I know someone who’s an engineer for an Audacy cluster. There’s a silent LPFM that he wants to buy. The LPFM is silent because it lost its transmitter site, but it could be relocated to one of the Audacy transmitter sites. Assuming he meets the other requirements for owning an LPFM, can he own the station even though he works for Audacy.
-
Get involved.
We want your input!
Apply for Membership and join the conversations about everything related to broadcasting.
After we receive your registration, a moderator will review it. After your registration is approved, you will be permitted to post.
If you use a disposable or false email address, your registration will be rejected.
After your membership is approved, please take a minute to tell us a little bit about yourself.
https://www.radiodiscussions.com/forums/introduce-yourself.1088/
Thanks in advance and have fun!
RadioDiscussions Administrators
LPFM: A Broad Discussion of Stations and Purpose
- Thread starter nd2023
- Start date
LPFMs must be owned by qualified non-profits, so no. No individual can own an LPFM, regardless of their employer.
Audacy may also have something to say about one of their employees simultaneously working for another broadcaster, whether it is an LPFM or not.
Audacy may also have something to say about one of their employees simultaneously working for another broadcaster, whether it is an LPFM or not.
The rule is if you hold a license for another FCC licensed facility you cannot have a LPFM license too. If you work in radio in a non-ownership role, then you are okay and can be a part of a board that holds an LPFM license. Note I said board. LPFMs go to non-profits but if put together properly, you have have a board president/founder pretty much running the show. There are people who have their spouse and kids as board members.
I know some engineers for radio companies who aren't employees, but contractors. If that's the case for your friend, he can do whatever he wants. If he's an employee, he will need to disclose this to his direct supervisor. In any cas, he will not be the licensee, but he will set up a non-profit that will hold the license. Based on what I read, it sounds like he wants to base the transmitter on a company site, so perhaps he's getting the proper permissions. Then the next step is starting a non-profit. I recommend getting a good attorney who can advise setting up the non-profit. The fact that he's familiar with the license should make the transfer quick. I'm a big believer in experienced radio employees building a landing place for the day when the company job goes away. If that's what this is, great!.
More Wild West, anything-goes radio from Houston?
Better than a real non profit leaving their LPFM silent
I would rather have no LPFM station than an LPFM with no true parties in interest and related accountability.
Here's the official response from REC to this question.
(1) First of all, no individual can be an owner of an LPFM station. LPFM stations can only be licensed to noncommercial educational institutions and organizations. No person should ever say that they are the "owner" of an LPFM station (this is a major pet peeve of mine). If they are a board member, they are only a caretaker of the organization, not an owner of the station. 100% of the assets of the station belong to the organization and not any individual.
(2) LPFM was designed for pre-existing nonprofit educational institutions (such as schools and colleges) and educational organizations (human services organizations, causes, churches, ministries, etc.). Any applicant for an LPFM station (either through assignment of an existing license or a new station license) must demonstrate that their organization is truly a nonprofit educational organization with an educational purpose prior to LPFM and that the LPFM radio station will be used to advance that organization's educational program. With that said, there is no minimum period for which an organization has to be established for. (Organizations that have been incorporated and have a local presence for at least two years have an advantage during filing windows for new LPFM stations).
(3) Some states have requirements regarding minimum number of board members. While some states allow nonprofits with one member, some require at least three people.
(4) On the question about an employee of a licensed broadcast station having an attributable interest in an LPFM station, this is permitted as long as all board members do not have an attributable interest in a full-power FM, AM or TV station as well as LPTV. Attributable interest includes anyone with ownership assets or a board membership in an organization that owns a broadcast station. Attributable interest also extends to any employees that have a substantial control and influence over a station's programming. In addition, attributable interest can be extended to immediate family members (spouse, parent, sibling or child) of above said people if such familial interest is being used to circumvent an ownership rule.
(5) The nonprofit organization must be formed and filed with the state prior to filing for either an assignment or a new station. The organization must be in current status (meaning they have filed their annual reports with the state and paid any fees). From an FCC standpoint, organizations are not required to be incorporated in the state that the station is physically located in but can be incorporated in any state, however, state law may require an out of state corporation to register as a foreign corporation in their state in order to conduct business. The FCC does not care about foreign corporation status.
