Sec. 73.3572  Processing of TV broadcast, low power TV, TV translator 
          and TV booster station applications.

    (a) Applications for TV stations are divided into two groups:
    (1) In the first group are applications for new stations or major 
changes in the facilities of authorized stations. A major change for TV 
broadcast stations authorized under this part is any change in frequency 
or community of

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license which is in accord with a present allotment contained in the 
Table of Allotments (Sec. 73.606). Other requests for change in 
frequency or community of license for TV broadcast stations must first 
be submitted in the form of a petition for rulemaking to amend the Table 
of Allotments. In the case of low power TV, TV translator, and TV 
booster stations authorized under Part 74 of this chapter, a major 
change is any change in:
    (i) Frequency (output channel) assignment (does not apply to TV 
boosters);
    (ii) Transmitting antenna system including the direction of the 
radiation, directive antenna pattern or transmission line;
    (iii) Antenna height;
    (iv) Antenna location exceeding 200 meters; or
    (v) Authorized operating power.
    (2) However, if the proposed modification of facilities, other than 
a change in frequency, will not increase the signal range of the low 
power TV, TV translator or TV booster station in any horizontal 
direction, the modification will not be considered a major change. 
Provided, that in the case of an authorized low power TV, TV translator 
or TV booster station which is predicted to cause or receive 
interference to or from an authorized TV broadcast station pursuant to 
Sec. 74.705 or interferes with broadcast or other services under 
Sec. 74.703 or Sec. 74.709, that an application for a change in output 
channel, together with technical modifications which are necessary to 
avoid interference (including a change in antenna location of less than 
16.1 km), will not be considered as an application for a major change in 
those facilities. Provided further, that the FCC may, within 15 days 
after the acceptance of any other 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 pertaining to major changes.
    (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 
change 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 
number 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) Applications for TV stations, other than low power TV, TV 
translator and TV booster 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 issuance) on which the listed applications 
will be considered available and ready for processing and by which all 
mutually exclusive applications and petitions to deny the listed 
applications must be filed.
    (1) 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 (c) of 
this section will also announce the date on which all mutually exclusive 
applicants (including the previously accepted lead applicant) will be 
required to pay the hearing fee

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established in part 1 of these rules, 47 CFR 1.1104(1)(c) of this 
chapter. The date for fee payment shall be at least 30 days after the 
date established for petitions to deny.
    (2) 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.
    (e) Except for applications for low power TV, TV translator and TV 
booster stations, regardless of the number of applications filed for 
channels in a city or the number of assignments available in that city, 
those applications which are mutually exclusive, i.e., which request the 
same channel, will be designated for hearing. All other applications for 
channels will, if the applicants are duly qualified, receive grants. For 
example, if channels 6, 13, 47 and 53 have been assigned to City X and 
there are pending two applications for Channel 6 and one application for 
each of the remaining channels, the latter three applications will be 
considered grants without hearing and the two mutually exclusive 
applications requesting Channel 6 will be designated for hearing. If 
there are two pending applications for Channel 6 and two applications 
for Channel 13, separate hearings will be held.
    (f) Where applications, other than applications for low power TV, TV 
translator, and TV booster stations, are mutually exclusive because the 
distance between the respective proposed transmitter sites is contrary 
to the station separation requirements set forth in Sec. 73.610, 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 of applications for low power TV and TV translator 
stations. (1) Applications for low power TV and TV translator 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. The FCC will specify, by Public Notice, a period for 
filing low power TV or TV translator applications. The filing period 
will open no less than 30 days after release of the Public Notice and 
remain open for an least five work days.
    (2) Subsequently, the FCC will release a Public Notice: (i) 
Establishing a date, time, and place for a public lottery; (ii) 
accepting for filing mutually exclusive applications which were timely 
filed during the filing period previously specified by the FCC; (iii) 
designating the listed mutually exclusive applications for public 
lottery pursuant to the procedures set forth in Sec. 1.1601 et seq.; and 
(iv) describing each applicant's certified perferences and selection 
probabilities and assigning to each applicant a number block. (It will 
be the applicant's responsibility to notify the FCC, within 30 days of 
the release of the Public Notice, or any omissions of applications or 
clerical or mathematical errors in preferences or probabilities. The FCC 
will not entertain appeals involving these matters if timely 
notification to the FCC has not been made.) If necessary, the FCC will 
release subsequent Public Notices correcting only clerical or 
mathematical errors and including any previously omitted mutually 
exclusive applications. The public lottery pursuant to the procedures 
set forth in Sec. 1.1601 et seq., will be held no less than 30 days 
subsequent to the initially released Public Notice announcing the 
lottery. Subsequent to the lottery, the FCC will release a Public Notice 
announcing the selection of a tentative selectee resulting from the 
lottery and providing and opportunity for the filing of Petitions to 
Deny pursuant to the requirements of Sec. 73.3584(c). If, upon 
examination, the FCC finds that the public interest, convenience and 
necessity will be served by the granting of a tentative selectee's 
application, the same will be granted. Those applications which, due to 
the lottery, are no longer mutually exclusive with other applications 
will

