The Federal Communications Commission has sent a clear signal to broadcasters hoping to carve out new audio opportunities on TV Channel 6 spectrum: don’t expect the agency to open that door anytime soon.

The FCC has rejected a Connecticut proposal to launch a new low-power FM station at 87.7 MHz, a frequency sitting just below the traditional FM dial inside spectrum allocated to television Channel 6. On the surface, the case involved a single LPFM applicant seeking a waiver. But the Commission used the proceeding to reinforce a broader policy position saying that existing Channel 6 audio operations remain narrow exceptions, not the foundation for expanding radio service into the band. In an eight-page decision released Wednesday, the Commission also outright rejected the assertion that the FM band includes 87.7 and 87.9 MHz.

How We Got Here

Despite the applicant’s name, WHKA FM 87.7 Inc. isn’t yet on the air. It has been the proposal of a group that has sought to sign-on a low power station licensed to Storrs-Mansfield, CT. Co-Director Tom Stormfield told UConn’s Daily Campus newspaper two years ago that they hoped to sign-on a station that would offer more local content for Connecticut communities than stations beaming in from New York or Hartford.

WHKA had argued that no regular FM frequencies were available in the area and sought a waiver that proposed using 87.7 MHz instead. The company said its station would not create interference and pointed to other audio-like uses already operating in adjacent Channel 6 spectrum, including grandfathered FM6 television stations — what have become known as “Franken FMs” in many circles — and educational stations authorized on nearby frequencies.

However, the FCC was not persuaded. The Media Bureau dismissed the application in March 2025 for failing to specify a valid FM operating channel. The Bureau also expressed concerns that the proposal could lead to interference with other stations and compromise the integrity of the agency’s frequency allocations framework.

WHKA petitioned the Bureau for reconsideration, but the answer was identical. They said that WHKA failed to demonstrate any justification for a waiver to the rule and that lack of local channel availability is not a special circumstance — many LPFM applicants in densely populated areas could similarly have difficulty locating an available FM frequency.

The low-power advocates then filed an application seeking review from the full Commission. They said special circumstances were at play, with little risk of interference. WHKA also argued the public interested would be better served if the low-power station were allowed.

Why The FCC Said No

In denying the appeal, the Commission says the Media Bureau complied with statute, regulation, precedent, and established policy when it rejected the attempt to get a LPFM on 87.7. The FCC also said using an individual waiver request to effectively create a new class of audio service in Channel 6 spectrum was the wrong vehicle. “It has long been Commission practice to make decisions that alter fundamental components of broadly applicable regulatory schemes in the context of rulemaking proceedings, not adjudications,” the FCC says in the order.

The Commission also emphasizes that previously approved Channel 6 audio uses came with tight restrictions and emerged through separate notice-and-comment proceedings. The agency highlighted its 2023 decision to allow only existing FM6 television operators to continue offering radio-style service while rejecting broader proposals to convert more TV6 spectrum into radio channels.

What It Means

The order suggests the Commission is drawing a hard line around Channel 6. While it stopped short of saying the spectrum could never support additional audio services, it made clear that any broader rethink would require a full policy proceeding rather than piecemeal licensing decisions.

That likely closes off hopes that LPFM applications could become a backdoor path to new 87.7 stations.