To provide electronic filing of applications, notifications, registration statements, reports, and related documents in the Multichannel Video and Cable Television Services and the Cable Television Relay Services.

This subpart applies to filings required by §§ 76.403, 76.1610, 76.1801, 76.1803, & 76.1804, and 78.11 through 78.36 of this chapter.

For purposes of this subpart, the following definitions apply:

(a) Application. A request on Form 327 for a station license as defined in Section 3(b) of the Communications Act, completed in accordance with § 78.15 and signed in accordance with § 78.16 of this chapter, or a similar request to amend a pending application or to modify or renew an authorization. The term also encompasses requests to assign rights granted by the authorization or to transfer control of entities holding authorizations.

(b) Authorization. A written instrument issued by the FCC conveying authority to operate, for a specified period, a station in the Cable Television Relay Service. In addition, this term includes authority conveyed by operation of rule upon filing notification of aeronautical frequency usage by MVPDs or registration statements by cable operators.

(c) Cable Operations And Licensing System (COALS). The consolidated database, application filing system, and processing system for Multichannel Video and Cable Television Services (MVCTS) and the Cable Television Relay Service (CARS). COALS supports electronic filing of all applications, notifications, registrations, reports, and related documents by applicants and licensees in the MVCTS and CARS, and provides public access to licensing information.

(d) Cable Television Relay Service (CARS). All services authorized under part 78 of this title.

(e) Filings. Any application, notification, registration statement, or report in plain text, or, when as prescribed, on FCC Forms, 320, 321, 322, 324, or 327, whether filed in paper form or electronically.

(f) Multichannel Video and Cable Television Services (MVCTS). All services authorized or operated in accordance with part 76 of this title.

(g) Receipt date. The date an electronic or paper application is received at the appropriate location at the Commission or the lock box bank. Major amendments to pending applications as defined in § 78.109 of this chapter, will result in the assignment of a new receipt date.

(h) Signed. For manually filed applications only, an original hand-written signature. For electronically filed applications only, an electronic signature. An electronic signature shall consist of the name of the applicant transmitted electronically via COALS and entered on the filing as a signature.

Applications, notifications, correspondence, electronic filings and other material, and copies of authorizations, comprising technical, legal, and administrative data relating to each system in the Multichannel Video and Cable Television Services (MVCTS) and the Cable Television Relay Service (CARS) are maintained by the Commission in COALS and the Public Reference Room. These files constitute the official records for these stations and supersede any other records, database or lists from the Commission or other sources.

(a) Application forms. Operators in the Multichannel Video and Cable Television Services (MVCTS) and applicants and licensees the Cable Television Relay Service (CARS) shall use the following forms and associated schedules:

(1) FCC Form 320, Basic Signal Leakage Performance Report. FCC Form 320 is used by MVPDs to report compliance with the basic signal leakage performance criteria.

(2) FCC Form 321, Aeronautical Frequency Notification. FCC Form 321 is used by MVPDs to notify the Commission prior to operating channels in the aeronautical frequency bands.

(3) FCC Form 322, Cable Community Registration. FCC Form 322 is used by cable system operators to commence operation for each community unit.

(4) FCC Form 324, Operator, Address, and Operational Information Changes. FCC Form 324 is used by cable operators to notify the Commission of changes in administrative data about the operator and operational status changes.

(5) [Reserved]

(6) FCC Form 327, Application for Cable Television Relay Service Station License. FCC Form 327 and associated schedules is used to apply for initial authorizations, modifications to existing authorizations, amendments to pending applications, and renewals of station authorizations. FCC Form 327 is also used to apply for Commission consent to assignments of existing CARS authorizations and to apply for Commission consent to the transfer of control of entities holding CARS authorizations.

(b) Electronic filing. Six months after the Commission announces their availability for electronic filing, all applications and other filings using FCC Forms 320, 321, 322, 324, and 327 and their respective associated schedules must be filed electronically in accordance with the electronic filing instructions provided by COALS.

(1) There will be two ways for parties to electronically file applications with the Commission: batch and interactive.

(i) Batch filing. Batch filing involves data transmission in a single action. Batch filers will follow a set Commission format for entering data. Batch filers will then send, via file transfer protocol, batches of data to the Commission for compiling. COALS will compile such filings overnight and respond the next business day with a return or dismissal of any defective filings. Thus, batch filers will not receive immediate correction from the system as they enter the information.

