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FCC Areas

Since the inception of the Cellular Market Areas in 1982, the Federal Communication Commission has been assigning area based radio licenses. A common trait among most of these licensing areas is that every area is an aggregation of county-equivalent entities as defined in Federal Information Processing Standards Publication 6-4, 1990 August 31.

Cellular Market Areas

CMA

The Cellular Market Areas (CMAs) were created from the Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSAs) defined by the Office of Management and Budget (1-305), the Gulf of Mexico (306), and Rural Service Areas (RSAs) established by the FCC which do not cross state borders (307-734). These RSAs include parts of Puerto Rico not already in an MSA (723-729), U.S. Virgin Islands (730-731), Guam (732), American Samoa (733), and Northern Mariana Islands (734)

Cite: Cellular Market Areas listed by the Federal Communications Commission, DA 92-109 (January 24, 1992), 7 FCC Rcd 742 (1992).

Names
County List
Map (Adobe PDF)
Data (MapInfo Interchange Format and MapInfo Native Table Format)
Services:

Cellular Radiotelephone Service - 47 CFR § 22.909 (824-894 MHz: Blocks A-B)
Interactive Video and Data Service (IVDS) - 47 CFR § 95.803 (Segments: A (218.0-218.5 MHz) and B (218.5-219.0 MHz))

Basic Trading Areas

BTA

The Basic Trading Areas (BTAs) are based on the Rand McNally 1992 Commercial Atlas & Marketing Guide, 123rd Edition, at pages 38-39, with the following additions: American Samoa (492), Guam (490), Northern Mariana Islands (493), San Juan, Puerto Rico (488), Mayagüez/Aguadilla-Ponce, Puerto Rico (489), and the United States Virgin Islands (491).

Cite: Basic Trading Areas delineated by the Rand McNally 1992 Commercial Atlas & Marketing Guide, 123rd Edition, at pages 38-39; extended and revised by the Federal Communications Commission, 59 FR 46195 (September 7, 1994)

Names
County List
Map (Adobe PDF)
Data (MapInfo Interchange Format and MapInfo Native Table Format)
Services:

Multipoint Distribution Service (MDS) - 47 CFR § 21.924 (2150-2162, 2596-2680 MHz: Channels 1, 2(2A), E1-E4, F1-F4, H1-H3)
Narrowband PCS - 47 CFR § 24.102 (901-902, 930-931 MHz: Channels 25-26)
Broadband PCS - 47 CFR § 24.202 (1850-1990 MHz: Blocks C-F)
Local Multipoint Distribution Service (LMDS) - 47 CFR § 101.1007 (27.5-31.3 GHz: Blocks A-B)

Major Trading Areas

MTA

The Major Trading Areas (MTAs) are based on the Rand McNally 1992 Commercial Atlas & Marketing Guide, 123rd Edition, at pages 38-39, with the following exceptions and additions:

Alaska (49) is separated from the Seattle MTA and is to be licensed separately.
Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands (50) are to be licensed as a single MTA-like area.
Puerto Rico and the United States Virgin Islands (25) are to be licensed as a single MTA-like area.
American Samoa (51) is to be licensed as a single MTA-like area.

Cite: Major Trading Areas delineated by the Rand McNally 1992 Commercial Atlas & Marketing Guide, 123rd Edition, at pages 38-39, extended and excepted by the Federal Communications Commission, 59 FR 14115 (March 25, 1994)

Names
County List
Map (Adobe PDF)
Data (MapInfo Interchange Format and MapInfo Native Table Format)
Services:

Narrowband PCS - 47 CFR § 24.102 (901-902, 930-931 MHz, 940-941 MHz: Channels 18-24)
Broadband PCS - 47 CFR § 24.202 (1850-1990 MHz: Blocks A-B)
Specialized Mobile Radio (SMR) 900 MHz - 47 CFR § 90.661 (896-901/935-940 MHz: Channel Blocks A-T)

Regional PCS Areas

RPC

The Regional Narrowband PCS service areas, which were created by Commission staff, are an aggregation of MTAs into 5 regions.

