From the U.S. Code Online via GPO Access
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[Laws in effect as of January 7, 2003]
[Document not affected by Public Laws enacted between
  January 7, 2003 and December 19, 2003]
[CITE: 47USC303]

 
          TITLE 47--TELEGRAPHS, TELEPHONES, AND RADIOTELEGRAPHS
 
                 CHAPTER 5--WIRE OR RADIO COMMUNICATION
 
          SUBCHAPTER III--SPECIAL PROVISIONS RELATING TO RADIO
 
                       Part I--General Provisions
 
Sec. 303. Powers and duties of Commission

    Except as otherwise provided in this chapter, the Commission from 
time to time, as public convenience, interest, or necessity requires, 
shall--
    (a) Classify radio stations;
    (b) Prescribe the nature of the service to be rendered by each class 
of licensed stations and each station within any class;
    (c) Assign bands of frequencies to the various classes of stations, 
and assign frequencies for each individual station and determine the 
power which each station shall use and the time during which it may 
operate;
    (d) Determine the location of classes of stations or individual 
stations;
    (e) Regulate the kind of apparatus to be used with respect to its 
external effects and the purity and sharpness of the emissions from each 
station and from the apparatus therein;
    (f) Make such regulations not inconsistent with law as it may deem 
necessary to prevent interference between stations and to carry out the 
provisions of this chapter: Provided, however, That changes in the 
frequencies, authorized power, or in the times of operation of any 
station, shall not be made without the consent of the station licensee 
unless the Commission shall determine that such changes will promote 
public convenience or interest or will serve public necessity, or the 
provisions of this chapter will be more fully complied with;
    (g) Study new uses for radio, provide for experimental uses of 
frequencies, and generally encourage the larger and more effective use 
of radio in the public interest;
    (h) Have authority to establish areas or zones to be served by any 
station;
    (i) Have authority to make special regulations applicable to radio 
stations engaged in chain broadcasting;
    (j) Have authority to make general rules and regulations requiring 
stations to keep such records of programs, transmissions of energy, 
communications, or signals as it may deem desirable;
    (k) Have authority to exclude from the requirements of any 
regulations in whole or in part any radio station upon railroad rolling 
stock, or to modify such regulations in its discretion;
    (l)(1) Have authority to prescribe the qualifications of station 
operators, to classify them according to the duties to be performed, to 
fix the forms of such licenses, and to issue them to persons who are 
found to be qualified by the Commission and who otherwise are legally 
eligible for employment in the United States, except that such 
requirement relating to eligibility for employment in the United States 
shall not apply in the case of licenses issued by the Commission to (A) 
persons holding United States pilot certificates; or (B) persons holding 
foreign aircraft pilot certificates which are valid in the United 
States, if the foreign government involved has entered into a reciprocal 
agreement under which such foreign government does not impose any 
similar requirement relating to eligibility for employment upon citizens 
of the United States;
    (2) Notwithstanding paragraph (1) of this subsection, an individual 
to whom a radio station is licensed under the provisions of this chapter 
may be issued an operator's license to operate that station.
    (3) In addition to amateur operator licenses which the Commission 
may issue to aliens pursuant to paragraph (2) of this subsection, and 
notwithstanding section 301 of this title and paragraph (1) of this 
subsection, the Commission may issue authorizations, under such 
conditions and terms as it may prescribe, to permit an alien licensed by 
his government as an amateur radio operator to operate his amateur radio 
station licensed by his government in the United States, its 
possessions, and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico provided there is in 
effect a multilateral or bilateral agreement, to which the United States 
and the alien's government are parties, for such operation on a 
reciprocal basis by United States amateur radio operators. Other 
provisions of this chapter and of subchapter II of chapter 5, and 
chapter 7, of title 5 shall not be applicable to any request or 
application for or modification, suspension, or cancellation of any such 
authorization.
    (m)(1) Have authority to suspend the license of any operator upon 
proof sufficient to satisfy the Commission that the licensee--
        (A) has violated, or caused, aided, or abetted the violation of, 
    any provision of any Act, treaty, or convention binding on the 
    United States, which the Commission is authorized to administer, or 
    any regulation made by the Commission under any such Act, treaty, or 
    convention; or
        (B) has failed to carry out a lawful order of the master or 
    person lawfully in charge of the ship or aircraft on which he is 
    employed; or
        (C) has willfully damaged or permitted radio apparatus or 
    installations to be damaged; or
        (D) has transmitted superfluous radio communications or signals 
    or communications containing profane or obscene words, language, or 
    meaning, or has knowingly transmitted--
            (1) false or deceptive signals or communications, or
            (2) a call signal or letter which has not been assigned by 
        proper authority to the station he is operating; or

