Mary’s post titled Campaign Favors Already? talked about Councilman Kennedy’s campaign statements made on a local radio station, KVNI.  She asked if Kennedy’s campaign finance report would have to reflect the value of that air time.

Another question might be, what obligations does a radio station licensed by the Federal Communications Commission have with regard to political advertising?  What recourse, if any, does a citizen have if he believes an FCC licensee (KVNI in this case) has violated federal law, FCC rules, and policies.Here is a link to the relevant statutes and rules for candidate appearances on FCC-licensed broadcast stations .

If you have questions concerning the Federal Communications Commission’s political programming rules with respect to radio, television, cable television, and Direct Broadcast Satellite (DBS), you can contact the political programming staff by calling their main number at (202) 418-1440 or by e-mailing them at campaignlaw@fcc.gov. Among the subject areas in which this team can help are:

• Advising whether equal opportunities for political opponents are warranted
• Advising on candidate access issues
• Advising on the amount candidates can be charged for political advertising
• Advising on the specifics of sponsorship identification
• Advising on the FCC’s role in enforcing portions of the recent Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act requirements and a variety of other issues arising in the political arena

Any citizen has the right to go to KVNI (or any other FCC-licensed broadcast station) and request to view the Local Public Inspection File. One of the records that must be included in this file is the Political File. Stations must keep a file which contains “a complete record of a request to purchase broadcast time that: (A) is made by or on behalf of a legally qualified candidate for public office; or (B) communicates a message relating to any political matter of national importance, including: (i) a legally qualified candidate; (ii) any election to federal office; or (iii) a national legislative issue of public importance.” The file must identify how the station responded to such requests and, if the request was granted, the charges made, a schedule of time purchased, the times the spots actually aired, the rates charged, and the classes of time purchased.

The file also must reflect any free time provided to a candidate.

The station must keep the political records in the file for two years after the spot airs.

If a citizen believes he should make a formal complaint, the first step is to write a letter to station management to identify and complain. By the way, that letter must become part of the Local Public Inspection File to be retained as prescribed.

If writing to the station management doesn’t resolve the issue, complain directly to the FCC. The complaint can be filed via online complaint form. Citizens can also call in, e-mail or file a complaint in hard copy with the FCC’s Consumer Center this way:

Federal Communications Commission,  Consumer & Governmental Affairs Bureau, Consumer Inquiries and Complaints Division, 445 12th St., S.W. Washington, D.C. 20554,   Fax number: (202) 418-0232, Telephone number: (888) 225-5322 (voice); (888)835-5322 (TTY), E-mail address:fccinfo@fcc.gov

If citizens are submitting an audio or video tape, DVD, CD or other type of media with the complaint, send it to the following address to avoid mail processing damage: Federal Communications Commission,  Consumer & Governmental Affairs Bureau, Consumer Inquiries and Complaints Division, 9300 East Hampton Drive,  Capitol Heights, Maryland 20743.

If citizens do not use the on-line complaint Form 2000E, the complaint, at a minimum, should indicate: (1) the call letters of the station; (2) the city and state in which the station is located; (3) the name, time, and date of the specific program or advertisement in question, if applicable; (4) the name of anyone contacted at the station, if applicable; and (5) a statement of the problem, as specific as possible, together with an audio or video tape, CD, DVD or other recording or transcript of the program or advertisement that is the subject of the complaint (if possible). Citizens should include your name and address if you would like information on the final disposition of the complaint; citizens may request confidentiality. The FCC prefers that complaints be submitted in writing, although complaints that are time-sensitive can be submitted by telephone, especially if they involve safety concerns. The FCC can only act on allegations that a station has violated a provision of the Communications Act or the FCC’s rules or policies.