Cite: Regional Narrowband PCS Areas delineated by the Federal Communications Commission, 59 FR 14115 (March 25, 1994)

Names
County List
Map (Adobe PDF)
Data (MapInfo Interchange Format and MapInfo Native Table Format)
Services:

Narrowband PCS - 47 CFR § 24.102 (901-902, 930-931 MHz, 940-941 MHz: Channels 12-17)
Specialized Mobile Radio (SMR) 800 MHz - 47 CFR § 90.903 (806-821/851-866 MHz: Spectrum Blocks D-V)

Economic Areas

BEA

The Economic Area service areas are based on the Economic Areas delineated by the Regional Economic Analysis Division, Bureau of Economic Analysis, U.S. Department of Commerce February 1995 (1-172), with the following additions: Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands (173), Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands (174), and American Samoa (175). The Commission has also designated the Gulf of Mexico (176) as an additional Economic Area. However, GWCS, 800 MHz SMR, 220 MHz, and 39 GHz services currently do not implement the Gulf of Mexico (176) as a separate license area.

Cite: Economic Areas delineated by the Regional Economic Analysis Division, Bureau of Economic Analysis, U.S. Department of Commerce February 1995 and extended by the Federal Communications Commission, 62 FR 9636 (March 3, 1997).

Alternate Cite: Economic Areas delineated by the Regional Economic Analysis Division, Bureau of Economic Analysis, U.S. Department of Commerce February 1995 and extended by the Federal Communications Commission, 62 FR 9636 (March 3, 1997) excluding the Gulf of Mexico.

Names
County List
Map (Adobe PDF)
Data (MapInfo Interchange Format and MapInfo Native Table Format)
Services:

General Wireless Communications Service (GWCS) - 47 CFR § 26.102 (4660-4685 MHz: Channel Blocks A-E)
Specialized Mobile Radio (SMR) 800 MHz - 47 CFR § 90.681 & 90.903 (806-821/851-866 MHz: Spectrum Blocks A-C)
220 MHz - 47 CFR § 90.761 (220-222 MHz: Channel Assignments A-E)
Location and Monitoring Service (LMS) - 47 CFR § 90.7 (3 Spectrum Blocks (1) 904.000-909.750 MHz and 927.750-928.000 MHz; (2) 919.750-921.750 MHz and 927.500-927.750 MHz; and (3) 921.750-927.250 MHz and 927.250-927.500 MHz)
38.6-40.0 GHz Band (39 GHz) - 47 CFR § 101.64 (38.6-40.0 GHz: Channels 1-14 with paired blocks A-B) (Change see FCC 99-179 July 14, 1999 News Release | MO&O)

Major Economic Areas

MEA

The Major Economic Areas which were created by Commission staff are an aggregation of BEAs into 52 regions, including the Gulf of Mexico (52).

Cite: Major Economic Areas delineated by the Federal Communications Commission, 62 FR 9636 (March 3, 1997).

Names
County List
Map (Adobe PDF)
Data (MapInfo Interchange Format and MapInfo Native Table Format)
Services:

Wireless Communications Service (WCS) - 47 CFR § 27.6 (Paired Channel Blocks A (2305-2310/2350-2355 MHz) and B (2310-2315/2355-2360 MHz))
929 MHz Paging - 47 CFR § 90.493 (Channels A-L: 929.0125-929.9625 MHz)
931 MHz Paging - 47 CFR § 22.531 (Channels AA-BK: 931.0125-931.9875 MHz)

Regional Economic Areas

REA

The Regional Economic Areas also known as the Regional Economic Area Groupings for WCS which were created by Commission staff are an aggregation of MEAs into 12 regions.

Cite: Regional Economic Areas delineated by the Federal Communications Commission, 62 FR 9636 (March 3, 1997).

Names
County List
Map (Adobe PDF)
Data (MapInfo Interchange Format and MapInfo Native Table Format)
Service:

Wireless Communications Service (WCS) - 47 CFR § 27.6 (Unpaired Channel Blocks C (2315-2320 MHz) and D (2345-2350 MHz))

Economic Area Groupings

EAG

The Economic Area Groupings also know as Regional Economic Area Groupings for 220 MHz which were created by Commission staff are an aggregation of BEAs into 6 regions excluding the Gulf of Mexico.

