FCC Bureau Deletes 2,048 Proceedings, Keeps 9 Others Alive
The FCC Consumer and Governmental Affairs Bureau on Wednesday terminated 2,048 inactive proceedings while leaving open nine that had been looked at for possible closure. An FCC proposal to delete dormant dockets got support from many commenters earlier this year, though with scattered calls to preserve several of them (see 2507100018). Most of the dockets spared have had little recent activity.
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The bureau acted based on a 2011 order that instructed it to coordinate with other responsible bureaus and offices “to conduct periodic review of all open dockets with the objective of terminating those that were inactive.”
Proceedings that won’t be closed, for now, include those on the “revitalization” of the AM radio service (docket 13-249) and on promoting diversity of ownership in the broadcast service (docket 07-294). The last filing of substance in the latter docket was by the Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists in 2022.
Among the other proceedings left open were:
- Docket 19-155, which deals with Geophysical Survey Systems' request for a waiver of commission rules for ultra-wideband ground-penetrating radar devices to allow the certification and marketing of a new device it's developing (see 2505280052).
- Docket 15-99, which covers proposed rule changes from the World Radiocommunication Conference in 2012 and examines allocating the 4400-4940 MHz band to aeronautical mobile radio service for aeronautical mobile telemetry in support of flight testing.
- Docket 17-317, which examines giving MVPDs greater leeway in providing electronic notice to subscribers.
- RM-11858, a controversial proposal to allow originating programming on FM translators, on which the FCC took comment five years ago (see 2007240065).
- Docket 21-79 on amending the commission's rules implementing the Privacy Act of 1974. The FCC released an NPRM in 2021, but there have been only two filings on the topic, the last more than four years ago.
“By closing dormant proceedings, the FCC can help provide the regulatory certainty needed for investments and deployments in communities across the country,” said Chairman Brendan Carr.