        (E) has willfully or maliciously interfered with any other radio 
    communications or signals; or
        (F) has obtained or attempted to obtain, or has assisted another 
    to obtain or attempt to obtain, an operator's license by fraudulent 
    means.

    (2) No order of suspension of any operator's license shall take 
effect until fifteen days' notice in writing thereof, stating the cause 
for the proposed suspension, has been given to the operator licensee who 
may make written application to the Commission at any time within said 
fifteen days for a hearing upon such order. The notice to the operator 
licensee shall not be effective until actually received by him, and from 
that time he shall have fifteen days in which to mail the said 
application. In the event that physical conditions prevent mailing of 
the application at the expiration of the fifteen-day period, the 
application shall then be mailed as soon as possible thereafter, 
accompanied by a satisfactory explanation of the delay. Upon receipt by 
the Commission of such application for hearing, said order of suspension 
shall be held in abeyance until the conclusion of the hearing which 
shall be conducted under such rules as the Commission may prescribe. 
Upon the conclusion of said hearing the Commission may affirm, modify, 
or revoke said order of suspension.
    (n) Have authority to inspect all radio installations associated 
with stations required to be licensed by any Act, or which the 
Commission by rule has authorized to operate without a license under 
section 307(e)(1) of this title, or which are subject to the provisions 
of any Act, treaty, or convention binding on the United States, to 
ascertain whether in construction, installation, and operation they 
conform to the requirements of the rules and regulations of the 
Commission, the provisions of any Act, the terms of any treaty or 
convention binding on the United States, and the conditions of the 
license or other instrument of authorization under which they are 
constructed, installed, or operated.
    (o) Have authority to designate call letters of all stations;
    (p) Have authority to cause to be published such call letters and 
such other announcements and data as in the judgment of the Commission 
may be required for the efficient operation of radio stations subject to 
the jurisdiction of the United States and for the proper enforcement of 
this chapter;
    (q) Have authority to require the painting and/or illumination of 
radio towers if and when in its judgment such towers constitute, or 
there is a reasonable possibility that they may constitute, a menace to 
air navigation. The permittee or licensee, and the tower owner in any 
case in which the owner is not the permittee or licensee, shall maintain 
the painting and/or illumination of the tower as prescribed by the 
Commission pursuant to this section. In the event that the tower ceases 
to be licensed by the Commission for the transmission of radio energy, 
the owner of the tower shall maintain the prescribed painting and/or 
illumination of such tower until it is dismantled, and the Commission 
may require the owner to dismantle and remove the tower when the 
Administrator of the Federal Aviation Agency determines that there is a 
reasonable possibility that it may constitute a menace to air 
navigation.
    (r) Make such rules and regulations and prescribe such restrictions 
and conditions, not inconsistent with law, as may be necessary to carry 
out the provisions of this chapter, or any international radio or wire 
communications treaty or convention, or regulations annexed thereto, 
including any treaty or convention insofar as it relates to the use of 
radio, to which the United States is or may hereafter become a party.
    (s) Have authority to require that apparatus designed to receive 
television pictures broadcast simultaneously with sound be capable of 
adequately receiving all frequencies allocated by the Commission to 
television broadcasting when such apparatus is shipped in interstate 
commerce, or is imported from any foreign country into the United 
States, for sale or resale to the public.
    (t) Notwithstanding the provisions of section 301(e) of this title, 
have authority, in any case in which an aircraft registered in the 
United States is operated (pursuant to a lease, charter, or similar 
arrangement) by an aircraft operator who is subject to regulation by the 
government of a foreign nation, to enter into an agreement with such 
government under which the Commission shall recognize and accept any 
radio station licenses and radio operator licenses issued by such 
government with respect to such aircraft.
    (u) Require that apparatus designed to receive television pictures 
broadcast simultaneously with sound be equipped with built-in decoder 
circuitry designed to display closed-captioned television transmissions 
when such apparatus is manufactured in the United States or imported for 
use in the United States, and its television picture screen is 13 inches 
or greater in size.
    (v) Have exclusive jurisdiction to regulate the provision of direct-
to-home satellite services. As used in this subsection, the term 
``direct-to-home satellite services'' means the distribution or 
broadcasting of programming or services by satellite directly to the 
subscriber's premises without the use of ground receiving or 
distribution equipment, except at the subscriber's premises or in the 
uplink process to the satellite.
    (w) Omitted.
    (x) Require, in the case of an apparatus designed to receive 
television signals that are shipped in interstate commerce or 
manufactured in the United States and that have a picture screen 13 
inches or greater in size (measured diagonally), that such apparatus be 
equipped with a feature designed to enable viewers to block display of 
all programs with a common rating, except as otherwise permitted by 
regulations pursuant to section 330(c)(4) of this title.
    (y) Have authority to allocate electromagnetic spectrum so as to 
provide flexibility of use, if--
        (1) such use is consistent with international agreements to 
    which the United States is a party; and
        (2) the Commission finds, after notice and an opportunity for 
    public comment, that--
            (A) such an allocation would be in the public interest;
            (B) such use would not deter investment in communications 
        services and systems, or technology development; and
            (C) such use would not result in harmful interference among 
        users.

