Carriage Election Contact Information Due In Public Files By July 31; Carriage Elections Due October 1

The FCC has updated its Online Public Inspection File database so that television broadcasters can input their Carriage Election Notification Point of Contact information into their public files. Stations should enter their carriage election contact information no later than July 31, 2020. This information, which includes the e-mail address and phone number of a designated contact person, will tell MVPDs and the FCC where to send inquires and notifications related to must-carry and retransmission consent election statements.

To comply with the new requirements, stations should:

• Log in to their online public inspection files and open the “Profile” page.

• At the bottom of the “Basic Info” tab on the “TV Station Information” page, access the section called “Carriage Election Contact Information.”

• Complete the e-mail and telephone fields for the point of contact who will respond to carriage-related inquiries.

In addition to entering this contact information by July 31, 2020, stations must upload their 2021-2023 carriage election statements to their public inspection files no later than October 1, 2020. Stations are no longer required to send carriage election notices to MVPDs by certified mail.

If a station is changing its election status from the previous cycle – but only if it is making a change – the station must also send an e-mail to the affected MVPD using the contact information provided by the MVPD in the FCC’s Cable Operations and Licensing System (COALS) database, and must also copy the new FCC carriage-election notification e-mail address (ElectionNotices@fcc.gov). An MVPD must then send the station an acknowledgement that it received the station’s new carriage election. If the station does not receive an e-mail acknowledgement, it must call the MVPD to confirm receipt of the station’s new carriage election. If the station does not receive an acknowledgement from the MVPD and cannot reach it by telephone, the election notice will still be deemed effective as long as the station properly notified the MVPD, copied the message to the carriage election mailbox, and uploaded the notification to the station’s online public file.

If you have questions about the new carriage election process, please contact any attorney in our office.