PUBLIC NOTICE FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION 445 12TH STREET, S.W. WASHINGTON, D.C. 20554 News media information 202/418-0500 Fax-On-Demand 202/418-2830 Internet: http://www.fcc.gov ftp.fcc.gov Released: June 4, 1999 DA 99-1102 COMMISSION TO BEGIN COLLECTION OF TAXPAYER IDENTIFICATION NUMBERS TO SUPPORT ANTENNA STRUCTURE REGISTRATION SOFTWARE UPGRADE On Monday, June 7, 1999, the Federal Communications Commission will begin the registration of Taxpayer Identification Numbers (TINs) from antenna structure owners in order to prepare for the release of new Antenna Structure Registration (ASR) electronic filing software. Once the software is released in early July, antenna structure owners wishing to file or modify antenna structure registrations electronically must have their TIN registered with the Commission. A future Public Notice will describe how to access and use the new software in ASR filings. Who is affected: Owners of antenna structures registered with the Commission who file ASR applications and modifications (via FCC Form 854) electronically. Why registration is necessary: The Commission's Wireless Telecommunications Bureau (WTB) will soon replace the existing electronic registration formats -- dial-up software and electronic submission of data via a prescribed format -- with a new, interactive registration system. Owners will need to register their TINs in order to access the system. Collection of TIN information also assists the Commission in complying with the Debt Collection Improvement Act of 1996. What changes: The existing electronic filing methods (use of the dial-up software, electronic data submission via a prescribed format) will be discontinued when the new software is released. In order to make any type of electronic filing, owners must have registered their TIN with the Commission and associated their existing antenna structures with their TIN. In conjunction with the software update, the Commission will issue a revised FCC Form 854, "Application for Antenna Structure Registration." We will issue a Public Notice describing use of the new form on or before the release date. In the meantime, registrants should continue to use the existing version of FCC Form 854. What stays the same: This change does not affect the requirements for registering antenna structures with the Commission (generally, owners of structures more than 200 feet tall or located near airports must have their structures studied by the Federal Aviation Administration and registered by the Commission. See Part 17 of the Commission's Rules, 47 C.F.R. Part 17 or the Antenna Homepage on the Internet at http://www.fcc.gov/wtb/antenna). Registrants will continue to be able to submit manual (paper) filings, even after the new electronic filing system is adopted. There will continue to be no fee to submit ASR applications. Note for users of the Universal Licensing System: Users of WTB's "Universal Licensing System" (ULS) will be familiar with many of the features of the new registration system, which is being implemented as part of the ULS rollout. If you have already registered your TIN for ULS, you do not need to re-register it in order to make electronic ASR filings. However, you will need to associate existing antenna structures with your TIN in order to access those registrations electronically. This can be done at the FCC's ULS Internet site at http://www.fcc.gov/wtb/uls by clicking on the "ULS TIN/Call Sign Registration" link. How to register your TIN: We encourage all registrants who plan to use the new electronic filing system to electronically register their TIN. To do this, go to the FCC's ULS Internet site at http://www.fcc.gov/wtb/uls and click on the "ULS TIN/Call Sign Registration" link. As with licensing services administered under ULS, electronic filers must register their TIN and select a password in order to gain access to the system to conduct electronic filing. Manual TIN registration requires FCC Form 606 (TIN Registration Form), which can be obtained from the Internet at http://www.fcc.gov/formpage.html, by calling the FCC's Form Distribution Center at 1-800-418-FORM (3676), or from the FCC's Fax-on-Demand service by calling (202) 418-0177 from the handset of a fax machine (follow the prompts and use document retrieval number 000606). If you registered your TIN manually and wish to file registrations electronically, you must call the Technical Support Staff at (202) 414-1250 to obtain a password. Manually-filed Form 606 should be mailed to: Federal Communications Commission Information Technology Division Attention: Kathy McLucas 1270 Fairfield Road Gettysburg, PA 17325-7245 To protect licensee privacy, registered TINs will not be made available to the public. However, TIN information may be released to the U.S. Treasury Department for purposes of compliance with the Debt Collection Act. For Further Information or Assistance: For general information about TIN registration, including answers to frequently asked questions, the Commission recommends first consulting the ULS webpage at http://www.fcc.gov/wtb/uls. General information about the ASR process is available on the Antenna Homepage at http://www.fcc.gov/wtb/antenna. Those having specific questions not addressed on the webpages may contact Commission staff via phone or e-mail as described below. FCC Technical Support Hotline: (202) 414-1250, or via e-mail at ulscomm@fcc.gov. Contact the Technical Support Hotline about questions concerning TIN registration and electronic filing. The hotline is available Monday through Friday, from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Eastern Time. In order to provide better service to callers and ensure the security of the electronic filing system, all calls to the hotline are recorded. Licensing Support: 1-888-CALL-FCC (225-5322), select option 2, or via e-mail at ulshelp@fcc.gov. Contact Licensing Support with questions about what information is being requested on a Form or Schedule, or any other application-related matter. Licensing Support is available Monday through Friday, from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Eastern Time.