The FCC Media Bureau dismissed an application for review by Puerto Rico Public Broadcasting Corp. on a denial of an application to construct a new FM station at Mayaguez, P.R. The bureau had originally found the proposed station would violate commission rules by causing interference to an existing noncommercial educational station, the bureau said in a memorandum opinion and order Wednesday (http://bit.ly/PujaN1). It denied PRPBC’s waiver request. “With respect to PRPBC’s offering its mission and its relationship with the government as potential grounds for a waiver, PRPBC did not make this argument in its original waiver request,” the bureau said.

The FCC Media Bureau denied an application for review of its denial of Entravision’s petition for reconsideration. The radio broadcaster had urged the FCC to dismiss Able Radio’s application for a new FM construction permit for a station in Aguila, Ariz., the bureau said in a memorandum opinion and order Wednesday (http://bit.ly/PuhKSy). Entravision said Able failed to obtain reasonable assurance of site availability and it didn’t prosecute the application, the bureau said. The bureau said Able adequately prosecuted the application and that the case doesn’t involve a dispute about the availability of the site identified in Able’s Form 301 when that form was filed.

Howard Stirk Holdings (HSH) applied for the first waiver under new FCC attribution rules for joint sales agreements, in a request filed Wednesday (http://bit.ly/1tDIIYh). HSH wants the waiver to let it acquire WMMP Charleston, S.C., WABM(TV) Birmingham, Ala., and WLYH Lancaster, Pa., as part of Sinclair’s paying almost $1 billion to buy Allbritton Communications’ TV stations. Before the text of the new JSA rules was issued, HSH had asked the Media Bureau to confirm (CD April 17 p14) that it would receive such a waiver, but no decision had been issued. HSH had been set to acquire those stations before the bureau issued its new guidelines on deals involving JSAs. After the guidance that was seen as cracking down on JSAs in TV deals, Sinclair said it would restructure the Allbritton deal to sell the stations to a third party and avoid running afoul of new scrutiny on JSAs. If the commission waives the rules for HSH, Sinclair will consent to sell HSH the stations and enter into sharing arrangements, HSH said. “Armstrong Williams, through HSH, will control these Stations.” That control “will clearly serve the public interest,” said HSH. Those benefits include increased public affairs programming and an internship program “targeted at young minority students interested in the technical side of the television business.” Williams is one of the only African-American full-power TV station owners in the country, said HSH.

The FCC Media Bureau approved Hoak Media’s sale of four TV stations to Nexstar, said an order released Wednesday (http://bit.ly/1l2wJj9). The four stations are in Colorado KREG-TV Glenwood Springs, KREY-TV Montrose, KREX-TV Grand Junction, and WMBB Panama City, Fla. The deal is part of a larger $300 million transaction between Gray Television and Hoak (CD April 7 p15).

The FCC Media Bureau extended the comment deadline for the proceeding on whether to eliminate or modify broadcast network non-duplication and syndicated exclusivity rules. Comments are due June 26, replies July 24, the FCC said in a public notice (http://bit.ly/1txWgVj). The deadline originally was May 12 (CD April 11 p15). NAB requested an extension to do needed research and analysis (CD April 21 p17). The bureau believes granting NAB’s request “is necessary to facilitate the development of a full record,” it said.

Howard Stirk Holdings (HSH) continued to urge the FCC to grant it a waiver of joint shared agreement attribution rules, to acquire TV stations in connection with Sinclair’s acquisition of the Allbritton Television Group. HSH opposed a letter from Free Press that cautioned the FCC against responding to HSH’s request. Without a thorough review of HSH and Sinclair’s financial relationship, “it would be impossible for the bureau to respond to HSH’s request,” Free Press said in its letter (http://bit.ly/1qFcERw). No misdirection by Free Press will alter the fact that HSH and its owner, Armstrong Williams, have records of public service and program control at WMMB-TV Myrtle Beach, S.C., and WEYI-TV Flint, Mich., “that properly support a waiver in the public interest here,” HSH said in a filing in docket 13-203 (http://bit.ly/1flgo3E). HSH sought the waiver after Sinclair proposed to end a proposed deal to let HSH buy WMMP-TV Charleston, S.C., because of changing FCC interpretation of the appropriateness of stations sharing resources (CD April 20 p20).

GatesAir urged the FCC to work with broadcasters to adopt reasonable policies that help broadcasters ensure that viewers won’t experience unnecessary disruptions after the spectrum incentive auctions take place. The timelines proposed in the order “must be modified with the goal of minimizing disruption to broadcasters and viewers alike,” the broadcast equipment provider said in comments filed in docket 12-268 (http://bit.ly/1mwg7T4). “There simply is no way to rebuild the facilities of several hundred stations nationwide, as the commission is contemplating, in 39 months.” The comments pertain to a public notice on a report from Widelity outlining additional expense categories (CD March 21 p11). The report is comprehensive and based on sound engineering, but the report does have limitations, GatesAir said. While the case studies serve as a useful illustration of how a transition may occur at different sites, “they do not provide ... an accurate assessment of the time required for a simultaneous national transition,” it said.

The FCC’s Widelity Report on the costs of the post-incentive auction repacking effort leaves too many “critical questions” unanswered for broadcasters to provide “meaningful comments,” said NAB in comments filed in docket 12-268 Monday (http://bit.ly/1i8ZlBN). Though the report echoed many of NAB’s earlier comments about the scope of repacking expenses and the timing issues of the large undertaking, it doesn’t address the specifics of how the FCC will use the $1.75 billion reimbursement fund and who will be eligible to receive those funds, NAB said. “The larger point is that the Commission must begin to address significant unanswered questions surrounding the plan and process for relocation and reimbursement,” said NAB. Many of the questions NAB wants answers to concern the nuts and bolts of how stations will be reimbursed and how the catalog of reimbursable expenses will be used in conjunction with the reimbursement fund. The FCC should clarify the catalog “is intended only to provide non-exhaustive guidance to affected stations,” and begin a “notice-and-comment rulemaking process” on the unanswered questions of the repacking “at the earliest opportunity,” NAB said.

FCC agents and the office of U.S. Attorney Carmen Ortiz seized equipment from three Massachusetts pirate radio operators, the FCC said in a news release (http://bit.ly/1msFouP). The stations, operating from Everett, Mattapan, Brockton and Boston, allegedly operated without FCC licenses, Ortiz’s office said in a separate news release (http://1.usa.gov/1ttnLiK). One station operated from multiple locations, it said. Forfeiture actions were brought after complaints were received, “including a complaint from a licensed broadcaster about interference with its radio signal,” it said. Federal officials seized the equipment last week from the stations using frequencies 100.1 MHz, 106.1 MHz, and 88.7 MHz, it said.

The FCC Media Bureau approved a change in community of license for WTKV(FM) Oswego, N.Y., causing the bureau to deem its application for review (AFR) moot. WTKV owner Galaxy Communications placed itself into compliance with the local radio ownership rule, after the bureau dismissed its AFR to modify the community of license due to Galaxy’s failure to comply with the rule, the bureau said in an order (http://fcc.us/1iDGoeV). Galaxy came to comply with the rule after it divested its interests in two FM stations in the Syracuse Arbitron Metro Survey Area, the bureau said.