SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Local Community 
Radio Act of 2010’’. 
SEC. 2. AMENDMENT. 
Section 632 of the Departments of Commerce, Jus-
tice, and State, the Judiciary, and Related Agencies Ap-
propriations Act, 2001 (Public Law 106–553; 114 Stat. 
2762A–111), is amended to read as follows: 
‘‘SEC. 632. (a) The Federal Communications Com-
mission shall modify the rules authorizing the operation 
of low-power FM radio stations, as proposed in MM Dock-
et No. 99–25, to— 
‘‘(1) prescribe protection for co-channels and 
first- and second-adjacent channels; and 
‘‘(2) prohibit any applicant from obtaining a 
low-power FM license if the applicant has engaged 
in any manner in the unlicensed operation of any 
station in violation of section 301 of the Commu-
nications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 301). 
‘‘(b) Any license that was issued by the Federal Com-
munications Commission to a low-power FM station prior 
to April 2, 2001, and that does not comply with the modi-
fications adopted by the Commission in MM Docket No. 
99–25 on April 2, 2001, shall remain invalid.’’.
SEC. 3. MINIMUM DISTANCE SEPARATION REQUIREMENTS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—The Federal Communications 
Commission shall modify its rules to eliminate third-adja-
cent minimum distance separation requirements be-
tween— 
(1) low-power FM stations; and 
(2) full-service FM stations, FM translator sta-
tions, and FM booster stations. 
(b) RESTRICTION.— 
(1) IN
GENERAL.—The Federal Communica-
tions Commission shall not amend its rules to reduce 
the minimum co-channel and first- and second-adja-
cent channel distance separation requirements in ef-
fect on the date of enactment of this Act between— 
(A) low-power FM stations; and 
(B) full-service FM stations. 
(2) WAIVER.— 
(A) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding para-
graph (1), the Federal Communications Com-
mission may grant a waiver of the second-adja-
cent channel distance separation requirement to 
low-power FM stations that establish, using 
methods of predicting interference taking into 
account all relevant factors, including terrain- 
sensitive propagation models, that their pro-
posed operations will not result in interference 
to any authorized radio service. 
(B) REQUIREMENTS.— 
(i) SUSPENSION.—Any low-power FM 
station that receives a waiver under sub-
paragraph (A) shall be required to suspend 
operation immediately upon notification by 
the Federal Communications Commission 
that it is causing interference to the recep-
tion of an existing or modified full-service 
FM station without regard to the location 
of the station receiving interference. 
(ii) 
ELIMINATION
OF
INTER-
FERENCE.—A low-power FM station de-
scribed in clause (i) shall not resume oper-
ation until such interference has been 
eliminated or it can demonstrate to the 
Federal Communications Commission that 
the interference was not due to emissions 
from the low-power FM station, except 
that such station may make short test 
transmissions during the period of sus-
pended operation to check the efficacy of 
remedial measures.
(iii) NOTIFICATION.—Upon receipt of 
a complaint of interference from a low- 
power FM station operating pursuant to a 
waiver authorized under subparagraph (A), 
the Federal Communications Commission 
shall notify the identified low-power FM 
station by telephone or other electronic 
communication within 1 business day. 
SEC. 4. PROTECTION OF RADIO READING SERVICES. 
The Federal Communications Commission shall com-
ply with its existing minimum distance separation require-
ments for full-service FM stations, FM translator stations, 
and FM booster stations that broadcast radio reading 
services via an analog subcarrier frequency to avoid poten-
tial interference by low-power FM stations. 
SEC. 5. ENSURING AVAILABILITY OF SPECTRUM FOR LOW- 
POWER FM STATIONS. 
The Federal Communications Commission, when li-
censing new FM translator stations, FM booster stations, 
and low-power FM stations, shall ensure that— 
(1) licenses are available to FM translator sta-
tions, FM booster stations, and low-power FM sta-
tions; 
(2) such decisions are made based on the needs 
of the local community; and
(3) FM translator stations, FM booster sta-
tions, and low-power FM stations remain equal in 
status and secondary to existing and modified full- 
service FM stations. 
SEC. 6. PROTECTION OF TRANSLATOR INPUT SIGNALS. 
