PUBLIC NOTICE Federal Communications Commission 445 12 th St., S.W. Washington, D.C. 20554 News Media Information 202 / 418-0500 Internet: http://www.fcc.gov TTY: 1-888-835-5322 DA 17-635 Released: June 29, 2017 EFFECTIVE DATE ANNOUNCED FOR REVISIONS TO PUBLIC INSPECTION FILE REQUIREMENTS – BROADCASTER CORRESPONDENCE FILE AND CABLE PRINCIPAL HEADEND MB Docket No. 16-161 FCC 17-3 On January 31, 2017, the Commission adopted a Report and Order in MB Docket No. 16-161 eliminating two public inspection file requirements: (i) the requirement that commercial broadcast stations retain in their public inspection file copies of letters and emails from the public; and (ii) the requirement that cable operators maintain for public inspection the designation and location of the cable system’s principal headend. 1 On March 24, 2017 and May 25, 2017, the Office of Management and Budget (“OMB”) approved the Commission’s Paperwork Reduction Act (“PRA”) submissions associated with changes to the broadcaster correspondence file and cable principal headend rules adopted in the Public Inspection File Report and Order. Today, the Federal Register published OMB’s approval, 2 and the effective date of these rule changes will be June 29, 2017. Removing these requirements will enable commercial broadcasters and cable operators to make their entire public inspection file available online and eliminate the need to maintain a local public file. We remind cable operators that because principal headend location information must be accessible to the Commission, broadcast television stations, and franchisors, cable operators must provide principal headend location information to these entities upon request. 3 In lieu of responding to individual requests for such information, operators may alternatively elect voluntarily to include this information in the Commission’s online public inspection file (“OPIF”) database, 4 which will result in this information being publicly available. Due to the elimination of the correspondence file, the Commission also determined in the Public 1 Revisions to Public Inspection File Requirements – Broadcaster Correspondence File and Cable Principal Headend Location, Report and Order, 32 FCC Rcd 1565 (2017) (“Public Inspection File Report and Order”). 2 See 82 FR 29438 (June 29, 2017). 3 Id. at 1573, paras 20 - 21. 4 Id. at para 20. Inspection File Report and Order that commercial TV licensees will no longer be required to file a summary of correspondence received regarding violent programming with their license renewal application. 5 The Commission’s current license renewal application, FCC Form 303-S, directs commercial TV and Class A TV applicants to submit a summary of written communications received from the public regarding violent programming. 6 Changes to FCC Form 303-S to remove the requirement for this summary must be approved by OMB pursuant to the PRA. This approval has not yet been received. Once OMB approval is received, the Media Bureau will issue a Public Notice announcing the availability of the revised form. In the meantime, renewal applicants must continue to submit a summary of communications regarding violent programming with their renewal application. For additional information regarding public inspection file requirements, contact Kim Matthews, kim.matthews@fcc.gov, (202) 418-2154, of the Media Bureau, Policy Division. 5 Id. at 1571-72, para. 16. 6 See FCC Form 303-S at p. 5 and instructions at p. 25.