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HR 1977 99th Congress House

Broadcast Licensing, Renewal, and Deregulation Act of 1985

Official title: A bill to amend the Communications Act of 1934 in order to establish new procedures for the renewal, assignment, and transfer of broadcast licenses, to provide… Show full official titleShow less

Official title: A bill to amend the Communications Act of 1934 in order to establish new procedures for the renewal, assignment, and transfer of broadcast licenses, to provide certain deregulation of broadcast services, and for other purposes.

Introduced: April 3, 1985 See on congress.gov
Government Operations and Politics Advertising and MarketingAntitrust lawAntitrust policyBroadcasting
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Communications and BroadcastingLicensesRadio broadcastingRadio programsRegulatory reformTelevisionTelevision advertisingTelevision broadcastingTelevision programs
This bill died when the 99th Congress ended
It never became law before the 99th Congress (1985–1986) adjourned, and bills don't carry over to the next Congress. It would have to be reintroduced. You can still save it for reference, but it won't receive updates.
 Everywhere this bill has been 3 steps
Introduced
In committee
Reported out
Passed House
Passed Senate
To President
Became law
Apr 4, 1985
Referred to Subcommittee on Telecommunications, Consumer Protection and Finance.
Apr 3, 1985
Referred to House Committee on Energy and Commerce.
Apr 3, 1985
Introduced in House
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 Latest action April 4, 1985

Referred to Subcommittee on Telecommunications, Consumer Protection and Finance.

 Plain-English summary Congressional Research Service

Broadcast Licensing, Renewal, and Deregulation Act of 1985 - Amends the Communications Act of 1934 to establish new procedures for reviewing petitions to deny broadcast license applications.

Requires the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to grant a license renewal application by a radio or television broadcast station licensee unless the actions of the licensee evidence such serious disregard for the Communications Act and for the rules and policies of the FCC that denial of the application is justified.

Prohibits the FCC from considering the applications of other persons for a broadcast station's facilities when the FCC is acting upon a license renewal application by a radio or television broadcast station.

Permits persons holding construction permits or station licenses to transfer the permit or license without first obtaining an FCC finding that the transfer serves the public interest. Requires the FCC to be notified of such transfer. Provides for public notice of the transfer. Provides for disposition by the FCC of objections to such transfer. Prohibits the FCC from considering whether the public interest would be served by the transfer.

Repeals certain provisions relating to the application of the antitrust laws to broadcast licensees.

Prohibits the FCC from imposing requirements on radio or television licensees relating to: (1) types of programs; (2) programming formats; (3) ascertainment of the needs or interests of their service areas; (4) commercials; and (5) maintenance of program logs.

 Committees of jurisdiction 2
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APA
U.S. Congress. (2026). H.R. 1977: Broadcast Licensing, Renewal, and Deregulation Act of 1985. 99th Congress. Open America. https://openamerica.io/bill/99-HR-1977/
MLA
"H.R. 1977: Broadcast Licensing, Renewal, and Deregulation Act of 1985." 99th Congress, 2026, Open America, https://openamerica.io/bill/99-HR-1977/.
Bluebook (legal)
H.R. 1977, 99th Cong. (2026), https://openamerica.io/bill/99-HR-1977/.
Markdown link
[H.R. 1977: Broadcast Licensing, Renewal, and Deregulation Act of 1985](https://openamerica.io/bill/99-HR-1977/)
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