Revision of Broadcast and Cable EEO Rules and Policies

FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION

47 CFR Parts 0, 73, and 76

[MM Docket Nos. 98-204 and 96-16, DA 99-529]

Revision of Broadcast and Cable EEO Rules and Policies

AGENCY: Federal Communications Commission.

ACTION: Proposed rule; extension of reply comment period.

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SUMMARY: In Review of the Commission's Broadcast and Cable Equal

Employment Opportunity Rules and Policies, the Commission partially

grants a motion for extension of time and grants a request that

comments be considered nunc pro tunc. The Minority Media and

Telecommunications Council and 29 other organizations (MMTC et al.)

request that comments that they filed March 5, 1999, and March 19,

1999, be considered nunc pro tunc. The NAB and broadcast associations

representing the 50 states, Puerto Rico and the District of Columbia

(NAB et al.) request an extension of time to file reply comments. The

Commission believes that grant of MMTC et al.'s request is in the

public interest and that partial grant of NAB et al.'s request will

give commenters ample time to prepare and submit reply comments in this

proceeding.

DATES: Reply comments due April 15, 1999.

ADDRESSES: Federal Communications Commission, Office of the Secretary,

445 12th Street, SW., Washington, DC 20554.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Hope G. Cooper, Mass Media Bureau,

Enforcement Division. (202) 418-1450.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

1. On November 20, 1998, the Commission released a Notice of

Proposed Rule Making, MM Docket No. 98-204, 13 FCC Rcd 23004, 63 FR

66104, December 1, 1998, (NPRM), requesting comment on various

proposals concerning the Commission's broadcast and cable EEO rules and

policies. Comment and Reply Comment deadlines were established for

January 19, 1999, and February 18, 1999, respectively.

2. On December 17, 1998, the National Association of Broadcasters

(NAB) filed a ``Motion for Extension of Time of Comment and Reply

Comment Deadlines'' (Motion). See National Association of Broadcasters'

Motion for Extension of Time of Comment and Reply Comment Deadlines, MM

Docket Nos. 98-204 and 96-16 at page 1. Therein, the NAB requested that

we extend the due dates for the submission of comments and reply

comments in response to the NPRM to February 18, 1999, and March 23,

1999, respectively. On January 4, 1999, the Minority Media and

Telecommunications Council (MMTC) sent a letter to the Commission

expressing support for the NAB's Motion.

3. Because we believed that the public interest would be served by

an extension of the comment period in this proceeding, we granted the

NAB's Motion and extended the date for filing comments to February 18,

1999, and extended the date for filing reply comments to March 23,

1999, in an Order released January 5, 1999, DA 99-105, 64 FR 2461,

January 14, 1999.

4. On February 10, 1999, the MMTC filed a ``Motion for Extension of

Time.'' See Minority Media and Telecommunications Council's Motion for

Extension of Time, MM Docket Nos. 98-204 and 96-16. Therein, the MMTC

requested that we extend the due date for the submission of comments in

response to the NPRM for three weeks, until March 11, 1999.

5. Because we believed that the public interest would be served by

an extension of the comment period in this proceeding, we granted the

MMTC's Motion in part and extended the date for filing comments to

March 1, 1999, and, on our own motion, extended the date for filing

reply comments to March 31, 1999, in an Order released February 12,

1999, DA 99-326, 64 FR 8779, February 23, 1999.

6. On March 1, 1999, MMTC and over 20 national civil rights

organizations (MMTC et al.) filed a letter (MMTC letter) with the

Commission in which they stated that they were unable to file their

comments by the comment deadline due to ``[t]he magnitude of the task

and the illnesses of many of the fifteen people involved in this

project'' and in which they stated that they would move for

consideration of their comments nunc pro tunc. See Letter from David

Honig, Counsel for EEO Supporters (MMTC et al.), to Hon. Magalie Roman

Salas, Secretary, Federal Communications Commission, MM Docket Nos. 98-

204 and 96-16. In the letter, the MMTC et al. also stated that they

planned to file four volumes of comments, with Volume I being 183 pages

in length. On March 5, 1999, MMTC et al. filed Volume I of their

comments, with a cover letter requesting consideration of these

comments nunc pro tunc. See Comments filed by MMTC and 29 other

organizations, MM Docket Nos. 98-204 and 96-16. MMTC et al. also stated

that they would shortly file Volumes II (the Operation of an FCC

Regulatory Program), Volume III (Statements of Witnesses), and Volume

IV (Discussion of Witnesses' Statements) of their comments.

7. On March 10, 1999, the NAB and broadcast associations

representing all 50 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico

(NAB et al.) filed a ``Motion For Extension of Time of Reply Comment

Deadline''. Therein, NAB et al. requested that the Commission extend

the due date for submission of reply comments. In support of their

request, the NAB et al. stated that an important part of the comments

for the record are not yet available. They cited to the MMTC letter and

noted that, while MMTC et al. filed Volume I of their comments on March

5, 1999, they have yet to file the remaining volumes, whose length is

unknown. The NAB et al. argued that, given the circumstances described

above, if the Commission decides to consider MMTC et al.'s comments, it

would be impossible for commenters to reply to all of the materials

submitted in this proceeding by March 31, 1999. The NAB et al. further

contended that, because the MMTC et al. has indicated that their future

comments will include factual studies, sufficient time must be allowed

for those studies to be evaluated and any additional research suggested

by those studies to be conducted. Therefore, the NAB et al. contended

that the Commission should extend the due date for filing comments to

60 days after the date that the MMTC's final volume, Volume IV, is

filed with the Commission.

8. On March 19, 1999, MMTC et al. filed the remainder of their

comments, Volumes II, III, and IV, with a cover letter requesting

consideration of these comments nunc pro tunc. We believe that it is in

the public interest to grant MMTC et al.'s request to consider their

comments, even though their comments were filed after the due date for

comments in this proceeding. MMTC et al. include a large number of

organizations whose voices we feel should be heard in this proceeding

and they provided sufficient explanation for the lateness of the

filing. Therefore, we hereby grant MMTC's request to have their

comments be considered nunc pro tunc in this proceeding.

9. We have considered the extension request filed by the NAB et al.

and hereby extend the date for filing reply comments to April 15, 1999.

This extension affords interested parties sufficient time from the date

of MMTC

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et al.'s last comment submission and a total of 45 days from the March

1 filing of all but one of the other comments. We believe that this is

ample time to prepare and submit reply comments in this proceeding.

10. Accordingly, it is ordered that the MMTC et al.'s request for

consideration of their comments nunc pro tunc is granted.

11. It is further ordered that the Motion for Extension of Time

filed by the NAB et al. is granted in part and denied in part.

12. It is therefore ordered that the date for filing reply comments

in this proceeding is extended to April 15, 1999.

13. This action is taken pursuant to authority found in sections

4(i) and 303(r) of the Communications Act of 1934, as amended, 47 USC

154(i) and 303(r), and 0.204(b), 0.283 and 1.46 of the Commission's

rules, 47 CFR 0.204(b), 0.283 and 1.46.

List of Subjects

47 CFR Part 0

Organization and functions (Government agencies).

47 CFR Part 73

Radio, Equal employment opportunity, Reporting and recordkeeping

requirements, Television.

47 CFR Part 76

Cable television, Equal employment opportunity, Reporting and

recordkeeping requirements.

Federal Communications Commission.

Roy J. Stewart,

Chief, Mass Media Bureau.

[FR Doc. 99-8421 Filed 4-2-99; 8:45 am]

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