Emmer leads bipartisan effort calling on FCC to justify planned fee increase for broadcasters

U.S. Rep. Tom Emmer (R-MN) recently led a bipartisan contingent of 93 lawmakers in questioning why the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is proposing a 13 percent increase in broadcasters’ regulatory fees this year.

“Our broadcasters provide an essential and free service to the public,” said Rep. Emmer, co-founder and chair of the Congressional Broadcasters Caucus. “This unjustified fee increase is appalling and out-of-step with regulatory costs for any other industry under the FCC’s jurisdiction.”

For fiscal year 2022, the FCC plans to increase fees on broadcasters by roughly $7.3 million, or 13 percent, which amounts to nearly the FCC’s entire $7.95 million budget, according to Rep. Emmer’s office.

In an Aug. 15 letter sent to FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel, the congressmen wrote that broadcasters provide a free service to the public and are unable to pass on such costs to their audience. Instead, these fees must come out of operational budgets funded by advertising revenues that have not yet recovered from the impacts of the coronavirus pandemic. 

“As a result,” they wrote, “any substantial increase the FCC has proposed will have direct impacts on broadcasters’ ability to invest in programming or equipment broadcasters require to provide quality local news and information to their communities.”

And for small broadcasters already operating on shoestring budgets, such fee increases could impact whether they’re able to cover certain events or, in some cases, stay on the air, according to their letter.

In a separate statement, Rep. Emmer agreed, saying the increased fees will erode already-strained station budgets. “The FCC must not force our broadcasters to shoulder burdensome costs to subsidize some of the largest and most powerful companies in the world,” he said.

To better understand the FCC’s proposal, Rep. Emmer and his colleagues requested that Rosenworcel respond to several questions “as soon as possible,” including whether the FCC has considered the inability of many broadcasters to pass along costs to their audiences. 

Their letter is supported by the National Association of Broadcasters.