(6) The assignment process takes about 60 to 90 days to complete (sometimes longer if the required educational statement is very weak). Therefore, if the station has been silent for at least 6 months, caution should be observed as once a station has not transmitted a signal for at least 365 consecutive days, the license is cancelled by matter of law (47 USC §312(g)). A construction permit is also required to move the station to a different site. That application can be filed on behalf of the current licensee during the silence period. It is important to remember that the inward party cannot take control of the station until an assignment application has been filed, granted and a consummation notice has been filed by the outward organization.
(7) The inward organization must be local meaning that either 75% of the board members or their headquarters (primary place of business) must permanently reside within 20 miles of the transmitting site (10 miles if the transmitting site is physically located in a county or other area that is designated as a Nielsen Audio Top-50 market).
REC can assist with the whole assignment and site move process.
(1) First of all, no individual can be an owner of an LPFM station. LPFM stations can only be licensed to noncommercial educational institutions and organizations. No person should ever say that they are the "owner" of an LPFM station (this is a major pet peeve of mine). If they are a board member, they are only a caretaker of the organization, not an owner of the station. 100% of the assets of the station belong to the organization and not any individual.
(2) LPFM was designed for pre-existing nonprofit educational institutions (such as schools and colleges) and educational organizations (human services organizations, causes, churches, ministries, etc.). Any applicant for an LPFM station (either through assignment of an existing license or a new station license) must demonstrate that their organization is truly a nonprofit educational organization with an educational purpose prior to LPFM and that the LPFM radio station will be used to advance that organization's educational program. With that said, there is no minimum period for which an organization has to be established for. (Organizations that have been incorporated and have a local presence for at least two years have an advantage during filing windows for new LPFM stations).
(3) Some states have requirements regarding minimum number of board members. While some states allow nonprofits with one member, some require at least three people.
(4) On the question about an employee of a licensed broadcast station having an attributable interest in an LPFM station, this is permitted as long as all board members do not have an attributable interest in a full-power FM, AM or TV station as well as LPTV. Attributable interest includes anyone with ownership assets or a board membership in an organization that owns a broadcast station. Attributable interest also extends to any employees that have a substantial control and influence over a station's programming. In addition, attributable interest can be extended to immediate family members (spouse, parent, sibling or child) of above said people if such familial interest is being used to circumvent an ownership rule.
(5) The nonprofit organization must be formed and filed with the state prior to filing for either an assignment or a new station. The organization must be in current status (meaning they have filed their annual reports with the state and paid any fees). From an FCC standpoint, organizations are not required to be incorporated in the state that the station is physically located in but can be incorporated in any state, however, state law may require an out of state corporation to register as a foreign corporation in their state in order to conduct business. The FCC does not care about foreign corporation status.
(6) The assignment process takes about 60 to 90 days to complete (sometimes longer if the required educational statement is very weak). Therefore, if the station has been silent for at least 6 months, caution should be observed as once a station has not transmitted a signal for at least 365 consecutive days, the license is cancelled by matter of law (47 USC §312(g)). A construction permit is also required to move the station to a different site. That application can be filed on behalf of the current licensee during the silence period. It is important to remember that the inward party cannot take control of the station until an assignment application has been filed, granted and a consummation notice has been filed by the outward organization.
(7) The inward organization must be local meaning that either 75% of the board members or their headquarters (primary place of business) must permanently reside within 20 miles of the transmitting site (10 miles if the transmitting site is physically located in a county or other area that is designated as a Nielsen Audio Top-50 market).
REC can assist with the whole assignment and site move process.
That may have been the 'design,' but it's not the law. I can form an educational foundation built around the love and furtherment of heavy metal music, with Ozzie Osborne as my patron saint. There are lots of LPFMs around the country owned by 'foundations' led by boomers who are just playing their favorite music all day long. Nothing illegal about it. Meanwhile there are lots of churches that have LPFM licenses that are silent.
As long as they can make a showing during the application process that they will provide programming that will "instruct" or "teach". Stations can also provide program schedules and/or program descriptions that show how various programs would instruct or teach. They are not obligated to carry such programs, but the requirement for the showing that the station will be used to advance an educational program does exist. This is a formality that goes back to the early days of the service when only school systems would be eligible for NCE. As long as a statement makes such a showing, then it can move forward. We have seen attempts where the applicant just states that they plan to play music and provide news for a particular area. These types of educational statements go nowhere.
