The top four TV stations in the top 50 markets will have to start sending their political files to the FCC for online posting starting the first week of August.
The Office of Management and Budget's approval of the paperwork collection requirements of the rules was published in the Federal Register July 3 and the rules take effect 30 days after that.
Sttaions do not have to send any archival material, just new political and buys, who is buying them, and their price.
OMB approved the rules on June 21, though they had through June 30 to vet the comments.
The FCC said it was trying to get the rules approved and in place during this election cycle.
The National Association of Broadcasters has sued the FCC over the new requirement, saying the commission lowballed the paperwork burdens and does not have the authority to mandate online reporting. Separately, a group of TV stations has asked the FCC to reconsider the decision, saying a better approach would be to allow them to aggregate the political spot prices rather than publicize their prices natoinally, which they argue would put them at a competitive disadvantage to cable and satellite, who have no such online posting requirement.
