Group Owners: FCC's Spectrum Reclamation Plan Would Be Unlawful

State broadcaster associations oppose the Federal Communications Commission's plan to reclaim spectrum for wireless broadband without enforceable guarantee broadcasters will be held harmless in all respects. A Who's Who of owners representing hundreds of TV stations have asked the FCC to withdraw its proposal, saying there is no spectrum crisis and that the move would be against the public interest and against the law. Representatives of state broadcast associations said they were equally unconvinced by the FCC's plan, despite a personal pitch from FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski during the National Association of Broadcasters convention in Las Vegas earlier this month. They stopped short of asking the petition to be withdrawn, but want an ironclad guarantee of "voluntary." In reply comments on various FCC proposals, Allbritton, Tribune, Meredith, Gray, McGraw-Hill, Nexstar, Granite and almost two dozen more station groups said flatly the FCC proposal to reclaim and auction broadcast spectrum was the wrong way to go and asked it to terminate the proceeding. The groups filed collectively as Local Television Broadcasters. The groups said that if the FCC pursues its present course, it would be "arbitrary, capricious, and contrary to the public interest." According to the Administrative Procedure Act, "arbitrary and capricious" agency decisions are unlawful.