Vol. 151, No. 20 — October 4, 2017

Registration
SI/2017-52 October 4, 2017

BROADCASTING ACT

Order Declining to Set Aside or Refer Back to the CRTC Broadcasting Decision CRTC 2017-198

P.C. 2017-1135 September 12, 2017

Whereas the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (“Commission”), in its Broadcasting Decision CRTC 2017-198 of June 14, 2017 (“Decision”), made decisions to issue broadcasting licences to First Peoples Radio Inc. to operate English- and Indigenous-language Type B Native FM radio stations to serve the urban Indigenous communities in Ottawa and Toronto;

Whereas in that Decision, the Commission also made decisions to issue broadcasting licences to Aboriginal Multi-Media Society of Alberta to operate English- and Indigenous-language Type B Native FM radio stations to serve the urban Indigenous communities in Edmonton and Calgary;

Whereas, subsequent to the making of those decisions, the Governor in Council received petitions in writing requesting that they be set aside or referred back to the Commission for reconsideration and hearing;

And whereas the Governor in Council, having considered the petitions, is of the view that those decisions do not derogate from the attainment of the objectives of the broadcasting policy for Canada set out in subsection 3(1) of the Broadcasting Act (see footnote a);

Therefore, His Excellency the Governor General in Council, on the recommendation of the Minister of Canadian Heritage, pursuant to section 28 of the Broadcasting Act (see footnote b), declines to set aside or refer back to the Commission for reconsideration and hearing the decisions contained in Broadcasting Decision CRTC 2017-198 of June 14, 2017 to issue broadcasting licences to

EXPLANATORY NOTE

(This note is not part of the Order.)

Proposal

To respond to written petitions, submitted under section 28 of the Broadcasting Act, requesting the Governor in Council to set aside or refer back for reconsideration and hearing the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) decisions contained in Broadcasting Decision CRTC 2017-198 of June 14, 2017, to issue broadcasting licences to First Peoples Radio Inc. (FPR) and Aboriginal Multi-Media Society of Alberta (AMMSA) to operate English- and Indigenous-language Type B Native FM radio stations to serve the urban Indigenous communities in Ottawa, Toronto, Edmonton and Calgary.

Objective

To communicate that the Governor in Council is declining to set aside or refer back to the CRTC for reconsideration and hearing the decisions to issue broadcasting licences to FPR and AMMSA to operate English- and Indigenous-language Type B Native FM radio stations to serve the urban Indigenous communities in Ottawa, Toronto, Edmonton and Calgary.

Background

In 2015, the CRTC revoked the broadcasting licences for the Type B Native radio stations CKAV-FM Toronto, CKAV-FM-2 Vancouver, CKAV-FM-3 Calgary, CKAV-FM-4 Edmonton and CKAV-FM-9 Ottawa held by Aboriginal Voices Radio Inc. From March 27 to 29, 2017, the CRTC held a public hearing to consider applications for new radio stations to serve the urban Indigenous communities in these markets.

On June 14, 2017, the CRTC issued Broadcasting Decision CRTC 2017-198 which contained, among other things, decisions to issue broadcasting licences to FPR to operate English- and Indigenous-language Type B Native FM radio stations to serve the urban Indigenous communities in Ottawa and Toronto and decisions to issue broadcasting licences to AMMSA to operate English- and Indigenous-language Type B Native FM radio stations to serve the urban Indigenous communities in Edmonton and Calgary. Broadcasting Decision CRTC 2017-198 also approved an application by Northern Native Broadcasting for the same type of broadcasting licences for the Vancouver market.

In the Broadcasting Decision, the CRTC indicated that radio stations serving such communities can play a critical role in serving the public interest and contributing to the fulfilment of the policy objectives set out in subparagraph 3(1)(d)(iii) and paragraph 3(1)(o) of the Broadcasting Act, specifically to meet the needs and reflect the special place of Indigenous peoples within Canadian society.

On June 29, 2017, the Governor in Council received a petition in writing concerning the decisions to issue broadcasting licences to FPR in Ottawa and Toronto, contained in Broadcasting Decision 2017-198 of June 14, 2017.

On July 28, 2017, the Governor in Council received a petition in writing concerning the decisions to issue broadcasting licences to AMMSA in Edmonton and Calgary, also contained in Broadcasting Decision 2017-198 of June 14, 2017.

Under section 28 of the Broadcasting Act, the Governor in Council may set aside or refer a decision back to the CRTC for reconsideration and hearing if the Governor in Council is satisfied that the decision derogates from the attainment of the objectives of the broadcasting policy set out in the Broadcasting Act. In the present case, after careful consideration of the petitions, the Governor in Council is not satisfied that the decisions derogate from those objectives given that AMMSA’s and FPR’s applications were entirely devoted to Indigenous communities, included significant amounts of local programming, and programming in Indigenous languages, a mix of spoken word and music programming targeting the proposed communities and were based on viable business plans in the CRTC’s view.

Therefore, under section 28 of the Broadcasting Act, the Governor in Council has declined to set aside or refer back to the CRTC for reconsideration and hearing the decisions contained in Broadcasting Decision CRTC 2017-198 of June 14, 2017, to issue broadcasting licences to FPR and AMMSA to operate English- and Indigenous-language Type B Native FM radio stations to serve the urban Indigenous communities in Ottawa, Toronto, Edmonton and Calgary.

Implications

As a result, the CRTC decisions stand.

Departmental contact

Helen C. Kennedy
Director General
Broadcasting and Digital Communications Branch
Department of Canadian Heritage
Telephone: 819-997-7435