(June 19, 1934, ch. 652, title III, Sec. 303, 48 Stat. 1082; May 20, 
1937, ch. 229, Secs. 5, 6, 50 Stat. 190, 191; Pub. L. 85-817, Sec. 1, 
Aug. 28, 1958, 72 Stat. 981; Pub. L. 87-445, Apr. 27, 1962, 76 Stat. 64; 
Pub. L. 87-529, Sec. 1, July 10, 1962, 76 Stat. 150; Pub. L. 88-313, 
Sec. 1, May 28, 1964, 78 Stat. 202; Pub. L. 88-487, Sec. 2, Aug. 22, 
1964, 78 Stat. 602; Pub. L. 89-268, Oct. 19, 1965, 79 Stat. 990; Pub. L. 
92-81, Sec. 1, Aug. 10, 1971, 85 Stat. 302; Pub. L. 93-505, Sec. 1, Nov. 
30, 1974, 88 Stat. 1576; Pub. L. 97-259, title I, Secs. 109-111(a), 
113(b), Sept. 13, 1982, 96 Stat. 1092, 1093; Pub. L. 101-396, Sec. 8(a), 
Sept. 28, 1990, 104 Stat. 850; Pub. L. 101-431, Sec. 3, Oct. 15, 1990, 
104 Stat. 960; Pub. L. 102-538, title II, Sec. 210(a), Oct. 27, 1992, 
106 Stat. 3544; Pub. L. 104-104, title II, Sec. 205(b), title IV, 
Sec. 403(g), title V, Sec. 551(b)(1), (c), Feb. 8, 1996, 110 Stat. 114, 
131, 140, 141; Pub. L. 105-33, title III, Sec. 3005, Aug. 5, 1997, 111 
Stat. 268.)

                          Codification

    Enactment of subsec. (w) by Pub. L. 104-104, Sec. 551(b)(1), did not 
become effective pursuant to Pub. L. 104-104, Sec. 551(e)(1), because 
the Federal Communications Commission on Mar. 12, 1998, adopted an order 
finding acceptable the video programming rating system currently in 
voluntary use. See 1996 Amendment note and Effective Date of 1996 
Amendment note below.
    In subsec. (l)(3), ``subchapter II of chapter 5, and chapter 7, of 
title 5'' substituted for ``the Administrative Procedure Act'' on 
authority of Pub. L. 89-554, Sec. 7(b), Sept. 6, 1966, 80 Stat. 631, the 
first section of which enacted Title 5, Government Organization and 
Employees.


