The structure of the FCC and the media office. The FCC has five commissioners, each appointed by the president and confirmed by the Senate. Commissioners are responsible for a number of offices and employment offices. One of these is the Media Office, which is responsible for the day-to-day development, recommendation and management of rules for the media, including broadcasters. The FCC`s broadcasting rules are contained in Title 47 of the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR), Part 73 (broadcasting, including AM, FM, LPFM and TV) and 74 (ancillary programs, including low-power television and translation stations). Our rules of procedure are found in 47 CFR Part 1. All the rules of Title 47 can be found on the Government Printing Office website, www.ecfr.gov/cgi-bin/text-idx?tpl=/ecfrbrowse/Title47/47tab_02.tpl. More information on the Commission`s offices, including their respective tasks, is available on our website under “Search for offices and offices” under www.fcc.gov/. Device requirements for emergency information and video description. The FCC requires certain devices that receive, play, or record video programs to provide a secondary audio stream for the provision of accessible video description and emergency information services. Device manufacturers must provide a simple and easy-to-use mechanism to activate the secondary audio stream, such as a button or icon.
For more information about this requirement, see www.fcc.gov/television-and-set-top-box-controls-menus-program-gu. Most FCC rules are adopted through a process known as “notice and comment.” As part of this process, the FCC informs the public that it plans to adopt or amend regulations on a particular topic and invites public comment. The Commission shall take into account the comments received when drawing up the final rules. For more information, see our online summary of the FCC`s rule-making process. In 1999, the Supreme Court ruled that the ban on airing advertisements for legal casino games cannot be constitutionally applied to truthful advertising broadcast by licensed radio or television stations in states where gambling is legal. Based on the reasoning behind this decision, the FCC and the U.S. Department of Justice subsequently concluded that the prohibition on lottery advertising could not be constitutionally applied to the broadcast of truthful advertisements for legal casino games, whether or not the state in which the channel is located permits casino gaming. For more information about the lottery rule, see www.fcc.gov/consumers/guides/broadcasting-contests-lotteries-and. This manual is published by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), the federal agency run by Congress to regulate broadcasting. It provides a brief overview of the regulation of radio and television licensees and describes how the FCC authorizes broadcasters, the various rules regarding programming and broadcasting operations with which broadcasters must comply, and the essential obligation of licensees that their stations serve their local communities. Under the Congressional Review Act, agencies must submit final rules to Congress. Once submitted, Congress can initiate a process to reverse the rule.
Congress can also use a variety of processes as part of its oversight of agency actions, including holding hearings, preparing reports, or passing legislation. The Communications Act. The FCC was created by Congress in the Communications Act to “provide, to the extent practicable, interstate and foreign commerce in wire and radio communications to all residents of the United States without discrimination as to race, color, religion, national origin, or sex, wireline and fast radio communications service, effective, national and global.” (In this context, the word “radio” includes both radio and television.) The Communications Act empowers the Commission to “make such regulations that are not inconsistent with the Act as it considers necessary to prevent interference between broadcasters and to enforce the provisions of the Act.” It directs us to base our broadcasting licensing decisions on whether such measures are in the public interest, convenience and necessity.