FCC Publishes Pirate Database

The FCC’s online database of “pirate” unauthorized broadcasters went live Monday, covering the period from Jan. 24, 2020 to Dec. 31, 2022. “Subsequent updates will be published semi-annually,” said the database webpage. The database stems from provisions in the 2020 Preventing Illegal Radio Abuse Through Enforcement Act, which also increased penalties for unauthorized broadcasts and empowered the FCC to go after the landlords of properties hosting pirate broadcasts. While the Pirate Act database was originally due within 90 days of the bill’s 2020 approval, no funding was included for implementation and its enactment was closely followed by the COVID-19 pandemic, delaying FCC action, an agency spokesperson said. “Commission staff was nevertheless able to perform basic planning in anticipation of both conditions ending,” the spokesperson said. Funding for implementing the act was approved in March, the agency said. The database allows users to search for violations by state and links to individual citations, displaying violations on a map of the U.S. The database’s FCC page also includes a link labeled “Licensed AM and FM Radio Station Database” -- another database required by the Pirate Act -- that sends users to the “Facility Search” page of the FCC’s licensing and management system. The FCC also released a Pirate Act report to Congress Tuesday. According to the report, the agency has posted six full-time positions for pirate enforcement and is prepared to buy six mobile direction-finding vehicles for those hires to operate. “Purchase of the additional six vehicles has been delayed, however, until a GSA [General Service Administration] purchasing window opens.” The report also said the agency developed a plan for enforcement sweeps and issued 21 notices to property owners of potential enforcement action.