One point I forgot to mention in my previous response from earlier today. For assignments, consideration is limited to the value of the equipment and any construction costs that the proposed assignee will enjoy. Under the recently changed rules, the assignor can recover what they spent on capital expenses such as the purchase of a transmitter, EAS, studio equipment, etc. Therefore, if the assignor paid $3,500 for a transmitter, they can recover $3,500. If they received the transmitter as a donation, they cannot recover. They cannot recover periodic expenses such as rent, electricity and music licensing costs. Also, there must be some tangible equipment included in an assignment as the FCC will not assign a "bare license" (just the license and no equipment), even at zero dollars.
As you know, I'm not a fan of LPFM, but would like some clarity on this statement: Are you saying the LPFM is the new NCE? Or are you saying that a potential applicant would stand a better chance of having an application approved if the organization was an NCE?
Again, I'm struggling with this statement. The Commission doesn't regulate programming, provided it doesn't contain obscene or 'objectionable' content under the rules. Are you saying that by presenting a sample schedule that includes educational programming, that's the only chance for an LPFM application to be considered?
Interesting. So pretty much all the non-school-stations, or with no religious-teaching affiliation, have potentially used fraudulent pretenses during the application process to obtain LPFM licenses?
Uh! The community radio movement is at least 50 years old. These stations are comprised of a group of citizens who want to bring an alternative to commercial radio. WAIF in Cincinnati is one example of community radio. You don't have to be a church or school to get an NCE or LPFM license. For those who need to learn about community radio, read the book Sex And Broadcasting.
However, those of us in this cause are now over 65 years old. Maybe 80? And schools are dumping radio. So, I suspect consultants will be preparing mostly Christian radio applications in the next FCC filing windows.
However, those of us in this cause are now over 65 years old. Maybe 80? And schools are dumping radio. So, I suspect consultants will be preparing mostly Christian radio applications in the next FCC filing windows.
Except for governments/tribes, an LPFM station may be licensed only to local "nonprofit educational organizations" [1]. So, yes, LPFM is an NCE service.
They must include a showing that the station will be used for the advancement of an educational program [1]. A sample schedule is just an example of an acceptable showing.
If they don't follow through on their pledge to provide programming to be used for the advancement of some type of education, my opinion is that, yes, they used fraudulent pretenses to obtain a license, and they likely conclude that the FCC can not enforce this law. It's certainly not ethical.
Driving through the desert recently, I found an LPFM that was just someone's jukebox, running commercials (sponsorships with qualitative information and prices), with zero educational value. It really made me cringe. My understanding through research and experience is that this is common with LPFM stations.
Source:
[1] - 47 CFR 73.853
Well that's certainly enlightening. All these sandbox radio hobbyists who don't qualify as educational institutions, basically lied in the application process? If so, there are a lot of fraudulent LPFM's around. Another reason not to like LPFM very much.
It would be interesting to go back and get a sample of various applications for LPFM's who have never actually been affiliated- with or licensed as an educational institution, and subsequently never programmed any educational programming on their LPFM. Not only file a complaint with the Commission, but send inquiries to Congress, that these people fraudulently obtained federal licenses to operate (albeit sandbox) radio stations.
Hmm, I wonder what the percentage is of LPFM's who have/are fraudulently claimed their qualifications as NCE's, to ultimately operate stations as some 'community resource' playing their favorite music? I'll bet it's a fairly high percentage.
If I had the time, this would be a fun project. Get some politicians up in arms, that these jukeboxes have lied to the government, or something like that. Anytime members of Congress send inquiries to the Commission, it always seems to get a reaction.
The FCC says that it's only for local "nonprofit educational organizations", so the 'educational' part needs to be addressed in their incorporation/formation papers. If there's no educational component, then there's a gap between what the organization is applying for and what the FCC lays out in eligibility requirements.
It doesn't say anywhere that it needs to be (or affiliated with) an educational 'institution', just an educational 'organization'. However, they're charged with providing educational programming, so if they're not providing that, they are not providing the service they were given a license to provide.
In my experience, most LPFMs who have actually provided a service to the community (including education) have graduated to full power NCE. I'm sure there are exceptions to that, but they're hard to find, perhaps in exurb areas.
And if indeed the original purpose for LPFM was always essentially school-stations, that makes perfect sense. These radio sandbox dwellers that are using it for 'playing radio', should be exposed, and their licenses stripped.
Want to play radio with the big boys? Get out your checkbook folks and put your money where your microphone is. There are lots of stations for sale at great prices.