Source: https://law.justia.com/cases/federal/appellate-courts/F2/480/1288/31989/
Timestamp: 2019-11-16 21:16:43
Document Index: 422645037

Matched Legal Cases: ['§ 326', '§ 553', '§ 326', '§ 303', '§ 303', '§ 153', 'art 97', '§ 405']

Herman Gross and Reuben E. Gross, Petitioners, v. Federal Communications Commission and United States Ofamerica, Respondents, 480 F.2d 1288 (2d Cir. 1973) :: Justia
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Herman Gross and Reuben E. Gross, Petitioners, v. Federal Communications Commission and United States Ofamerica, Respondents, 480 F.2d 1288 (2d Cir. 1973)
U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit - 480 F.2d 1288 (2d Cir. 1973) Argued April 11, 1973. Decided June 13, 1973
The sole issue properly before us on this petition to review a newly promulgated regulation of the Federal Communications Commission, 47 C.F.R. Sec. 97.114(c) (1972), which prohibits use of amateur radio station facilities for transmission of business communications, is whether the regulation violates the freedom of speech provision of the First Amendment and the anti-censorship provision of Section 326 of the Federal Communications Act, 47 U.S.C. § 326 (1970). We hold that it does not.
Petitioners Herman and Reuben E. Gross, holders of amateur radio station licenses, seek review of an FCC Report and Order, 37 Fed.Reg. 21997, to the extent that it promulgated Section 97.114(c)1 of a new FCC regulation, 47 C.F.R. Sec. 97.114(c) (1972), effective December 1, 1972, which prohibits transmission of business messages for third parties in the Amateur Radio Service (ARS).2 Promulgation of the new regulation followed standard rule making procedure prescribed by the Administrative Procedure Act, 5 U.S.C. § 553 (1970), including requirements as to notice and public participation.
Among the 75 comments received, was one from petitioner Reuben E. Gross. By letter dated July 21, 1971, he contended that the FCC "has no power to censor or regulate the contents of communications unless the messages are anti-social in nature, i. e. criminal, libelous, inflammatory, obscene, etc."; that " [a]ny regulation therefore, whether by way of total proscription or limitation of content of messages, may be ultra vires this Commission"; and that the "proceeding should be dismissed on the ground that the content of messages of an innocent or meritorious nature are not a proper subject of censorship or regulation by [the] Commission."
The upshot of the change reflected in Section 97.114(c)4 was to effect a compromise between total prohibition of third party traffic and total allowance of third party traffic. The FCC recognized that total prohibition would be inconsistent with the expressed purpose of " [r]ecognition and enhancement of the value of the amateur service to the public as a voluntary noncommercial communication service." 47 C.F.R. Sec. 97.1(a) (1972). On the other hand, total allowance would produce unmanageable congestion in the amateur frequency bands. The solution adopted was to prohibit only commercial messages which had long been considered inappropriate in the ARS, although not expressly forbidden. As a result of the rule change, public service organizations such as the Eye Bank and American Red Cross are able to use ARS facilities except for communications which facilitate the regular business or commercial affairs of those organizations.
With this background, we turn directly to the only issue properly before us on this petition to review.5 II.
Petitioners' free speech and anti-censorship claim essentially is that the FCC has violated the First Amendment and Section 326 of the Federal Communications Act, 47 U.S.C. § 326 (1970), by restricting, without sufficient justification, the content of transmissions from ARS stations.
At the outset, it should be noted that Section 303(a) and (b) of the Act, 47 U.S.C. § 303(a) and (b) (1970), authorizes the FCC to " [c]lassify radio stations" and to " [p]rescribe the nature of the service to be rendered by each class of licensed stations and each station within any class". Petitioners nevertheless contend that the FCC is prohibited from restricting the content of messages transmitted within a class of service. This contention ignores the stringent technological limits on the availability of radio frequencies.6 As Justice Frankfurter succinctly described the problem thirty years ago:
Since the early 1920's the demands for spectrum space always have exceeded the supply. As a result, it has been necessary to determine which uses of radio will be permitted, to allocate specific frequencies to such uses, and to prohibit transmissions over these frequencies clearly inconsistent with such uses. Public policy of course requires that such allocation and restriction be done on a rational basis. Congress has prescribed "public convenience, interest or necessity" as the applicable standard. 47 U.S.C. § 303. In the instant case, the issue before us involves the authority of the FCC to limit the content of transmissions over particular frequencies so that these frequencies can serve the public interest.
We have held that the FCC can prohibit a certain type of conversation over a particular frequency where the alternative would be to deny to many intended users any access to the frequency. Lafayette Radio Electronics Corp. v. United States, 345 F.2d 278 (2 Cir. 1965). In Lafayette, as here, a new FCC regulation was challenged on the ground that it violated the First Amendment and Section 326 of the Act. The regulation provided that a Citizens radio station shall not be used " [f]or engaging in radio communications as a hobby or diversion, i. e., operating the radio station as an activity in and of itself." Petitioners argued that, since a Citizens radio station is available to all citizens for personal and business activities generally, citizens must be permitted to say whatever they please. We rejected this claim. We pointed out that the Citizens Radio Service differs from broadcast and common carrier services in that frequencies must be shared because of the large number of users. We noted the great number of licensees using a small number of frequencies. We then held:
The Amateur Radio Service (ARS) has long been recognized by Congress, 47 U.S.C. § 153(q) (1970), by the FCC, 47 C.F.R. Part 97 (1972), and by our Court, Lafayette Radio Electronics Corp. v. United States, 345 F.2d 278, 280 (2 Cir. 1965). Much of the highly developed radio communication technology existing today is the result of advances and discoveries made by amateur radio enthusiasts during the past 70 years. They have provided service to the public in times of disaster and emergency. The FCC has allocated parts of the radio spectrum to the ARS. The FCC's regulatory scheme for the ARS uniformly has provided that its communications be noncommercial in nature and that only licensed amateur operators may obtain station licenses and use the facilities of amateur stations. These considerations provide the underpinning for the new regulation here under review
We have carefully examined the sundry other grounds upon which petitioners seek for the first time on the instant petition to review to challenge Section 97.114(c). Clearly petitioners are barred by 47 U.S.C. § 405 (1970) from raising in this Court questions which were not raised before the Commission in the first instance or in a petition for reconsideration. See Cornell University v. United States and FCC, 427 F.2d 680, 684 (2 Cir. 1970); Conley Electronics Corp. v. FCC, 394 F.2d 620, 624 (10 Cir. 1968), cert. denied, 393 U.S. 858 (1968). This bar precluding judicial review of issues that the FCC has not had the initial opportunity to consider is not a mere technicality. It is grounded on sound policy reasons