The FCC is seeking comments on a tribal allotment for a Class C0 FM station on 99.9 in Ethete, Wyo.
The Northern Arapaho Tribe submitted a petition for rulemaking to amend the FM Table of Allotments for the community. The proposed 99.9 FM signal would be the first local radio service for Ethete.
The FCC’s Audio Division stated the facts presented by the Northern Arapaho Tribe are sufficient to support consideration of the new allotment. A staff engineering analysis confirmed the technical feasibility of the proposal.
In its proposal, the Northern Arapaho claimed it meets the FCC requirements for a tribal allotment. Ethete is the cultural center of the tribe and a census-designated place located on the Wind River Indian Reservation, the seventh-largest Indian reservation in the United States. According to the 2020 U.S. Census, Ethete has a population of 1,393. Currently, no full-power broadcast stations are licensed to the community.
The Northern Arapaho Tribe’s proposal included the following points:
- 68 percent of the area within the proposed allotment’s 70 dBu contour consists of Tribal lands, meeting the FCC’s tribal allotment requirements.
- Approximately 82 percent of the Wind River Reservation is encompassed by the 70 dBu proposed contour.
- The tribal allotment would serve 42,818 people within the proposed 60 dBu contour, of whom approximately 60 percent reside on the reservation
In addition, the Ethete tribal allotment would also cover the Eastern Shoshone Tribal Reservation. According to the Northern Arapaho’s petition, the Wind River Reservation is unusual in that the Northern Arapaho and Eastern Shoshone Tribes share the land. In its proposal, the Northern Arapaho included a letter of support from the Eastern Shoshone Business Council and the Wind River Intertribal Council.
[Related: “FCC Proposes Tribal Priority for New FM in Wisconsin”]
The proposal stated a number of public interest benefits a new radio station would provide, including programming for both tribes, news and emergency information, including EAS alerts.
The Audio Division’s engineering analysis used the coordinates 43.373° N and 108.607° W as a reference point. The allotment has a site restriction of 26 miles north of Ethete.
In 2010, the FCC adopted rules to establish a Tribal Radio Priority. The goal was to help Native Nations create new radio services for Tribal lands.
Those interested in filing comments on the notice of proposed rulemaking can do so through the FCC’s Electronic Comment Filing System. Comments can be submitted through Jan. 17. Reply comments are due Feb. 3.
The commission requires the tribe petitioning to submit a comment restating its intention to apply for the frequency if allotted and, if authorized, “to build a station promptly.”
