ARCHIVED - Broadcasting Decision CRTC 2002-53

Broadcasting Decision CRTC 2002-53

Ottawa, 27 February 2002

Northern Lights Community Radio, on behalf of a corporation to be incorporated
Forteau, Newfoundland and Labrador

Application 2001-0700-7
Public Hearing in the National Capital Region
14 January 2002

New community radio station

1.

The Commission approves the application by Northern Lights Community Radio, on behalf of a corporation to be incorporated, for a broadcasting licence for a Type A English-language FM community radio programming undertaking at Forteau. The terms and conditions of licence are set out in the appendix to this decision.

2.

No intervention has been filed with regard to this application.

3.

The licence of this community station will be held by a not-for-profit organization whose structure provides for membership, management, operation and programming by members of the community at large. The head of the Board of Directors is ultimately responsible for adherence to the Radio Regulations, 1986 and the station's conditions of licence.

4.

The Commission's primary objective for community radio is that it provide community access to the airwaves and offer diverse programming that reflects the needs and interests of the community that it is licensed to serve. The programming must include music by new and local talent, music not generally broadcast by commercial stations, local information and spoken word programming.

5.

The applicant plans to offer 126 hours of programming each week. Monday to Friday the station will broadcast twelve hours of station-produced programming with eight hours per day on Saturday and Sunday, for a total of 76 hours of local programming per week. For the remaining 50 hours, network or pre-recorded programming will be aired.

6.

Community radio stations have the flexibility to reduce or increase their weekly broadcast time by up to 20% without application to the Commission. A change of more than 20%, however, requires prior Commission approval.

7.

In accordance with the requirements of the Community radio policy (Public Notice CRTC 2000-13), the applicant made the commitment to devote 30% of its news programming time to local news and 30% to regional news, during each broadcast week.

8.

The applicant has also committed to meet the new requirements with respect to the percentage of Canadian musical selections from category 2 (35%) and category 3 (12%) that community and campus radio stations must broadcast each broadcast week.

Other matters

9.

The Commission considers that community radio stations should be particularly sensitive to employment equity issues in order to reflect fully the communities they serve. It encourages the licensee to consider these issues in its hiring practices and in all other aspects of its management of human resources (see Public Notice CRTC 1992-59).

Related CRTC documents

• Public Notice 2000-157 - New licence form for community radio stations

• Public Notice 2000-93 - Regulatory amendments to implement certain aspects of the revised policies for campus and community radio, and incorporate revised content categories for radio

• Public Notice 2000-14 - Revised content categories and subcategories for radio

• Public Notice 2000-13 - Community radio policy

Secretary General

Appendix to Broadcasting Decision CRTC 2002-53

Terms of the licence for the Type A community radio programming undertaking at Forteau

The Commission will only issue the licence, and it will only be effective at such time as:

• it receives documentation establishing that an eligible Canadian corporation has been incorporated in accordance with the application in all material respects and that this corporation may be issued a licence.

• the licensee confirms in writing that it is ready to begin operation. This must take place within 12 months of today's date. Any request for an extension to that deadline requires Commission approval and must be made in writing within that period.

• the Department of Industry, having advised that the application is conditionally technically acceptable, has determined that there is no unacceptable interference with NAV/COM services and indicated that it will issue a broadcasting certificate (see section 22(1) of the Broadcasting Act.

The licence, when issued, will expire 31 August 2008. It will be subject to the conditions set out in the licence to be issued, as also set out in Public Notice CRTC 2000-157.

The station will broadcast on the FM band, on the frequency 95.1 MHz, channel 236C1, with an effective radiated power of 11,700 watts.