                               Amendments

    1997--Subsec. (y). Pub. L. 105-33 added subsec. (y).
    1996--Subsec. (f). Pub. L. 104-104, Sec. 403(g), struck out ``, 
after a public hearing,'' after ``unless''.
    Subsec. (v). Pub. L. 104-104, Sec. 205(b), added subsec. (v).
    Subsec. (w). Pub. L. 104-104, Sec. 551(b)(1), which did not become 
effective, directed the insertion of subsec. (w) reading as follows: 
``Prescribe--
        ``(1) on the basis of recommendations from an advisory committee 
    established by the Commission in accordance with section 551(b)(2) 
    of the Telecommunications Act of 1996, guidelines and recommended 
    procedures for the identification and rating of video programming 
    that contains sexual, violent, or other indecent material about 
    which parents should be informed before it is displayed to children: 
    Provided, That nothing in this paragraph shall be construed to 
    authorize any rating of video programming on the basis of its 
    political or religious content; and
        ``(2) with respect to any video programming that has been rated, 
    and in consultation with the television industry, rules requiring 
    distributors of such video programming to transmit such rating to 
    permit parents to block the display of video programming that they 
    have determined is inappropriate for their children.''
See Codification note above and Effective Date of 1996 Amendment note 
below.
    Subsec. (x). Pub. L. 104-104, Sec. 551(c), added subsec. (x).
    1992--Subsec. (q). Pub. L. 102-538 inserted ``, and the tower owner 
in any case in which the owner is not the permittee or licensee,'' after 
``permittee or licensee''.
    1990--Subsec. (l)(3). Pub. L. 101-396 substituted ``multilateral or 
bilateral agreement, to which the United States and the alien's 
government are parties,'' for ``bilateral agreement between the United 
States and the alien's government''.
    Subsec. (u). Pub. L. 101-431 added subsec. (u).
    1982--Subsec. (l)(1). Pub. L. 97-259, Sec. 109, substituted 
``persons who are found to be qualified by the commission and who 
otherwise are legally eligible for employment in the United States'' for 
``such citizens or nationals of the United States, or citizens of the 
Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands presenting valid identity 
certificates issued by the High Commissioner of such Territory, as the 
Commission finds qualified'', and substituted provision that the 
requirement relating to eligibility for employment in the United States 
shall not apply in the case of licenses issued by the Commission to (A) 
persons holding United States pilot certificates; or (B) persons holding 
foreign aircraft pilot certificates which are valid in the United 
States, if the foreign government involved has entered into a reciprocal 
agreement under which such foreign government does not impose any 
similar requirement relating to eligibility for employment upon citizens 
of the United States for provision that in issuing licenses for the 
operation of radio stations on aircraft the Commission, if it found that 
the public interest would be served thereby, could waive the requirement 
of citizenship in the case of persons holding United States pilot 
certificates or in the case of persons holding foreign aircraft pilot 
certificates which were valid in the United States on the basis of 
reciprocal agreements entered into with foreign governments.
    Subsec. (m)(1)(A). Pub. L. 97-259, Sec. 110, inserted ``, or caused, 
aided, or abetted the violation of,'' after ``violated''.
    Subsec. (n). Pub. L. 97-259, Sec. 113(b), inserted ``, or which the 
Commission by rule has authorized to operate without a license under 
section 307(e)(1) of this title,'' after ``licensed by any Act''.
    Subsec. (t). Pub. L. 97-259, Sec. 111(a), added subsec. (t).
    1974--Subsec. (l)(2). Pub. L. 93-505 substituted provisions relating 
to issuance, notwithstanding par. (1) of this subsection, to an 
individual to whom a radio station is licensed under this chapter of an 
operator's license to operate that station, for provisions relating to 
issuance by the Commission of authorizations, under terms and 
conditions, for aliens licensed as amateur radio operators by their 
governments to operate in the United States, possessions, and Puerto 
Rico upon meeting specified preconditions.
    Subsec. (l)(3). Pub. L. 93-505 substituted provisions relating to 
issuance of authorizations for aliens licensed by their governments as 
amateur radio operators to operate their radio stations in the United 
States, possessions, and Puerto Rico, under terms and conditions 
prescribed by the Commission and upon meeting specified preconditions, 
for provisions relating to issuance of licenses by the Commission, 
notwithstanding par. (1) of this subsection, to aliens admitted to the 
United States as permanent residents.
    1971--Subsec. (l)(3). Pub. L. 92-81 added par. (3).
    1965--Subsec. (q). Pub. L. 89-268 required abandoned or unused radio 
towers to continue to meet the same painting and lighting requirements 
that would be applicable if such towers were being used in connection 
with transmission of radio energy pursuant to a license issued by the 
Commission and authorized the Commission to direct dismantlement of such 
towers when the Administrator of the Federal Aviation Agency determines 
that there is a reasonable possibility that they may constitute a menace 
to air navigation.
    1964--Subsec. (l). Pub. L. 88-487 inserted ``or citizens of the 
Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands presenting valid identity 
certificates issued by the High Commissioner of such Territory''.
    Pub. L. 88-313 designated existing provisions of subsec. (l) as par. 
(1), and added par. (2).
    1962--Subsec. (l). Pub. L. 87-445 inserted ``or nationals'' after 
``citizens''.
    Subsec. (s). Pub. L. 87-529 added subsec. (s).
    1958--Subsec. (l). Pub. L. 85-817 authorized Commission to waive 
citizenship requirement in issuing licenses for operation of radio 
stations on aircraft.
    1937--Subsecs. (m), (n). Act May 20, 1937, Secs. 5, 6(a), amended 
subsecs. (m) and (n) generally.
    Subsec. (r). Act May 20, 1937, Sec. 6(b), added subsec. (r).


