The lazy days of summer provide little respite from the regulatory actions of importance to broadcasters. July brings quarterly requirements including, most importantly, the obligation to upload Quarterly Issues/Programs Lists to a station’s online public file. Also in July, eligible applicants may also begin drafting their applications for new noncommercial educational (NCE) FM translator stations to be filed in the mid-August filing window. To allow preparations for that filing window, the FCC instituted a filing freeze on all LPFM, FM translator, and FM booster station minor modification applications beginning on July 10. Political file windows are also opening in July in a few states. So, even if the beach chair is calling, remember to keep an eye on dates that can affect your stations.
July 1 is the first date for existing NCE station operators to begin preparing their applications in the FCC’s LMS database for the new NCE FM translator reserved band (88.1-91.9 MHz) filing window. That window will be open between 12:01 a.m., ET, on August 11, 2026 and 11:59 p.m., ET, on August 25, 2026. To facilitate the preparation of the filing window applications by stabilizing the technical database, the Bureau announced a filing freeze on both reserved and non-reserved band LPFM, FM translator, and FM booster station minor modification applications beginning at 11:59 p.m., ET, on July 10, and continuing until the filing window’s closing. So if you are planning a change in a translator or LPFM’s facilities, get it on file before July 10 or you will be precluded from filing for the next six weeks. For more on the filing window and the filing freeze, see our Broadcast Law Blog article here.
July 6 is the deadline for reply comments on Disney/ABC’s Petition for Declaratory Ruling concerning the status of “The View” as a bona fide news interview program exempt from the FCC’s equal opportunity rules. As we noted here, Disney/ABC contended that it was unprecedented for the Bureau to order a licensee to file a Petition for Declaratory Ruling, particularly as ABC received a ruling from Bureau in 2002 that “The View” was exempt from the equal time rules. Disney/ABC also questioned the validity of the Bureau’s January Public Notice (which we discussed here), contending that the Bureau cannot change 40 years of FCC precedent holding that, even without an explicit FCC declaratory ruling, regularly scheduled interview programs controlled by a licensee and regularly featuring newsmakers are exempt from the equal time rules. The Bureau seeks comment on several matters, including whether “The View” qualifies as a bona fide news interview program and whether its programming decisions are politically motivated, and the broader question as to whether the equal opportunity rules can still be applied consistent with First Amendment principles. Comments were due June 22.
July 10 is the deadline for all full power and Class A television stations and full power AM and FM radio stations, both commercial and noncommercial, to upload their Quarterly Issues/Program lists for the second quarter of 2026 to their OPIFs. The lists should identify the issues of importance to the station’s service area and the programs that the station aired between April 1 and June 30, 2026, that addressed those issues. These lists must be timely uploaded to your station’s OPIF, as the untimely uploads of these documents probably have resulted in more fines in the last decade than for any other FCC rule violation. As you finalize your lists, do so carefully and accurately, as they are the only official records of how your station is serving the public and addressing the needs and interests of its community. See our article here for more on the importance of the Quarterly Issues/Programs list obligation.
July 10 is also the deadline for a number of other online public file obligations that apply to certain stations. The following obligations apply to stations if they have any of the information listed below:
- documentation from noncommercial educational stations not affiliated with NPR or CPB of any on-air fundraising benefitting third parties that interrupted their normal programming (see our article here for a further explanation of this requirement),
- documentation by Class A television of their continuing eligibility for Class A status, and
- documentation from full power television, Class A television, and full power radio stations of any programming time that was leased by a foreign government or an agent of a foreign government or provided by a foreign entity for free in exchange for its airing (see our articles here and here for more information).
July 13 is the deadline for comments responding to the FCC’s March Direct Final Rule, in which the FCC deleted several rules including rules for the TV spectrum reverse auction which ended in 2017 and other rules regarding installment payments and auction procedures that are either out of date or are covered in other rules still applicable to broadcasters. As we noted here, the Direct Final Rule process allows the FCC to delete a rule without prior public comment, but the process allows for a 10- to 20-day comment period after the item’s publication in the Federal Register. If substantive negative comments are filed against the deletions within that period (here, by July 13), the FCC will implement regular notice and comment procedures before the deletions take effect. If not, the rule deletions will take effect on August 21.
July 31 is the deadline for television stations that produced programming carried by cable or satellite television providers as a distant signal need to file claims with the Copyright Royalty Board for their share of the royalties to be distributed under the compulsory license for secondary transmissions during the preceding calendar year. Separate forms must be filed in July for royalties from either cable or satellite television providers.
Broadcasters located in Alaska, Delaware, Florida, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Wyoming should also be aware of the opening of the following political windows tied to state and local elections occurring in August and September 2026—meaning that Lowest Unit Rates apply to sales to candidates and their authorized committees (see our article here on the basics of computing LUR). In our summary of regulatory dates in June, we identified other political windows that are already open for LUR for elections occurring in July and early August. The new windows opening in June are as follows:
| STATE/ | LUR DATE | ELECTION DATE | ELECTION TYPE |
| Alaska | July 4, 2026 | August 18, 2026 | General Primary Elections |
| Florida | July 4, 2026 | August 18, 2026 | General Primary Elections |
| Wyoming | July 4, 2026 | August 18, 2026 | General Primary Elections |
| Florida | July 10, 2026 | September 8, 2026 | Municipal Election (Campbelltown) |
| Delaware | July 14, 2026 | September 12, 2026 | Municipal Election (Bethany Beach) |
| Massachusetts | July 18, 2026 | September 1, 2026 | General Primary Elections |
| Delaware | July 21, 2026 | September 19, 2026 | Municipal Election (Dewey Beach) |
| New Hampshire | July 25, 2026 | September 8, 2026 | General Primary Elections |
| Rhode Island | July 25, 2026 | September 8, 2026 | General Primary Elections |
As a refresher, in the 45 days before a primary election, and 60 days before a general or special election, broadcasters must extend to legally qualified candidates their lowest unit rate and continue to follow all other applicable political broadcasting rules. For a deeper dive on how to prepare for the 2026 elections, see our post here, which also includes a link to our comprehensive Political Broadcasting Guide. Also, take a look at our 2026 Broadcasters’ Calendar to see if your state has any upcoming primary, general, or special election (and confirm that all dates for political windows, including those listed above, are accurate as some dates have changed since the calendar was prepared).
As always, consult your own legal and technical advisors for other dates of importance that might apply to your stations in the upcoming months.
