§ 2301.2 - Definitions.

§ 2301.2 Definitions.

Act means Part IV of Title III of the Communications Act of 1934, 47 U.S.C. 390-393 and 397-399b, as amended.

Administrator means the Assistant Secretary for Communications and Information of the United States Department of Commerce who is also Administrator of the National Telecommunications and Information Administration.

Agency means the National Telecommunications and Information Administration of the United States Department of Commerce.

Broadcast means the distribution of electronic signals to the public at large using television (VHF or UHF) or radio (AM or FM) technologies.

Closing date means the date and time which the Administrator sets as the deadline for the receipt of applications during a grant cycle.

Construction (as applied to public telecommunications facilities) means acquisition (including acquisition by lease), installation, and improvement of public telecommunications facilities and preparatory steps incidental to any such acquisition, installation or improvement.

Department means the United States Department of Commerce.

FCC means the Federal Communications Commission.

Federal interest period means the period of time during which the Federal government retains a reversionary interest in all facilities constructed with Federal grant funds. This period begins with the purchase of the facilities and continues for ten (10) years after the official completion date of the project. Although OMB Circular A-110, sections 33 and 34 (58 FR 62992, Nov. 29, 1993) and 15 CFR 24.31 and 24.32, specify that the Federal government maintains a reversionary interest in the facilities for as long as the facilities are needed for the originally authorized purpose, PTFP's authorizing statute (47 U.S.C. 392(g)) limits the reversionary period for ten years for purposes of this program. However, Federal Constitutional limitations on the use of the facilities survive for the useful life of the facilities whether or not this period extends beyond the ten-year Federal interest period.

Minorities means American Indians, Alaska Natives, Asian or Pacific Islanders, Hispanics, and Blacks, not of Hispanic Origin.

Nonbroadcast means the distribution of electronic signals by a means other than broadcast technologies. Examples of nonbroadcast technologies are Instructional Television Fixed Service (ITFS), satellite systems, and coaxial or fiber optic cable.

Noncommercial educational broadcast station or public broadcast station means a television or radio broadcast station that is eligible to be licensed by the FCC as a noncommercial educational radio or television broadcast station and that is owned (controlled) and operated by a state, a political or special purpose subdivision of a state, public agency or nonprofit private foundation, corporation, institution, or association, or owned (controlled) and operated by a municipality and transmits only noncommercial educational, cultural or instructional programs.

Noncommercial telecommunications entity means any enterprise that is owned (controlled) and operated by a state, a political or special purpose subdivision of a state, a public agency, or a nonprofit private foundation, corporation, institution, or association; and that has been organized primarily for the purpose of disseminating audio or video noncommercial educational, cultural or instructional programs to the public by means other than a primary television or radio broadcast station, including, but not limited to, coaxial cable, optical fiber, broadcast translators, cassettes, discs, satellite, microwave or laser transmission.

Nonprofit (as applied to any foundation, corporation, institution, or association) means a foundation, corporation, institution, or association, no part of the net earnings of which inures, or may lawfully inure, to the benefit of any private shareholder or individual.

Operational cost means those approved costs incurred in the operation of an entity or station such as overhead labor, material, contracted services (such as building or equipment maintenance), including capital outlay and debt service.

Planning (as applied to public telecommunications facilities) means activities to form a project for which PTFP construction funds may be obtained.

Pre-operational costs means all nonconstruction costs incurred by new public telecommunications entities before the date on which they began providing service to the public, and all nonconstruction costs associated with the expansion of existing stations before the date on which such expanded capacity is activated, except that such costs shall not include any portion of the salaries of any personnel employed by an operating public telecommunications entity.

PTFP means the Public Telecommunications Facilities Program, which is administered by the Agency.

PTFP Director means the Agency employee who recommends final action on public telecommunications facilities applications and grants to the Administrator.

Public telecommunications entity means any enterprise which is a public broadcast station or noncommercial telecommunications entity and which disseminates public telecommunications services to the public.

Public telecommunications facilities means apparatus necessary for production, interconnection, captioning, broadcast, or other distribution of programming, including but not limited to studio equipment, cameras, microphones, audio and video storage or processors and switchers, terminal equipment, towers, antennas, transmitters, remote control equipment, transmission line, translators, microwave equipment, mobile equipment, satellite communications equipment, instructional television fixed service equipment, subsidiary communications authorization transmitting and receiving equipment, cable television equipment, optical fiber communications equipment, and other means of transmitting, emitting, storing, and receiving images and sounds or information, except that such term does not include the buildings to house such apparatus (other than small equipment shelters that are part of satellite earth stations, translators, microwave interconnection facilities, and similar facilities).

Public telecommunications services means noncommercial educational and cultural radio and television programs, and related noncommercial instructional or informational material that may be transmitted by means of electronic communications.

Sectarian means that which has the purpose or function of advancing or propagating a religious belief.

State includes each of the fifty states, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa, and the Northern Mariana Islands.

System of public telecommunications entities means any combination of public telecommunications entities acting cooperatively to produce, acquire or distribute programs, or to undertake related activities.

Useful life means the normal operating life of equipment.