Sec. 73.3573  Processing FM broadcast station applications.

    (a) Applications for FM broadcast stations are divided into two 
groups:
    (1) In the first group are applications for new stations or for 
major changes in the facilities of authorized stations. A major change 
for FM station authorized under this part is any change in frequency or 
community of license which is in accord with a present allotment 
contained in the Table of Allotments (73.202 (b)). Other requests for 
change in frequency or community of license for FM stations must first 
be submitted in the form of a petition for rule making to amend the 
Table of Allotments. Applications filed on a first come, first served 
basis may propose a higher or lower class adjacent, intermediate 
frequency or co-channel in an application for a new FM broadcast 
station. A licensee or permittee may seek the higher or lower class 
adjacent, intermediate frequency or co-channel or the same class 
adjacent channel of its existing FM broadcast station authorization by 
filing a minor change application. For noncommercial educational FM 
stations, a major change is any change in frequency or community of 
license or any change in power

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or antenna location or height above average terrain (or combination 
thereof) which would result in a change of 50% or more in the area 
within the station's predicted 1 mV/m field strength contour. (A change 
in area is defined as the sum of the area gained and the area lost as a 
percentage of the original area). However, the FCC may within 15 days 
after the acceptance of the application for modification of facilities, 
advise the applicant that such application is considered to be one for a 
major change and therefore subject to the provisions of Secs. 73.3580 
and 1.1111 of this chapter pertaining to major changes.
    (2) The second group consists of applications for licenses and all 
other changes in the facilities of authorized stations.
    (b) A new file number will be assigned to an application for a new 
station or for major changes in the facilities of an authorized station, 
when it is amended so as to effect a major change, as defined in 
paragraph (a)(1) of this section, or result in a situation where the 
original party or parties to the application do not retain more than 50% 
ownership interest in the application as originally filed, and 
Sec. 73.3580 will apply to such amended application. An application for 
changes in the facilities of any existing station will continue to carry 
the same file number even though (pursuant to FCC approval) an 
assignment of license or transfer of control of such licensee or 
permittee has taken place if, upon consummation, the application is 
amended to reflect the new ownership.
    (c) Where an amendment to an application would require a new file 
pursuant to paragraph (b) of this section, the applicant will have the 
opportunity to withdraw the amendment at any time prior to designation 
for a hearing if applicable; and may be afforded, subject to the 
discretion of the Administrative Law Judge, an opportunity to withdraw 
the amendment after designation for a hearing.
    (d) If, upon examination, the FCC finds that the public interest, 
convenience and necessity will be served by the granting of an 
application for FM broadcast facilities, the same will be granted. If 
the FCC is unable to make such a finding and it appears that a hearing 
may be required, the procedure given in Sec. 73.3593 will be followed.
    (e) Applications for reserved band and Class D FM broadcast stations 
will be processed as nearly as possible in the order in which they are 
filed. Such applications will be placed in the processing line in 
numerical sequence, and will be drawn by the staff for study, the lowest 
file number first. In order that those applications which are entitled 
to be grouped for processing may be fixed prior to the time processing 
of the earliest filed application is begun, the FCC will periodically 
release a Public Notice listing applications which have been accepted 
for filing and announcing a date (not less than 30 days after 
publication) on which the listed applications will be considered 
available and ready for processing and by which all mutually exclusive 
applications and/or petitions to deny the listed applications must be 
filed.
    (f) Where reserved band plus Class D applications are mutually 
exclusive because the distance between their respective proposed 
transmitter sites is contrary to the station separation requirements set 
forth in Sec. 73.507, such applications will be processed and designated 
for hearing at the time the application with the lower file number is 
reached for processing. In order to be considered mutually exclusive 
with a lower file number application, the higher file number application 
must have been accepted for filing at least one day before the lower 
file number application has been acted upon by the FCC.
    (g) Processing non-reserved FM broadcast station applications.
    (1) Applications for non-reserved FM broadcast stations will be 
processed as nearly as possible in the order in which they are tendered. 
Such applications will be placed in the processing line in numerical 
sequence, and will be drawn by the staff for study, the lowest file 
number first. The FCC will specify, pursuant to Sec. 73.3564(d), the 
filing periods for non-reserved band FM applications.
    (2) All applications received during the appropriate filing period 
or ``window'' which are found to be mutually exclusive will be 
designated for hearing. All other applications will, if the