(ii) Interactive filing. Interactive filing involves data transmission with screen-by-screen prompting from the Commission's COALS system. Interactive filers will receive prompts from the system identifying data entries outside the acceptable ranges of data for the individual fields at the time the data entry is made.

(2) Attachments to applications must be uploaded along with the electronically filed application whenever possible.

(3) Any associated documents submitted with an application must be uploaded as attachments to the application whenever possible. The attachment should be uploaded via COALS in Adobe Acrobat Portable Document Format (PDF) whenever possible.

(c) Manual filing. (1) Forms 320, 321, 322, 324, and 327 may be filed manually.

(2) Manual filings must be submitted to the Commission at the appropriate address with the appropriate filing fee. The addresses for filing and the fee amounts for particular applications are listed in subpart G of this part, and in the appropriate fee filing guide for each service available from the Commission's Forms Distribution Center by calling 1-800-418-FORM (3676). The form may be downloaded from the Commission's Web site: http://www.fcc.gov.

(3) Manual filings requiring fees as set forth at subpart G, of this part must be filed in accordance with § 0.401(b) of this chapter.

(4) Manual filings that do not require fees must be addressed and sent to the Media Bureau at the FCC's main office, located at the address indicated in 47 CFR 0.401(a).

(5) FCC forms may be reproduced and the copies used in accordance with the provisions of § 0.409 of this chapter.

(d) Applications requiring prior coordination. Parties filing applications that require frequency coordination shall, prior to filing, complete all applicable frequency coordination requirements in § 78.36 of this chapter.

(a) General. Filings must contain all information requested on the applicable form and any additional information required by the rules in this title and any rules pertaining to the specific service for which the filing is made.

(b) Antenna locations. Applications for CARS stations and aeronautical frequency usage notifications must describe each transmitting antenna site or center of the cable system, respectively, by its geographical coordinates. Geographical coordinates must be specified in degrees, minutes, and seconds to the nearest tenth of a second of latitude and longitude. Submissions must provide such data using the NAD83 datum.

(c) Antenna structure registration. Owners of certain antenna structures must notify the Federal Aviation Administration and register with the Commission as required by Part 17 of this chapter. Applications proposing the use of one or more new or existing antenna structures must contain the FCC Antenna Registration Number(s) of each structure for which registration is required. If registration is not required, the applicant must provide information in its application sufficient for the Commission to verify this fact.

(d) Environmental concerns. Each applicant is required to indicate at the time its application is filed whether a Commission grant of the application may have a significant environmental effect, as defined by § 1.1307. If yes, an Environmental Assessment, required by § 1.1311, must be filed with the application and environmental review by the Commission must be completed prior to construction.

(e) International coordination. Channel assignments and usage under part 78 are subject to the applicable provisions and requirements of treaties and other international agreements between the United States government and the governments of Canada and Mexico.

(f) Taxpayer Identification Number (TINs). All filers are required to provide their Taxpayer Identification Numbers (TINS) (as defined in 26 U.S.C. 6109) to the Commission, pursuant to the Debt Collection Improvement Act of 1996 (DCIA). Under the DCIA, the FCC may use an applicant or licensee's TIN for purposes of collecting and reporting to the Department of the Treasury any delinquent amounts arising out of such person's relationship with the Government.

Regardless of filing method, all submissions with an insufficient fee, grossly deficient or inaccurate information, or those without a valid signature will be dismissed immediately. For any submission that is found subsequently to have minimally deficient or inaccurate information, we will notify the filer of the defect. We will allow 15 days from the date of this notification for correction or amendment of the submission if the amendment is minor. If the applicant files a timely corrected application, it will ordinarily be processed as a minor amendment in accordance with the Commission's rules. Thus it will have no effect on the initial filing date of the application or the applicant's filing priority. If, however, the amendment made by the applicant is not a simple correction, but constitutes a major amendment to the application, it will be governed by the rules and procedures applicable to major amendments, that is, it will be treated as a new application with a new filing date and new fees must be paid by the applicant. Finally, if the applicant fails to submit an amended application within the period specified in the notification, the application will be subject to dismissal for failure to prosecute.