Finding help on the FCC website is not always easy. As a huge, bureaucratic government regulatory body - it isn't really surprising. We sometimes get complaints about our own website being hard to use, but we are nowhere near as bad as the FCC website. There are some choice articles and resources on the site that may answer some important questions for LPFM stations and applicants. You might be able to answer a lot of questions about how to run your station! If you are having trouble finding that one page that you really need on the FCC site, read on for more information...

The department at the FCC that deals with LPFM specifically is the Audio Divison of the Media Bureau. They are overworked and understaffed, and despite what you might think about government agencies, there are actually some very helpful humans there - if you can get ahold of them. Prometheus can probably answer most of your questions about FCC regulations and technical processes, but sometimes you have to take your questions directly to the source. Some of these documents and resources below might answer your immediate questions, so take a look.

• Contact information - We get questions about this all the time. Finding the right person to answer your question out of this list!
• The Public and Broadcasting - A good basic overview of the FCC and what it regulates and licenses.
• Obscene, Indecent, and Profane Broadcasts - Keep those naughty words out! If you have questions about what you can get in trouble for saying, consult this first.
• The Policy and Nature of Noncommerical Broadcasting - Help on making sure you don't stray into commerical broadcasting territory...

There might be some times when it would be helpful to consult the FCC rules and regulations directly. They can be a real pain to read sometimes, as they are full of legal and regulatory jargon. Despite this, direct answers can be found in the Hallikainen FCC rules pages. They are hyperlinked for easier usage than the text-or-PDF-only FCC versions. Click through the "Rules effective today" link for the current rules - sections 11 and 73 are the ones applicable to LPFM radio.