                    Effective Date of 1996 Amendment

    Section 551(e) of Pub. L. 104-104 provided that:
    ``(1) Applicability of rating provision.--The amendment made by 
subsection (b) of this section [amending this section] shall take effect 
1 year after the date of enactment of this Act [Feb. 8, 1996], but only 
if the Commission determines [see Codification note above], in 
consultation with appropriate public interest groups and interested 
individuals from the private sector, that distributors of video 
programming have not, by such date--
        ``(A) established voluntary rules for rating video programming 
    that contains sexual, violent, or other indecent material about 
    which parents should be informed before it is displayed to children, 
    and such rules are acceptable to the Commission; and
        ``(B) agreed voluntarily to broadcast signals that contain 
    ratings of such programming.
    ``(2) Effective date of manufacturing provision.--In prescribing 
regulations to implement the amendment made by subsection (c) [amending 
this section], the Federal Communications Commission shall, after 
consultation with the television manufacturing industry, specify the 
effective date for the applicability of the requirement to the apparatus 
covered by such amendment, which date shall not be less than two years 
after the date of enactment of this Act [Feb. 8, 1996].'' [On Mar. 12, 
1998, the Federal Communications Commission adopted technical rules that 
require certain television receivers to be equipped with features to 
block display of programs with a common rating. This feature was to be 
phased in, with half of subject television receivers to have it by July 
1, 1999, and all such models to have it by Jan. 1, 2000.]


                    Effective Date of 1992 Amendment

    Section 210(c) of Pub. L. 102-538 provided that: ``The amendments 
made by subsection (a) [amending this section] shall take effect 30 days 
after the date of enactment of this Act [Oct. 27, 1992].''


                    Effective Date of 1990 Amendment

    Section 5 of Pub. L. 101-431 provided that: ``Sections 3 and 4 of 
this Act [amending this section and section 330 of this title] shall 
take effect on July 1, 1993.''


