mation filed by the carrier or any interested party and

4 shall presume the facts alleged by the carrier to be true.’’.

5 SEC. 8. REFUND AUTHORITY.

6 Title II of the Communications Act of 1934 (47

7 U.S.C. 201 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end there8 of the following new section:

9 ‘‘SEC. 230. REFUND AUTHORITY.

10 ‘‘In addition to any other provision of this Act under

11 which the Commission may order refunds, the Commission

12 may require by order the refund of such portion of any

13 charge by any carrier or carriers as results from a viola14 tion of section 220 (a), (b), or (d) or 221 (c) or (d) or

15 of any of the rules promulgated pursuant to such sections

16 or pursuant to section 215, 218, or 219. Such refunds

17 shall be ordered only to the extent that the Commission

18 or a court finds that such violation resulted in unlawful

19 charges and shall be made to such persons or classes of

20 persons as the Commission determines reasonably rep21 resent the persons from whom amounts were improperly

22 received by reason of such violation. No refunds shall be

23 required under this section unless—

24 ‘‘(1) the Commission issues an order advising

25 the carrier of its potential refund liability and pro-
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1 vides the carrier with an opportunity to file written

2 comments as to why refunds should not be required;

3 and

4 ‘‘(2) such order is issued not later than 5 years

5 after the date the charge was paid.

6 In the case of a continuing violation, a violation shall be

7 considered to occur on each date that the violation is re8 peated.’’.

9 SEC. 9. LICENSING OF AVIATION, MARITIME, AND PER10 SONAL RADIO SERVICES BY RULE.

11 Section 307(e) of the Communications Act of 1934

12 (47 U.S.C. 307(e)) is amended to read as follows:

13 ‘‘(e)(1) Notwithstanding any license requirement es14 tablished in this Act, if the Commission determines that

15 such authorization serves the public interest, convenience,

16 and necessity, the Commission may by rule authorize the

17 operation of radio stations without individual licenses in

18 the following radio services: (A) the personal radio serv19 ices; (B) the aviation radio service for aircraft stations op20 erated on domestic flights when such aircraft are not oth21 erwise required to carry a radio station; and (C) the mari22 time radio service for ship stations navigated on domestic

23 voyages when such ships are not otherwise required to

24 carry a radio station.
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1 ‘‘(2) Any radio station operator who is authorized by

2 the Commission to operate without an individual license

3 shall comply with all other provisions of this Act and with

4 rules prescribed by the Commission under this Act.

5 ‘‘(3) For purposes of this subsection, the terms ‘per6 sonal radio services’, ‘aircraft station’, and ‘ship station’

7 shall have the meanings given them by the Commission

8 by rule, except that the term ‘personal radio services’ shall

9 not include the amateur service.’’.

10 SEC. 10. AUCTION TECHNICAL AMENDMENTS.

11 Section 309(j)(8) of the Communications Act of 1934

12 (47 U.S.C. 309(j)(8)) is amended—

13 (1) by inserting ‘‘are authorized to remain

14 available until expended and’’ after ‘‘Such offsetting

15 collections’’ in the second sentence of subparagraph

16 (B), and

17 (2) by adding at the end thereof the following:

18 ‘‘(C) REVENUES ON DEPOSIT.—The Commis19 sion is authorized, based on the competitive bidding

20 methodology selected, to provide for the deposit of

21 monies for bids in an interest-bearing account until

22 such time as the Commission accepts a deposit from

23 the high bidder. All interest earned on bid monies

24 received from the winning bidder shall be deposited

25 into the general fund of the Treasury. All interest
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1 earned on bid monies deposited from unsuccessful

2 bidders shall be paid to those bidders, less any appli3 cable fees and penalties.’’.