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applicants are duly qualified, receive grants. The FCC will periodically 
release a Public Notice listing applications pending hearings or grant 
and announcing a date (not less than 30 days after issuance) by which 
petitions to deny must be filed.
    (i) In addition to announcing the acceptance of mutually exclusive 
applications and establishing a date for the filing of petitions to deny 
such applications, the public notice referred to in paragraph (g)(2) of 
this section will also announce the date on which all mutually exclusive 
applicants will be required to pay the hearing fee established in part 1 
of these rules, 47 CFR 1.1104(2)(c) of this chapter. The date for fee 
payment shall be at least 30 days after the date established for 
petitions to deny.
    (ii) Whenever the public notice announces the acceptance of an 
application that is mutually exclusive with a renewal application, it 
shall also announce that the mutually exclusive applicants and the 
renewal applicant will be required to pay the hearing fee on the date 
established in the public notice.
    (3) If, after the close of the appropriate window filing period, a 
non-reserved FM allotment remains vacant, processing for that channel 
will be on a ``first come/first serve'' basis with the first acceptable 
application cutting off the filing rights of subsequent applicants. All 
applications received on the same day will be treated as simultaneously 
tendered and, if they are found to be mutually exclusive, will be 
designated for hearing. Applications received after the tender of a lead 
application will be grouped, according to filing date, behind the lead 
application in a queue. The priority rights of the lead applicant, as 
against all other applicants, are determined by the date of filing but 
the filing date for subsequent applicants for that channel and community 
only reserves a place in the queue. The rights of an applicant in a 
queue ripen only upon a final determination that the lead applicant is 
unacceptable and if the queue member is reached and found acceptable. 
The queue will remain behind the lead applicant until a construction 
permit is finally granted, at which time the queue dissolves. If there 
is no queue or if no queue member is found acceptable, that allotment 
remains subject to ``first come/first serve'' processing. The FCC will 
periodically release a Public Notice listing those pending hearings or 
grant and announcing a date (not less than 30 days after issuance) by 
which petitions to deny must be filed.
    (h) Resolving processing conflicts between the reserved and non-
reserved bands. The reserved bands include Class D stations.
    (1) Reserved band applicants, applying for a channel on the non-
reserved band are subject to the processing procedures in paragraph (f).
    (2) If a reserved band applicant has generated a cut-off list that 
overlaps a non-reserved band window filing period, the non-reserved band 
applicant must file within the cut-off if he seeks mutually exclusive 
status with the reserved band applicant.
    (3) Following the close of a non-reserved band application filing 
window, the non-reserved band applicant is subject to the ``first come/
first serve'' rules and would lose to a pre-filed reserved band 
applicant.

    Note  1: Applications to modify the channel and/or class of an FM 
broadcast station to an adjacent channel, intermediate frequency (IF) 
channel, or co-channel shall not require any other amendments to the 
Table of Allotments. Such applications may resort to the provisions of 
the Commission's Rules permitting short spaced stations as set forth in 
Sec. 73.215 as long as the applicant shows by separate exhibit attached 
to the application the existence of an allotment reference site which 
meets the allotment standards, the minimum spacing requirements of 
Sec. 73.207 and the city grade coverage requirements of Sec. 73.315. 
This exhibit must include a site map or, in the alternative, a statement 
that the transmitter will be located on an existing tower. Examples of 
unsuitable allotment reference sites include those which are offshore, 
in a national or state park in which tower construction is prohibited, 
on an airport, or otherwise in an area which would necessarily present a 
hazard to air navigation.
    Note 2: Processing of applications for new low power educational FM 
applications:
    Pending the Commission's restudy of the impact of the rule changes 
pertaining to the allocations of 10-watt and other low power 
noncommercial educational FM stations, applications for such new 
stations, or major changes in existing ones, will not be accepted for 
filing. Exceptions are: (1) In Alaska,

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applications for new Class D stations or major changes in existing ones 
are acceptable for filing; and (2) applications for existing Class D 
stations to change frequency are acceptable for filing. In (2), upon the 
grant of such application, the station shall become a Class D 
(secondary) station. (See First Report and Order, Docket 20735, FCC 78-
386,  43 FR 25821 , and Second Report and Order, Docket 20735, FCC 78-384, 
 43 FR 39704 .) Effective date of this FCC imposed ``freeze'' was June 15, 
1978. Applications which specify facilities of at least 100 watts 
effective radiated power will be accepted for filing.
    Note 3: For rules on processing FM translator and booster stations, 
see Sec. 74.1233 of this chapter.


[ 44 FR 38503 , July 2, 1979, as amended at  48 FR 29510 , June 27, 1983;  49 FR 32589 , Aug. 15, 1984;  50 FR 19943 , May 13, 1985;  54 FR 11954 , Mar. 
23, 1989;  55 FR 19265 , May 9, 1990;  55 FR 50692 , Dec. 10, 1990;  56 FR 796 , Jan. 9, 1991;  58 FR 38535 , July 19, 1993]