                               Regulations

    Section 6 of Pub. L. 101-431 provided that: ``The Federal 
Communications Commission shall promulgate rules to implement this Act 
[amending this section and section 330 of this title and enacting 
provisions set out as notes under this section and section 609 of this 
title] within 180 days after the date of its enactment [Oct. 15, 
1990].''
    Pub. L. 100-459, title VI, Sec. 608, Oct. 1, 1988, 102 Stat. 2228, 
directed Federal Communications Commission to promulgate, by Jan. 31, 
1989, regulations in accordance with section 1464 of Title 18, Crimes 
and Criminal Procedure, to enforce the provisions of such section on a 
24 hour per day basis, prior to repeal by Pub. L. 102-356, Sec. 16(b), 
Aug. 26, 1992, 106 Stat. 954.


             Restrictions on Over-the-Air Reception Devices

    Section 207 of Pub. L. 104-104 provided that: ``Within 180 days 
after the date of enactment of this Act [Feb. 8, 1996], the Commission 
shall, pursuant to section 303 of the Communications Act of 1934 [47 
U.S.C. 303], promulgate regulations to prohibit restrictions that impair 
a viewer's ability to receive video programming services through devices 
designed for over-the-air reception of television broadcast signals, 
multichannel multipoint distribution service, or direct broadcast 
satellite services.''


                Parental Choice in Television Programming

    Section 551(a) of Pub. L. 104-104 provided that: ``The Congress 
makes the following findings:
        ``(1) Television influences children's perception of the values 
    and behavior that are common and acceptable in society.
        ``(2) Television station operators, cable television system 
    operators, and video programmers should follow practices in 
    connection with video programming that take into consideration that 
    television broadcast and cable programming has established a 
    uniquely pervasive presence in the lives of American children.
        ``(3) The average American child is exposed to 25 hours of 
    television each week and some children are exposed to as much as 11 
    hours of television a day.
        ``(4) Studies have shown that children exposed to violent video 
    programming at a young age have a higher tendency for violent and 
    aggressive behavior later in life than children not so exposed, and 
    that children exposed to violent video programming are prone to 
    assume that acts of violence are acceptable behavior.
        ``(5) Children in the United States are, on average, exposed to 
    an estimated 8,000 murders and 100,000 acts of violence on 
    television by the time the child completes elementary school.
        ``(6) Studies indicate that children are affected by the 
    pervasiveness and casual treatment of sexual material on television, 
    eroding the ability of parents to develop responsible attitudes and 
    behavior in their children.
        ``(7) Parents express grave concern over violent and sexual 
    video programming and strongly support technology that would give 
    them greater control to block video programming in the home that 
    they consider harmful to their children.
        ``(8) There is a compelling governmental interest in empowering 
    parents to limit the negative influences of video programming that 
    is harmful to children.
        ``(9) Providing parents with timely information about the nature 
    of upcoming video programming and with the technological tools that 
    allow them easily to block violent, sexual, or other programming 
    that they believe harmful to their children is a nonintrusive and 
    narrowly tailored means of achieving that compelling governmental 
    interest.''


                     Advisory Committee Requirements

    Section 551(b)(2) of Pub. L. 104-104 provided that: ``In 
establishing an advisory committee for purposes of the amendment made by 
paragraph (1) of this subsection [amending this section], the Commission 
shall--
        ``(A) ensure that such committee is composed of parents, 
    television broadcasters, television programming producers, cable 
    operators, appropriate public interest groups, and other interested 
    individuals from the private sector and is fairly balanced in terms 
    of political affiliation, the points of view represented, and the 
    functions to be performed by the committee;
        ``(B) provide to the committee such staff and resources as may 
    be necessary to permit it to perform its functions efficiently and 
    promptly; and
        ``(C) require the committee to submit a final report of its 
    recommendations within one year after the date of the appointment of 
    the initial members.''


                             Technology Fund

    Section 552 of Pub. L. 104-104 provided that: ``It is the policy of 
the United States to encourage broadcast television, cable, satellite, 
syndication, other video programming distributors, and relevant related 
industries (in consultation with appropriate public interest groups and 
interested individuals from the private sector) to--
        ``(1) establish a technology fund to encourage television and 
    electronics equipment manufacturers to facilitate the development of 
    technology which would empower parents to block programming they 
    deem inappropriate for their children and to encourage the 
    availability thereof to low income parents;
        ``(2) report to the viewing public on the status of the 
    development of affordable, easy to use blocking technology; and
        ``(3) establish and promote effective procedures, standards, 
    systems, advisories, or other mechanisms for ensuring that users 
    have easy and complete access to the information necessary to 
    effectively utilize blocking technology and to encourage the 
    availability thereof to low income parents.''