Cite: Economic Area Groupings delineated by the Federal Communications Commission, 62 FR 15978 (April 3, 1997)

Cite: Economic Area Groupings delineated by the Federal Communications Commission, 62 FR 15978 (April 3, 1997) extended with the Gulf of Mexico, 65 FR 3139 (January 20, 2000)

Names
County List
Map (Adobe PDF)
Data (MapInfo Interchange Format and MapInfo Native Table Format)
Service:

220 MHz - 47 CFR § 90.761 (220-222 MHz: Channel Assignments F-J)
700 MHz - 47 CFR § 27.6 (746-764 and 776-794 MHz: Blocks A-D)

VHF Public Coast Station Areas

VPC

The VHF Public Coast Station Areas (VPCs) which were created by Commission staff are an aggregation of BEAs into 42 areas, including the Gulf of Mexico (4).

VPCs 1-9 are called Maritime VPCs and VPCs 10-42 are called Inland Areas. The Maritime VPCs are an aggregation of one or more BEAs and the Inland Areas are defined as exactly one BEA.

Cite: VHF Public Coast Station Areas delineated by the Federal Communications Commission, 63 FR 40059 (July 27, 1998).

Names
County List
Map (Adobe PDF)
Data (MapInfo Interchange Format and MapInfo Native Table Format)
Service:
- VHF Public Coast Stations 47 CFR § 80.371(c)(1)(B)

Public Safety Planning Regions

PSR

The Public Safety Planning Regions were established in the National Public Safety Planning Advisory Committee (NPSPAC) Proceeding in 1987 [see General Docket No. 87-112, Memorandum Opinion and Order, FCC 88-132, 3 FCC Rcd 2113 (1988), 53 FR 11849 (April 11, 1988)].

Cite: Public Safety Planning Regions developed by the National Public Safety Planning Advisory Committee (NPSPAC) and revised by the Federal Communications Commission, 53 FR 11849 (April 11, 1988)

Names
County List
Map (Adobe PDF)
Data (MapInfo Interchange Format and MapInfo Native Table Format)

Television Market Areas

TMA

Television Market Areas (TMAs) are the areas for the cable must-carry/retransmission consent election. (47 CFR § 76.55)

Note: Television Market Areas are not static and change every three years. When referencing this particular area designation always include a year.

Definition of the Television Market Areas for the 1996 election
- CONUS: Area of Dominant Influence (ADI) as determined by Arbitron and published in the Arbitron 1991–1992 Television ADI Market Guide.
- AK & HI: Designated Market Area (DMA) as determined by Nielsen Media Research and published in the Nielsen 1991–1992 DMA Market and Demographic Rank Report.
- PR, VI & GU: Each is considered a single Television Market Area
Definition of the Television Market Areas for the 1999 election (effective January 1, 2000)
- 1997-1998 DMA Market and Demographic Rank Report, by Nielsen Media Research
Definition of the Television Market Areas for the future 2002 election
- 2000-2001 DMA Market and Demographic Rank Report, by Nielsen Media Research

Currently no mapping data is available.

Service:
- Cable Television Service 47 CFR 76 Subpart D
- Children's Television Programming Report (Form 398)

Emergency Alert System Local Areas

EAS

Emergency Alert System Local Areas (EASs) are geographical areas of contiguous communities or counties (currently only county-equivalents) that may include more than one state. (47 CFR § 11.21)

Note: Emergency Alert System Local Areas are not static and are apt to change at the discretion of the states and local communities.

Currently no mapping data is available.

Service:
- Emergency Alert System 47 CFR § 11.21

Standard Metropolitan
Statistical Areas 1980

SMSA1980

In General Docket 79-188 the FCC created the Digital Electronic Message Service (DEMS). This service was to be licensed on a market basis and it was decided to use the 323 SMSAs that resulted from the 1980 Census. SMSAs are unique in that they are not continuous across the nation. Also, they aggregate minor civil divisions (towns and cites) as opposed to county-equivalents in New England.

Cite: Standard Metropolitan Statistical Areas defined by Office of Management and Budget, June 30, 1981.

Names
County and MCD list
Map (Adobe PDF)
Data (MapInfo Interchange Format and MapInfo Native Table Format)
Service
- Original* Digital Electronic Message Service (DEMS) - 18 GHz and 24 GHz

* The modern DEMS service areas will be decided in WT Docket 99-327. In the recent NPRM, FCC 99-333 ( News Release | Notice ), the FCC proposed to use Economic Areas (BEA).

