One new one, two going away...

Garden City, Kansas: 1340KHz:
Permit granted for new station.
1,000 watts daytime; 880 watts night; non-directional.
37-58-08N/100-55-56W.

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Dartmouth, Nova Scotia: 780KHz:
CFDR granted permit to move to 92.9 FM, 63,000 watts.

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Sudbury, Ontario: 790KHz:
CIGM granted permit to move to 93.5 FM, 100,000 watts.

Analog TV to continue past February?

The "Short-term Analog Flash and Emergency Readiness Act", S.3663, has passed the U.S. Senate.

(why "Flash"? Because that way, the bill's acronym spells "SAFER".....)

This law would require the FCC to allow analog television to continue for 30 days after the February 17th deadline for conversion to all-digital operation. However, the analog transmitters could only carry information about the digital transition and emergency/safety information.

Stations whose analog channels are between 14-20 or 52-69 are excluded. So are stations whose continued analog operation would interfere with post-transition digital TV. (for example, stations that are using their current analog channels for their post-transition digital broadcasts!)

It does not require any station to leave its analog on the air.

A similar bill has been introduced in the House but has not yet been acted on. President Bush hasn't said whether he'd sign the law but I would be very surprised by a veto. The bill calls for the FCC to act by January 15th -- which is five days before President Obama's inauguration -- so Obama's position on the bill is irrelevant (grin)... (again, I'd be amazed if Obama opposed it)

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Other recent DTV-related legislative proposals would:

- Extend the expiration of DTV coupons, either from 3 months to six, or by setting a single expiration date of March 31st, 2009.

- Provide a $40 income tax credit for each expired coupon, up to two coupons ($80) per taxpayer. Presumably this would have the same effect as setting an expiration date of December 31st, 2009.

- Suspend the import taxes on converter boxes.

To my knowledge none of these bills has passed either house of Congress.

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Edited 2008-11-22 10:13 to add a title!

New AM station

Excel, Alabama: 1400KHz:
Permit granted for new station.
1,000 watts day and night, non-directional.
31-26-42N/87-18-55W

I can't find Excel on my atlas but the coordinates plot in the general vicinity of Monroeville in southern Alabama, roughly 80km northeast of Mobile.

AM callsign changes

The following stations have changed callsigns recently:

AL Carrollton 590 WREN from WRAG
AR Hot Springs 590 KZHS from KPZA
CA Santa Barbara 1340 KCLU from KIST
CA Santa Barbara 1490 KIST from KBKO
CO Loveland 1570 KPIO from KSXT
FL Kendall 1020 WURN from WRHB
FL Palm Springs 1500 WVAA new station
GA Ochlocknee 1020 WSBX from WJEP
MD Baltimore 1300 WJZ from WJFK
MD Morningside 1580 WHFS from WPGC
MN St. Peter 1310 KGLB from KRBI
MS Jackson 1400 WJQS from WKXI
NC Jacksonville 1400 WSTK from WJQQ
SC Walhalla 1000 WJTP from WWOF
TN Powell 1040 WKTI from WQBB
TX New Boston 1530 KLBW from KNBO


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On FM, the FCC has assigned KCBE to a new station on Long Island.

AM stations going away in Canada

High Prairie, Alberta: 1020KHz:
CKVH requests move to FM.
93.5, 25,000 watts, antenna at 66 metres.

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St. Paul, Alberta: 1310KHz:
CHLW requests move to FM.
97.7, 36,000 watts, antenna at 123 metres.

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Windsor, Ontario: 1550KHz:
CBE requests move to FM.
97.5, 19,000 watts, antenna at 130 metres.
This move would involve a second FM transmitter, in Leamington, on 91.5.
It would also replace the permit for a "nested" FM relay on 102.3. The 97.5 facility (when used with 91.5 Leamington) would provide enough coverage to make the AM transmitter unnecessary.

If granted, there would be no CBC AM stations left between Newfoundland and Winnipeg.

Canadian AM station granted frequency change

Camrose, Alberta: 840KHz:
CFCW granted permission to move from 790.
50,000 watts daytime
40,000 watts nighttime
Directional all hours, different patterns.
These facilities (like their old ones on 790) will serve Edmonton.

New AM stations requested

Calgary, Alberta: 700KHz:
Application for new station.
50,000 watts daytime; 20,000 watts nighttime.
51-03-00N/114-05-04W
Unknown if directional - probably, with different patterns day & night.
To carry gospel music.
These are the facilities abandoned by CKRD Red Deer when it moved to FM.
Merritt, British Columbia: 1230KHz:
Application for new station.
1,000 watts fulltime, non-directional
50-06-29N/120-46-10W

This station already exists as CJNL; however, CJNL is to move to 101.1 FM and change format. The AM transmitter will be retained and used to relay CHNL-610 Kamloops. (which is what it's already doing...) So maybe this isn't a new station...