The Federal Communications Commission shall mod-
ify its rules to address the potential for predicted inter-
ference to FM translator input signals on third-adjacent 
channels set forth in section 2.7 of the technical report 
entitled ‘‘Experimental Measurements of the Third-Adja-
cent Channel Impacts of Low-Power FM Stations, Volume 
One—Final Report (May 2003)’’. 
SEC. 7. ENSURING EFFECTIVE REMEDIATION OF INTER-
FERENCE. 
The Federal Communications Commission shall mod-
ify the interference complaint process described in section 
73.810 of its rules (47 CFR 73.810) as follows: 
(1) With respect to those low-power FM sta-
tions licensed at locations that do not satisfy third- 
adjacent channel spacing requirements under section 
73.807 of the Commission’s rules (47 CFR 73.807), 
the Federal Communications Commission shall pro-
vide the same interference protections that FM 
translator stations and FM booster stations are re-
quired to provide as set forth in section 74.1203 of
its rules (47 CFR 74.1203) as in effect on the date 
of enactment of this Act. 
(2) For a period of 1 year after a new low- 
power FM station is constructed on a third-adjacent 
channel, such low-power FM station shall be re-
quired to broadcast periodic announcements that 
alert listeners that interference that they may be ex-
periencing could be the result of the operation of 
such low-power FM station on a third-adjacent 
channel and shall instruct affected listeners to con-
tact such low-power FM station to report any inter-
ference. The Federal Communications Commission 
shall require all newly constructed low-power FM 
stations on third-adjacent channels to— 
(A) notify the Federal Communications 
Commission and all affected stations on third- 
adjacent channels of an interference complaint 
by electronic communication within 48 hours 
after the receipt of such complaint; and 
(B) cooperate in addressing any such in-
terference. 
(3) Low-power FM stations on third-adjacent 
channels shall be required to address complaints of 
interference within the protected contour of an af-
fected station and shall be encouraged to address all
other interference complaints, including complaints 
to the Federal Communications Commission based 
on interference to a full-service FM station, an FM 
translator station, or an FM booster station by the 
transmitter site of a low-power FM station on a 
third-adjacent channel at any distance from the full- 
service FM station, FM translator station, or FM 
booster station. The Federal Communications Com-
mission shall provide notice to the licensee of a low- 
power FM station of the existence of such inter-
ference within 7 calendar days of the receipt of a 
complaint from a listener or another station. 
(4) To the extent possible, the Federal Commu-
nications Commission shall grant low-power FM sta-
tions on third-adjacent channels the technical flexi-
bility to remediate interference through the coloca-
tion of the transmission facilities of the low-power 
FM station and any stations on third-adjacent chan-
nels. 
(5) The Federal Communications Commission 
shall— 
(A) permit the submission of informal evi-
dence of interference, including any engineering 
analysis that an affected station may commis-
sion;
service stations as set forth in section 74.1203 of its 
rules (47 CFR 74.1203) as in effect on the date of 
enactment of this Act. Notwithstanding the provi-
sions of section 74.1203, no interference that arises 
outside the relevant distance for the full-service sta-
tion class specified in the first column titled ‘‘re-
quired’’ for ‘‘Co-channel minimum separation (km)’’ 
in the table listed in section 73.807(a)(1) of the 
Commission’s rules (47 CFR 73.807(a)(1)) shall re-
quire remediation. 
SEC. 8. FCC STUDY ON IMPACT OF LOW-POWER FM STA-
TIONS ON FULL-SERVICE COMMERCIAL FM 
STATIONS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—The Federal Communications 
Commission shall conduct an economic study on the im-
pact that low-power FM stations will have on full-service 
commercial FM stations. 
(b) REPORT.—Not later than 1 year after the date 
of enactment of this Act, the Federal Communications 
Commission shall submit a report to the Committee on 
Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate and 
the Committee on Energy and Commerce of the House 
of Representatives on the study conducted under sub-
section (a).
(c) LICENSING NOT AFFECTED BY STUDY.—Nothing 
in this section shall affect the licensing of new low-power 
FM stations as otherwise permitted under this Act. 
Passed the House of Representatives December 17, 
2010. 
Attest: 
Clerk.
111TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 6533 
AN ACT 
To implement the recommendations of the Federal 
Communications Commission report to the Con-
gress regarding low-power FM service, and for 
other purposes.