4 SEC. 11. FORFEITURES FOR VIOLATIONS IMPERILING

5 SAFETY OF LIFE.

6 (a) ADMINISTRATIVE SANCTIONS.—Section 312(a) of

7 the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 312(a)) is

8 amended—

9 (1) by striking ‘‘or’’ at the end of paragraph

10 (6);

11 (2) by striking the period at the end of para12 graph (7) and inserting ‘‘; or’’; and

13 (3) by adding at the end the following new

14 paragraph:

15 ‘‘(8) for failure to comply with any requirement

16 of this Act or the Commission’s rules that imperils

17 the safety of life.’’.

18 (b) FORFEITURES.—Section 503(b)(1) of such Act

19 (47 U.S.C. 503(b)(1)) is amended—

20 (1) by striking ‘‘or’’ at the end of subparagraph

21 (C);

22 (2) by striking the semicolon at the end of sub23 paragraph (D) and inserting ‘‘; or’’; and

24 (3) by adding after subparagraph (D) the fol25 lowing new subparagraph:
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1 ‘‘(E) failed to comply with any requirement of

2 this Act or the Commission’s rules that imperils the

3 safety of life;’’.

4 SEC. 12. USE OF EXPERTS AND CONSULTANTS.

5 Section 4(f)(1) of the Communications Act of 1934

6 (47 U.S.C. 154) is amended by adding at the end thereof

7 the following: ‘‘The Commission may also procure the

8 services of experts and consultants in accordance with sec9 tion 3109 of title 5, United States Code, relating to ap10 pointments in the Federal Service, at rates of compensa11 tion for individuals not to exceed the daily rate equivalent

12 to the maximum rate payable for senior-level positions

13 under section 5276 of title 5, United States Code.’’.

14 SEC. 13. STATUTE OF LIMITATIONS FOR FORFEITURE PRO15 CEEDINGS AGAINST COMMON CARRIERS.

16 Section 503(b)(6) of the Communications Act of

17 1934 (47 U.S.C. 503(b)(6)) is amended—

18 (1) by striking ‘‘or’’ at the end of subparagraph

19 (A);

20 (2) by inserting ‘‘and is not a common carrier’’

21 after ‘‘title III of this Act’’ in subparagraph (B);

22 (3) by redesignating subparagraph (B) as sub23 paragraph (C); and

24 (4) by inserting after subparagraph (A) the fol25 lowing new subparagraph:
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1 ‘‘(B) such person is a common carrier and the

2 required notice of apparent liability is issued more

3 than 5 years after the date the violation charged oc4 curred; or’’.

5 SEC. 14. UTILIZATION OF FM BAND FOR ASSISTIVE DE6 VICES FOR HEARING-IMPAIRED INDIVID7 UALS.

8 Within 6 months after the date of enactment of this

9 Act, the Federal Communications Commission shall report

10 to the Congress on the existing and future use of the FM

11 band to facilitate the use of auditory assistive devices for

12 individuals with hearing impairments. In preparing such

13 report, the Commission shall consider—

14 (1) the potential for utilizing FM band auditory

15 assistive devices to comply with the Americans with

16 Disabilities Act;

17 (2) the impact on such compliance of the vul18 nerability of such devices to harmful interference

19 from radio licensees; and

20 (3) alternative frequency allocations that could

21 facilitate such compliance.

22 SEC. 15. TECHNICAL AMENDMENT.

23 Section 302(d)(1) of the Communications Act of

24 1934 (47 U.S.C. 309(d)(1)) is amended—
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1 (1) in subparagraph (A), by striking ‘‘allocated

2 to the domestic cellular radio telecommunications

3 service’’ and inserting ‘‘utilized to provide commer4 cial mobile service (as defined in section 332(d))’’;

5 and

6 (2) in subparagraph (C), by striking ‘‘cellular’’

7 and inserting ‘‘commercial mobile service’’.

Passed the House of Representatives October 7,

1994.

Attest:

Clerk.

103D CONGRESS

2D SESSION H. R. 4522

AN ACT

To amend the Communications Act of 1934 to exother purposes. Federal Communications Commission, and for tend the authorization of appropriations of the