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As expected, and notwithstanding substantial industry opposition expressi=
ng
concerns about the burdensome nature of the process, the FCC has establis=
hed
December 15, 2009 as the deadline for every commercial broadcaster=
to
file a complete set of ownership reports on the new Form 323. The FCC has indicated that the n=
ew
form will not be available for use within the agency’s electronic
database until “on or about” November 16. As a consequence, broadcasters w=
ill
only have approximately 30 days in which to file their ownership reports.=
As we reported in a Client Alert on October 29, every
attributable interest holder, including every officer and director of a
corporate licensee and any corporate parents must obtain and report on the
new Form 323 a unique FCC Registration Number (“FRN”). <=
/span>
Given the imminent Form 323 filing deadline and the large number of parti=
es
expected to request FRNs, it is
extremely important that individuals that have attributable interests in
broadcast stations obtain an FRN as soon as possible.
Obtaining an FRN for an individual requires the submission of the individ=
ual’s
Social Security Number (“SSN”) to the FCC as part of the
application process. If you=
have
any concerns regarding the disclosure of an individual’s SSN to =
the
FCC, please contact this office immediately. Due to data security concerns
associated with the transmission and storage of SSNs, and to minimize the
risk of accidental or improper disclosure of SSNs, broadcasters should obtain FRNs for their attributable interest
holders themselves, and provide us with those FRNs (but not
SSNs) for use in preparing the new Form 323 Ownership Reports. In this regard, we strongly caut=
ion
broadcasters against transmitting SSNs via any electronic means, such as
e-mail or fax, for any reason without appropriate encryption and security
procedures. You will also n=
eed to
secure and dispose of any material that contains a SSN in accordance with
state and federal privacy laws.
Further advice as to procedures you can use to properly manage the
SSNs of your attributable interest holders and thereby ensure compliance =
with
privacy requirements should be directed to the attorney in our office
handling the filing of your ownership reports.
Please note that if an attributable interest holder already has been issu=
ed
an FRN, there is no need to obtain a new FRN. Moreover, attributable interest
holders must use a single FRN to report all of their attributable interes=
ts.
The process of obtaining an FRN for an individual is relatively
straightforward and is explained in detail below:
Step 1: Log onto the
Commission’s Registration System (CORES) at: https://=
fjallfoss.fcc.gov/coresWeb/publicHome.do
Step 2: Select
“Register and receive your FRN.”
![3Dstep2](3D"Broadcast_Ownership_Reports_On_New_Form_323_Due_By_December_15_fil=)
Step 3: Select
registration of an individual and indicate whether their contact address =
is
within the United States or its territories.
(If the contact address is not within the United States or its territorie=
s, a
drop down menu will be provided on the subsequent page to select the corr=
ect
contact country.)
Step 4: Provide=
the required
identification and contact information for the individual to be registere=
d,
create a 6- to 15-character case-=
sensitive
password, create a Personal Security Question and its corresponding answe=
r,
and then select the “Submit” button.
Step 5: Print a copy of the FRN
registration confirmation page with the individual’s newly issued F=
RN,
and e-mail or fax a copy of that confirmation page to us for our
records. For your informati=
on,
the confirmation page will display only the last 4 digits of the
individual’s SSN, which can be redacted if desired.
=
Step 6: Create an internal file that will
include the individual’s name as submitted to the FCC, the FRN, the
password, and the security question and corresponding answer. Do not include the SSN in this file=
or
otherwise retain the SSN.
This information will be needed in order to update or change any
information in an individual’s FRN account. Retain this information
internally in a secure manner. Only authorized personnel should have acce=
ss
to this file.
Should you have any questions regarding the revised Form 323 or FRN
registration process, or have any privacy concerns relating to this proce=
ss,
please contact your primary attorney in our office.
November
4, 2009
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|
This memorandum is intended o=
nly as
a general discussion of these issues and should not be regarded as l=
egal
advice.
We would be pleased to provide
additional details or advice about specific situations if desired.=
Copyr=
ight
© 2009, Lerman Senter PLLC
2000
K Street NW, Suite 600 | Washington, DC 20006-1809
tel. 202.429.8970 | fax 202.293.7783 | www.lermansenter.com
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