The president’s proposed federal budget for fiscal 2014 lets the FCC charge both broadcasters and any others that didn’t receive spectrum through an auction a fee.
Obama Budget Includes Spectrum Fees
In a poke at broadcasters, President Barack Obama today proposed to clear the way for the FCC to require TV station licensees to pay fees for the use of their channels.
The spectrum fee proposal, included in the president’s proposed federal budget for fiscal 2014, also would allow the FCC to hit other agency licensees besides broadcasters—basically any licensee who received spectrum without having to pay for it in an auction—with the new user fees.
The budget also says that the new fees, which would have to be approved by law before the agency could put them in place, could raise $4.8 billion for the federal government through 2023.
An FCC spokesman declined comment. But in a statement, Dennis Wharton, a spokesman for the National Association of Broadcasters, said: “Consistent with our position on previous proposed White House budgets, NAB will oppose spectrum fees that imperil the financial underpinnings of local television and the tens of millions of viewers we serve.”
David Kaut, an analyst for Stifel, said broadcasters had regularly defeated similar legislative proposals, which have been included in federal budget proposals for many years.
“Everybody who has gotten their spectrum outside of an auction is going to oppose it,” Kaut said.
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Comments (1)
Blair Faulstich says:
April 10, 2013 at 4:44 pm
A spectrum fee would be legitimate if it came with “flex-use” of spectrum and has been proposed by certain parties. If flex use were implemented it would raise $4.8 billion X 20. So spectrum fees, meet flex use, all are happy and the FCC can declare the NBP a success and go home.