II 

Calendar No. 659 

117TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 3405 

To require the Federal Communications Commission to issue a rule providing 

that certain low power television stations may be accorded primary status 

as Class A television licensees, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

DECEMBER 15, 2021 

Mr. BLUNT (for himself, Mr. WYDEN, Ms. KLOBUCHAR, Mrs. FISCHER, Mr. 

TESTER, and Mr. CRUZ) introduced the following bill; which was read 

twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation 

DECEMBER 15, 2022 

Reported by Ms. CANTWELL, with an amendment 

[Insert the part printed in italic] 

A BILL 

To require the Federal Communications Commission to issue 

a rule providing that certain low power television stations 

may be accorded primary status as Class A television 

licensees, 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, 


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1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

2 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Low Power Protection 

3 Act’’. 

4 SEC. 2. LOW POWER TV STATIONS. 

5 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section— 

6 (1) the term ‘‘Commission’’ means the Federal 

7 Communications Commission; 

8 (2) the term ‘‘Designated Market Area’’ 

9 means— 

10 (A) a Designated Market Area determined 

11 by Nielsen Media Research or any successor en12 tity; or 

13 (B) a Designated Market Area under a 

14 system of dividing television broadcast station 

15 licensees into local markets using a system that 

16 the Commission determines is equivalent to the 

17 system established by Nielsen Media Research; 

18 and 

19 (3) the term ‘‘low power TV station’’ has the 

20 meaning given the term ‘‘digital low power TV sta21 tion’’ in section 74.701 of title 47, Code of Federal 

22 Regulations, or any successor regulation. 

23 (b) PURPOSE.—The purpose of this section is to pro24 vide low power TV stations with a limited window of op25 portunity to apply for the opportunity to be accorded pri26 mary status as Class A television licensees. 


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1 (c) RULEMAKING.— 

2 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 90 days after 

3 the date of enactment of this Act, the Commission 

4 shall issue a notice of proposed rulemaking to issue 

5 a rule that contains the requirements described in 

6 this subsection. 

7 (2) REQUIREMENTS.— 

8 (A) IN GENERAL.—The rule with respect 

9 to which the Commission is required to issue 

10 notice under paragraph (1) shall provide that, 

11 during the 1-year period beginning on the date 

12 on which that rule takes effect, a low power TV 

13 station may apply to the Commission to be ac14 corded primary status as a Class A television li15 censee under section 73.6001 of title 47, Code 

16 of Federal Regulations, or any successor regula17 tion. 

18 (B) CONSIDERATIONS.—The Commission 

19 may approve an application submitted under 

20 subparagraph (A) if the low power TV station 

21 submitting the application— 

22 (i) satisfies— 

23 (I) section 336(f)(2) of the Com24 munications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 

25 336(f)(2)) and the rules issued under 


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1 that section, including the require2 ments under such section 336(f)(2) 

3 with respect to locally produced pro4 gramming, except that, for the pur5 poses of this subclause, the period de6 scribed in the matter preceding sub7 clause (I) of subparagraph (A)(i) of 

8 such section 336(f)(2) shall be con9 strued to be the 90-day period pre10 ceding the date of enactment of this 

11 Act; and 

12 (II) paragraphs (b), (c), and (d) 

13 of 73.6001 of title 47, Code of Fed14 eral Regulations, or any successor 

15 regulation; 

16 (ii) demonstrates to the Commission 

17 that the Class A station for which the li18 cense is sought will not cause any inter19 ference described in section 336(f)(7) of 

20 the Communications Act of 1934 (47 

21 U.S.C. 336(f)(7)); and 

22 (iii) as of the date of enactment of 

23 this Act, operates in a Designated Market 

24 Area with not more than 95,000 television 

25 households. 


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1 (3) APPLICABILITY OF LICENSE.—A license 

2 that accords primary status as a Class A television 

3 licensee to a low power TV station as a result of the 

4 rule with respect to which the Commission is re5 quired to issue notice under paragraph (1) shall— 

6 (A) be subject to the same license terms 

7 and renewal standards as a license for a full 

8 power television broadcast station, except as 

9 otherwise expressly provided in this subsection; 

10 and 

11 (B) require the low power TV station to 

12 remain in compliance with paragraph (2)(B) 

13 during the term of the license. 

14 (d) REPORTING.—Not later than 1 year after the 

15 date of enactment of this Act, the Commission shall sub16 mit to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Trans17 portation of the Senate and the Committee on Energy and 

18 Commerce of the House of Representatives a report re19 garding the implementation of this section, which shall in20 clude— 

21 (1) a list of the current, as of the date on which 

22 the report is submitted, licensees that have been ac23 corded primary status as Class A television licensees; 

24 and 


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1 (2) of the licensees described in paragraph (1), 

2 an identification of each such licensee that has been 

3 accorded the status described in that paragraph be4 cause of the implementation of this section. 

5 (e) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this section 

6 may be construed to affect a decision of the Commission 

7 relating to completion of the transition, relocation, or reim8 bursement of entities as a result of the systems of competi9 tive bidding conducted pursuant to title VI of the Middle 

10 Class Tax Relief and Job Creation Act of 2012 (47 U.S.C. 

11 1401 et seq.), and the amendments made by that title, that 

12 are collectively commonly referred to as the ‘‘Television 

13 Broadcast Incentive Auction’’. 


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Calendar No. 659 

117TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 3405 

A BILL 

To require the Federal Communications Commisfor other purposes. mary status as Class A television licensees, and power television stations may be accorded pri- sion to issue a rule providing that certain low 

DECEMBER 15, 2022 

Reported with an amendment 


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