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be announced in a Public Notice proposing the grant of those 
applications and providing an opportunity for the filing of Petitions to 
Deny pursuant to Sec. 73.3584(c). Groups of mutually exclusive 
applicants remaining after a lottery will be designated for lottery. 
Applications which are are not grantable due to mutual exclusivity with 
the permittee selected by lottery will be dismissed.
    (3) If, upon examination, the FCC is unable to find that the public 
interest, convenience and necessity will be served by the granting of a 
lottery tentative selectee's applications, and it appears that a hearing 
may be required, the procedure set forth in Sec. 73.3593 will be 
followed. No further action will be taken with reference to the other 
applications in the lottery group from which the tentative selectee was 
selected until the tentative selectee's qualifications to be a permittee 
are resolved. If the tentative selectee is ultimately found to be 
unqualified to be a permittee, the procedure set forth in paragraph 
(f)(2) of this section will be followed.
    (4) The FCC will periodically release a Public Notice accepting for 
filing and proposing for grant those applications which were timely 
filed during the filing period specified by the FCC in a Public Notice 
for filing low power TV or TV translator applications, but which are not 
mutually exclusive with any other application, and providing an 
opportunity for the filing of Petitions to Deny pursuant to 
Sec. 73.3584.

    Note 1: Notwithstanding paragraph (f)(1) and Sec. 73.3522(a)(3), 
applications for low power TV and TV translator stations will be 
processed within the tiered processing framework as set forth in Notice 
on Interim Processing,  45 FR 62004  (published September 17, 1980), Order 
Imposing Freeze,  46 FR 26062  (published May 11, 1981), and Report and 
Order in the Matter of Inquiry Into the Future Role of Low Power 
Television Broadcasting and Television Translators in the National 
Telecommunications System,  47 FR 21468  (published May 18, 1982).

    Note 2: Pursuant to Sec. 73.3584(c), the Commission may announce, by 
the Public Notice designating the applications for public lottery, that 
a Notice of Petition to Deny will be required to be filed no later than 
30 days after issuance of the Public Notice.

    (5) TV booster station applications may be filed at any time and 
will be subject to the following procedures:
    (i) Subsequent to filing, the FCC will release a Public Notice 
accepting for filing and proposing for grant those applications which 
are not mutually exclusive with any other TV translator, low power TV, 
or TV booster application, and providing for the filing of Petitions To 
Deny pursuant to Sec. 73.3584;
    (ii) Any application received during the filing period for TV 
translator, low power TV, or TV booster applications with which it is 
mutually exclusive will be included in the relevant public lottery 
pursuant to Sec. 1.1601 et seq.; and
    (iii) Applications received after the filing date for applications 
with which it is mutually exclusive will be dismissed as an untimely 
filing.

[ 44 FR 38502 , July 2, 1979, as amended at  48 FR 27205 , June 13, 1983;  48 FR 34039 , July 27, 1983;  49 FR 47843 , Dec. 7, 1984;  52 FR 31400 , Aug. 
20, 1987;  55 FR 19265 , May 9, 1990;  56 FR 795 , Jan. 9, 1991;  56 FR 33720 , July 23, 1991]