FCC Releases Proposed 2025 Annual Regulatory Fees

posted on 6.09.2025

The FCC has released its proposed 2025 annual regulatory fees in the form of a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking.

“The FCC proposes adopting a factor of $0.006379 per population served for the full-power TV station regulatory fee, representing roughly a three percent decrease from the prior year,” said attorney David Oxenford of TAB Associate member Wilkinson Barker Knauer.

“Radio fees are proposed to change very little from those paid last year.”

Comments and reply comments are scheduled for July 7 and July 21 respectively, with the final table of fees adopted shortly thereafter.

Typically, the September annual regulatory fee due date is announced by late August or early September. 

As a practical matter, the commission collects the fees by Sept. 30 as the new federal fiscal year begins Oct. 1.

Consequences for Non-Payment

As two Texas FM stations recently experienced, broadcasters can lose a station license for non-payment of annual regulatory fees.

In this case it was temporary.

After issuing a February order to pay or show cause, the commission issued a May 30 revocation order to Kremling Enterprises, Inc., licensee of KYKM Yoakum and KTXM Hallettsville, for failure to pay delinquent annual regulatory fees.

The FCC also dismissed pending applications for renewal of the stations’ licenses.

The commission said Kremling owed total delinquent annual regulatory fees in excess of $10,000 for fiscal years 2017-21, and 2024.

The revocation was short-lived, however, as the FCC’s Media Bureau reinstated the stations’ licenses on June 4, but did not provide a reason for doing so.

Questions? Contact TAB’s Michael Schneider or call (512) 322-9944.

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