FCC Sets Effective Date for Foreign Sponsorship ID Rule Changes

On July 16th, the FCC announced that two changes to its sponsorship identification requirements for foreign government-provided programming, as detailed in its June 10th Second Report and Order, are set to become effective on August 15, 2024.

Recall that the FCC modified its sponsorship identification rules in March of 2022 to require broadcasters to identify foreign governmental sponsors of programming content. As we explained in our March 15, 2022, blog post, the modified rules require broadcasters to take the following steps in identifying whether program sponsors are foreign governmental entities:

1. Inform the programmer of your foreign sponsorship disclosure obligations;
2. Directly ask the programmer if they are a foreign governmental entity, which includes governments of foreign countries, foreign political parties, agents of foreign principals, and U.S.-based foreign media outlets;
3. Ask the programmer whether anyone involved in producing/distributing the programming qualifies as a foreign governmental entity; and
4. Document and maintain a record of steps 1-3 above in case of future FCC inquiry.

As a result of the FCC's changes announced on July 16th, commencing on August 15th:

1. Purchases of broadcast time by or on behalf of legally qualified candidates or their authorized committees will be exempt from the foreign sponsorship identification requirements; and
2. Section 325(c) permittees which deliver programming from a U.S. studio to a non-U.S. licensed station in a foreign country for broadcast back into the United States will be subject to the foreign sponsorship identification requirements.

Initially, the foreign sponsorship rules had a fifth requirement that broadcasters verify their sponsors' status by consulting the Department of Justice's FARA website and the FCC's semi-annual U.S.-based foreign media outlets reports. However, as we explained in our June 12, 2024 blog post, this requirement was vacated by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit.

Following the D.C. Circuit Court's decision, the FCC proposed a revised fifth step, with two options for demonstrating that [broadcasters] have met their duty of inquiry" when leasing airtime. Under the first option, both the licensee and the lessee must complete a written certification," a form of which is provided in Appendices C and D of the FCC's June 10 Report and Order.Under the second option, broadcasters must ask whether the lessee is a registered FARA agent, or is listed in the Commission's U.S.-based foreign media outlet report". If the lessee programmer responded no," the station licensee would then need to ask the programmer lessee to provide screenshots showing the results of lessee's searches of both of these websites.

The FCC has yet to announce the compliance date for this new fifth step.

As always, feel free to contact an attorney here at FHH if you have any questions.