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Dalton Gardens, Idaho: 1490KHz:
Application for new station.
810 watts day & night, non-directional
47-45-44N/116-47-11W
Dalton Gardens is in the panhandle, just north of Coeur d'Alene.

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Rowe, New Mexico: 1420KHz:
Application for new station.
2,500 watts daytime; 140 watts nighttime.
Non-directional day & night.
35-29-51N/105-40-20W

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Markham, Ontario: 960KHz:
Application for new station.
1,000 watts daytime; 175 watts nighttime.
Unknown whether directional; probably not.
To be ethnic, probably South Asian.
Markham is a Toronto suburb.
These facilities were recently abandoned by a nearby station. (CIAM Cambridge?)

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Scarborough, Ontario: 1350KHz:
Application for new station.
1,000 watts daytime; 87 watts nighttime.
Unknown whether directional - probably not.
To be ethnic, probably South Asian.
Scarborough is a Toronto suburb.
These are the facilities recently abandoned by CKDO Oshawa.

New AM station granted

Rockville, Minnesota: 1180KHz:
Permit granted for new station KYES.
50,000 watts daytime
5,000 watts nighttime
8,000 watts critical hours
Three different directional patterns.
45-21-43N/94-17-57W.

Rockville is just west of St. Cloud.

Changes granted to AM stations

Black Forest, Colorado: 1120KHz:
KLIM granted move from Limon.
Power to increase to 17,500 watts daytime, 3 watts night, directional, same pattern day & night. Move towers to 38-50-21N/103-51-28W

I wonder if that's a typo and should be 104-51-28W?
103-51-28W is near Punkin Center in Lincoln County, Colorado, about 55 miles east-southeast of Black Forest and due east of Colorado Springs.

104-51-28W is roughly midway between Black Forest and Colorado Springs - the two communities are only about 15 miles apart.

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New Hartford, New York: 1150KHz:
WRUN granted move from Utica.
Actually, the towers aren't moving. However, the power will be reduced from 5,000 watts daytime/1,000 watts nighttime to 4,000 day, 370 night, and one of the five towers will be removed. And, the city-of-license is changing.

New AM stations - requested & granted

Heflin, Alabama: 1370KHz:
Permit granted for new station.
250 watts day & night; directional at night only
33-38-22N/85-37-01W

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Bakersfield, California: 1310KHz:
Application filed for new station.
1,400 watts daytime
2,500 watts nighttime
Directional day & night, different patterns.
35-21-53N/118-51-23W

Major change; station to be deleted

Leesburg, Virginia:1190KHz:
WAGE is moving from 1200KHz.
50,000 watts daytime, directional, 39-02-28N/77-26-42W.

The station has indicated they will soon file a second application for 3,000 watts nighttime, also directional, from their existing site at 39-07-25N/77-37-31W.

To accomodate this move, WBIS-1190 Annapolis, Maryland has agreed to surrender their license for cancellation under an "Interference Reduction Agreement". WAGE's move is conditioned on WBIS's license being surrendered. The move will also reduce interference between WBIS and station WFYL-1180, King of Prussia, Pennsylvania. (which, ironically, is a much newer station than WBIS...)

Birach Broadcasting filed an objection to the move, charging that WAGE's ownership interfered in the attempt of Birach's WDMV-540 to get zoning permission to build four towers in Damascus, Maryland.

Read the FCC decision:

New AM stations, and not

Desert Hot Springs, California: 1220KHz:
Application for new station.
1,400 watts daytime
1,200 watts nighttime
Directional day & night, different patterns and at different sites.
33-55-51N/116-36-12W daytime
33-59-28N/116-29-28W nighttime

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Easton, California: 1150KHz:
Application for new station.
260 watts daytime
5,500 watts nighttime
Directional at night only.
Different sites day & night:
36-46-10N/119-45-01W daytime
36-51-55N/119-34-03W nighttime

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Ketchikan, Alaska: 1260KHz:
Application for new station dismissed.

New AM stations - requested, granted, and on the air

Pine Bluff, Arkansas: 1190KHz:
Application filed for new station.
10,000 watts daytime
350 watts nighttime
directional at night only
34-11-50N/92-03-25W.

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Agana, Guam: 1530KHz:
Permit granted for new station.
250 watts day & night, non-directional
13-27-24N/144-40-20E.

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Sauk Rapids, Minnesota: 1010KHz:
New station WPPI on the air.
1,700 watts daytime
240 watts nighttime
directional day & night with two different patterns
45-36-18N/94-08-21W.