                      AM Radio Improvement Standard

    Section 214 of Pub. L. 102-538 provided that: ``The Federal 
Communications Commission shall--
        ``(1) within 60 days after the date of enactment of this Act 
    [Oct. 27, 1992], initiate a rulemaking to adopt a single AM radio 
    stereophonic transmitting equipment standard that specifies the 
    composition of the transmitted stereophonic signal; and
        ``(2) within one year after such date of enactment, adopt such 
    standard.''


          Broadcasting of Indecent Programming; FCC Regulations

    Pub. L. 102-356, Sec. 16(a), Aug. 26, 1992, 106 Stat. 954, provided 
that: ``The Federal Communications Commission shall promulgate 
regulations to prohibit the broadcasting of indecent programming--
        ``(1) between 6 a.m. and 10 p.m. on any day by any public radio 
    station or public television station that goes off the air at or 
    before 12 midnight; and
        ``(2) between 6 a.m. and 12 midnight on any day for any radio or 
    television broadcasting station not described in paragraph (1).
The regulations required under this subsection shall be promulgated in 
accordance with section 553 of title 5, United States Code, and shall 
become final not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of this 
Act [Aug. 26, 1992].''


 Congressional Findings Regarding Access by Hearing-Impaired People to 
                            Television Medium

    Section 2 of Pub. L. 101-431 provided that: ``The Congress finds 
that--
        ``(1) to the fullest extent made possible by technology, deaf 
    and hearing-impaired people should have equal access to the 
    television medium;
        ``(2) closed-captioned television transmissions have made it 
    possible for thousands of deaf and hearing-impaired people to gain 
    access to the television medium, thus significantly improving the 
    quality of their lives;
        ``(3) closed-captioned television will provide access to 
    information, entertainment, and a greater understanding of our 
    Nation and the world to over 24,000,000 people in the United States 
    who are deaf or hearing-impaired;
        ``(4) closed-captioned television will provide benefits for the 
    nearly 38 percent of older Americans who have some loss of hearing;
        ``(5) closed-captioned television can assist both hearing and 
    hearing-impaired children with reading and other learning skills, 
    and improve literacy skills among adults;
        ``(6) closed-captioned television can assist those among our 
    Nation's large immigrant population who are learning English as a 
    second language with language comprehension;
        ``(7) currently, a consumer must buy a TeleCaption decoder and 
    connect the decoder to a television set in order to display the 
    closed-captioned television transmissions;
        ``(8) technology is now available to enable that closed-caption 
    decoding capability to be built into new television sets during 
    manufacture at a nominal cost by 1991; and
        ``(9) the availability of decoder-equipped television sets will 
    significantly increase the audience that can be served by closed-
    captioned television, and such increased market will be an incentive 
    to the television medium to provide more captioned programming.''


Direction on Use of Funds Regarding Spectrum Allocation and Assignments 
                       for Public Safety Purposes

    Pub. L. 98-214, Sec. 9, Dec. 8, 1983, 97 Stat. 1470, provided that:
    ``(a) Funds authorized to be appropriated under section 2 of this 
Act [amending section 156 of this title] shall be used by the Federal 
Communications Commission to establish a plan which adequately ensures 
that the needs of State and local public safety authorities would be 
taken into account in making allocations of the electromagnetic 
spectrum. In establishing such a plan the Commission shall (1) review 
the current and future needs of such public safety authorities in light 
of suitable and commercially available equipment and (2) consider the 
need for a nationwide contiguous frequency allocation for public safety 
purposes.
    ``(b) Pending adoption of a plan, the Commission, while making 
assignments and allocations, shall duly recognize the needs of State and 
local public safety authorities.''

                  Section Referred to in Other Sections

    This section is referred to in sections 301, 305, 309, 330, 332, 
503, 923 of this title.