Nationwide Area

NWA

The 50 States, the District of Columbia, American Samoa, Guam, Northern Mariana Islands, Puerto Rico, and United States Virgin Islands, (NWA255)

Cite: Nationwide Area delineated by the Federal Communications Commission, 59 FR 14115 (March 25, 1994)

Service:

Narrowband PCS - 47 CFR § 24.102 (901-902, 930-931 MHz, 940-941 MHz: Channels 1-11)

County-equivalent

1990 US County-equivalents (for reference only)

Included in this file are only those county-equivalent areas that the FCC licenses on a regional basis. These areas include, in addition to the 50 States, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, and the United States Virgin Islands. The Gulf of Mexico is also included as a county-equivalent-like area.

Map (Adobe PDF)
Data (MapInfo Interchange Format and MapInfo Native Table Format)

State-equivalent

1990 US State-equivalents (for reference only)

Included in this file are only those state-equivalent areas that the FCC licenses on a regional basis. These areas include, in addition to the 50 States, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, and the United States Virgin Islands.

Map (Adobe PDF)
Data (MapInfo Interchange Format and MapInfo Native Table Format)

Cross Reference Tables

Cross Reference Tables (for reference only)

FCC WTB Microsoft Excel (97) file listing select Census data and cross references to geographic licensing schemes used by the FCC.
1990 US County-equivalents to areas above
1995 US County-equivalents to areas above (see note below)
1999 US County-equivalents to areas above (see note below)
Basic Trading Areas (BTAs) to MTAs, RPCs.
Economic Areas (BEAs) to MEAs, REAs, EAGs, VPCs
FCC Area Relationship Chart ( GIF Image | PowerPoint 97 )

Notes:

To determine in which particular market area your county falls for each of the above market definitions use the US County-equivalent Search.
A free map viewer, MapInfo ProViewer, is available from MapInfo for displaying the MapInfo Data above. Download MapInfo ProViewer at http://www.mapinfo.com/software/proviewer/index.html.
ESRI shapefile format is a format that is compatible with the free standalone ArcExplorer software package produced by ESRI, Inc. Shapefile formatted data for the above areas is available for download from the FCC's site at http://www.fcc.gov/wtb/geographic/.
The Commission uses the county-equivalent areas as defined in Federal Information Processing Standards Publication 6-4, 1990 August 31. However, since 1990, five county-equivalent entities have changed.
- December 28, 1990 - Alaska - Denali Borough (02068) was established. The new borough removes territory from the Yukon-Koyukuk Census Area (02290) and an unpopulated part of Southeast Fairbanks Census Area (02240).
- September 22, 1992 - Alaska - Yakutat Borough (02282) was established. The new borough removes territory from the Skagway-Yakutat-Angoon Census Area (02231). With the loss of Yakutat, that census area is renamed Skagway-Hoonah-Angoon (02232).
- June 30, 1995 - Virginia - The independent city (county-equivalent) of South Boston (51780) reverted to town status. South Boston is an incorporated place within Halifax County (51083).
- November 13, 1997 - Florida - Dade County (12025) officially changed its legal name to Miami-Dade County (12086).
- July 19, 1999 - Montana - Yellowstone National Park (30113) shown as a county equivalent in 1990, is legally part of Gallatin County (30031) and Park County (30067). Therefore , this eliminates Yellowstone National Park as a county equivalent.
The county names and mapping data above were created from 1990 Census data obtained from ftp://ftp.census.gov/pub/tiger/boundary/ and converted to MapInfo Interchange Format (MIF) with custom Fortran software census2mif.
Basic Trading Areas (BTAs) and Major Trading Areas (MTAs) are Based on Material Copyrighted © 1992 Rand McNally & Company.
- Rights granted pursuant to a license from Rand McNally & Company (through an arrangement with the Personal Communications Industry Association) to all interested parties for use solely in connection with the licensing, building, marketing, and operation of personal communications services, certain specialized mobile radio services and local multipoint distribution services.
- Rights granted pursuant to a license from Rand McNally & Company (through an arrangement with the American Mobile Telecommunications Association) to all interested parties for use solely in connection with the licensing, building, marketing, and operation of 900 MHz specialized mobile radio services.
- Rights granted pursuant to a license from Rand McNally & Company (through an arrangement with the Wireless Cable Association International, Inc.) to all interested parties for use solely in connection with the licensing, building, marketing, and operation of Multipoint Distribution Service and Instructional Television Fixed Service facilities.
Television Market Areas are based on material copyrighted by Arbitron, Areas of Dominant Influence (ADI), and Nielsen Media Research, Designated Market Areas (DMA).