Sec.  87.215   Supplemental eligibility.

   (a) A unicom and any associated dispatch or control points must be located
   on the airport to be served.

   (b) Only one unicom will be authorized to operate at an airport which does
   not have a control tower, RCO or FAA flight service station. At an airport
   which has a part-time or full-time control tower, RCO or FAA flight service
   station, the one unicom limitation does not apply and the airport operator
   and all aviation services organizations may be licensed to operate a unicom
   on the assigned frequency.

   (c) At an airport where only one unicom may be licensed, eligibility for new
   unicom licenses is restricted to State or local government entities, and to
   nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) that are authorized to apply for the
   license by a State or local government entity whose primary mission is the
   provision of public safety services. All applications submitted by NGOs must
   be accompanied by a new, written certification of support (for the NGO
   applicant to operate the applied for station) by the state or local
   government entity. Applications for a unicom license at the same airport,
   where only one unicom may be licensed, that are filed by two or more
   applicants meeting these eligibility criteria must be resolved through
   settlement or technical amendment.

   (d) At an airport where only one unicom may be licensed, the license may be
   assigned or transferred only to an entity meeting the requirements of
   paragraph (c) of this section.

   (e) An applicant for renewal of a unicom license shall be granted a
   presumptive renewal expectancy regardless of whether the applicant is
   eligible for a new unicom license under paragraph (c) of this section.
   Unless the renewal expectancy is defeated, applications that are mutually
   exclusive with the renewal application will not be accepted. The renewal
   expectancy may be defeated only upon a determination, following a hearing
   duly designated on the basis of a petition to deny or on the Commission's
   own motion, that the renewal applicant has not provided substantial service.
   For purposes of this paragraph, substantial service means service which is
   sound, favorable, and substantially above a level of mediocre service during
   the applicant's past license term. If the renewal expectancy is defeated,
   the renewal application will be dismissed unless the renewal applicant is
   eligible for a new unicom license pursuant to paragraph (c) of this section.

   (f) At an airport where only one unicom may be licensed, when the Commission
   believes that the unicom has been abandoned or has ceased operation, another
   unicom may be licensed on an interim basis pending final determination of
   the status of the original unicom. An applicant for an interim license must
   notify the present licensee and must comply with the notice requirements of
   paragraph (d) of this section.

   (g) An applicant for a unicom license, renewal or modification of frequency
   assignment at an airport which does not have a control tower, RCO or FAA
   flight service station must notify in writing the owner of the airport and
   all aviation service organizations located at the airport. The notice must
   include the applicant's name and address, the name of the airport and a
   statement that the applicant intends to file an application with the
   Commission for a unicom. The notice must be given within the ten days
   preceding the filing of the application with the Commission. Each applicant
   must certify upon application that either notice has been given and include
   the date of notification, or notice is not required because the applicant
   owns the airport and there are no organizations that should be notified.

   [ 53 FR 28940 , Aug. 1, 1988, as amended at  55 FR 30464 , July 26, 1990;  63 FR 68957 , Dec. 14, 1998;  69 FR 32885 , June 14, 2004]