AirtallyFCC public inspection file checklist for the 2027 renewal
Short answer. In the renewal application the licensee certifies that the station's public inspection file was complete at the appropriate times. Before you file, check that every quarterly issues/programs list of the license term is in the online file and when each was uploaded, that each annual EEO public file report is there if your employment unit has five or more full-time employees, and that ownership reports are current; prepare an exhibit that explains every late or missing item; then run the local public notice announcements after filing.
1. Know your dates
License terms end by State group (47 CFR 73.1020). The renewal is due on the first day of the fourth full calendar month before the license expires (73.3539), and petitions to deny are due by the first day of the last full calendar month of the term (73.3584(f)). The first radio groups:
| States (radio) | Renewal due | Petitions to deny by | License expires |
|---|---|---|---|
| MD, DC, VA, WV | Jun 1, 2027 | Sep 1, 2027 | Oct 1, 2027 |
| NC, SC | Aug 2, 2027 | Nov 1, 2027 | Dec 1, 2027 |
| FL, PR, VI | Oct 1, 2027 | Jan 3, 2028 | Feb 1, 2028 |
| AL, GA | Dec 1, 2027 | Mar 1, 2028 | Apr 1, 2028 |
TV stations follow the same order one year later. A date on a weekend or federal holiday moves to the next business day (1.4(j)).
2. The checklist
- Every quarterly issues/programs list of the term. One per calendar quarter, due by the 10th day of the following quarter (73.3526(e)(11)–(12) commercial, 73.3527(e)(8) noncommercial). Check the upload date of each, not only that it exists.
- Every annual EEO public file report if the station employment unit has five or more full-time employees: placed in the file and on the station's website each year on the anniversary of the renewal due date (73.2080(c)(6)).
- Ownership reports filed (73.3615); they are filed in LMS, so confirm them there.
- Late or missing items explained. Upload what is missing now (it remains late, but the file is complete), and prepare an exhibit with each item's due date, upload date and the steps taken to prevent a recurrence.
- Local public notice. After filing, broadcast the announcements on the schedule in 73.3580 and place the certification in the public file within seven days of the last one.
- Keep the lists until the next renewal is final. Issues/programs lists stay in the file until final action on the station's next renewal application.
The FCC sorts late lists by how late they were. In NAL DA 23-1051 it counted seven lists more than one year late, four between one month and one year late and one between one day and one month late, and proposed a $9,000 forfeiture.
Three ways to do it, compared
| Check publicfiles.fcc.gov by hand | Communications counsel review | Airtally | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cost | Free, your time | Counsel's fees | $790 a year per station ($474 founding price until 30 Nov 2026) |
| Every quarter of the term with its deadline | You list them and compare upload dates | Yes | Read from the FCC's public file and checked |
| Late lists sorted as the FCC counts them | By hand | Yes | Automatic |
| Exhibit for late items | You write it | Counsel writes it | Draft with the facts and dates, for your counsel to complete |
| Legal advice | No | Yes | No |
Counsel is the right choice for advice and for the application itself; Airtally gives counsel or the station the facts and dates in minutes. One station with a tidy file can check it by hand.
Check your station free
Type your call sign or see the sample station: every quarter, report and date shows on screen without sign-up. The report, workbook, exhibit draft and calendar need a license: Station $790, Group $1,990 (up to 12 stations), Counsel $3,900 (any number), each one payment for 12 months; $474, $1,194 and $2,340 with FOUNDING40 until 30 Nov 2026.