FCC May Be Able to Resume Vanity Processing Soon

NEWINGTON, CT, Jan 7, 2002--The vanity call sign logjam--an indirect result of the recent anthrax scare--may be about to break. The FCC has not processed any vanity call sign applications--paper or electronic--since October 14. Vanity applications received after that date remain on hold, although all vanity fee payments have been recorded and deposited or charged to credit card holders' accounts.

The vanity gridlock occurred after mail received between October 15 and November 1--apparently including more than 100 vanity applications filed on paper--was diverted from the FCC's Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, office for decontamination in the Washington, DC, area. It has not been returned to Gettysburg. Under the current FCC policy, paper and electronic vanity applications get equal processing priority, so the Commission has been unable to grant any vanity call sign requests while the mail snafu remained unresolved.

But FCC staffers in Gettysburg have been attempting to work around the roadblock. Using vanity fee payment data from the FCC's fiscal agent, Mellon Bank in Pittsburgh--which first receives paper-filed vanity applications--the Licensing and Technical Analysis Branch of the FCC's Wireless Telecommunications Bureau in Gettysburg has been contacting applicants directly to have them resubmit their applications.

"We know we had 104 applicants, and we've been able to contact about half that number using data we had on file," a Licensing and Technical Analysis Branch spokesperson said. The FCC now wants applicants whose paper vanity filings may have arrived at Mellon Bank between October 15 and November 1 and who have not been contacted to get in touch with the FCC to find out if they need to forward a copy or facsimile of their original paperwork. The request affects only vanity applicants who filed on paper--not electronic filers.

Before contacting the FCC, however, applicants who believe their paperwork may have been waylaid were being asked to check the Universal Licensing System to see if their applications are already on file with the FCC (under "SEARCH," click "Applications," click "Continue," enter present call sign in the "Call Sign" field, and press the Enter key or click "Search"--at the bottom of the page. Click on the underlined number, if any, under "File Number" to view an application). If an application already is on file, no further action is required.

If no application is on file, or if no Web access is available, applicants should telephone the FCC Call Center, toll-free, 888-225-5322; e-mail rtaylor@fcc.gov or fax 717-338-2696.

The Licensing Division believes it now has all paper applications received October 15, 2001, in hand, and it could process all applications received on that date as soon as this week. In any event, the FCC has a record of when it received the paper vanity applications, and all submittals will be processed in chronological order.

In mid-November, the Gettysburg office began diverting mail addressed to its 1270 Fairfield Road location to another site in town for special handling. Decontamination is being handled locally now. Since October 19, the FCC has been urging all of its customers to avoid using the mails to conduct business with the agency and to use electronic means to file comments or applications.

The FCC has been acting on amateur renewals and administrative updates filed on-line via the Wireless Telecommunications Bureau's Universal Licensing System. As of December 3, all applicants must include an FCC Registration Number (FRN) when filing.

The US Postal Service is accepting and diverting all mail addressed to 1270 Fairfield Road, Gettysburg--the office's physical location--to an off-site mailroom. The Gettysburg office now only accepts hand and courier deliveries at the rear entrance of 35 York St, Gettysburg, PA 17325.

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