Broadcast VOICES Act Offers $50M Tax Break to Boost Minority Media Ownership

The Broadcast Varied Ownership Incentives for Community Expanded Service Act, or the Broadcast VOICES Act, is all about tackling the lack of diversity in who owns the country’s TV and radio stations. Right now, the numbers are pretty stark: less than 6% of commercial TV stations are owned by women, and less than 4% by minorities. This bill tries to move the needle by creating a major tax incentive to encourage current station owners to sell to what the bill calls “socially disadvantaged individuals.”

The $50 Million Tax Deferral for Sellers

This is the engine of the bill. It revives a version of a tax certificate program the FCC used decades ago, but with a modern twist. If you own a broadcast station and sell it to a group where socially disadvantaged individuals hold more than 50% ownership and control, you can apply for a tax certificate. This certificate allows the seller to treat the sale as an “involuntary conversion” for tax purposes, essentially letting them defer capital gains taxes on the sale. The catch? This tax break is capped at a transaction value of $50 million. For a seller, this is a huge financial incentive—they get to reinvest the full, untaxed proceeds right away.

The Catch: Compliance Checks and Clawbacks

While the sellers get a big tax break, the new owners face strict compliance rules. The bill mandates that the new, diverse ownership group must maintain control and ownership for a minimum of two years (but no more than three years). During this period, they have to certify every 180 days that they are still meeting the ownership and management requirements. If the new owners fail to certify—or if they lose control prematurely—the tax benefit granted to the original seller is immediately reversed. The seller then has to recognize the gain or loss as if the sale happened right when the compliance failed. This mechanism is designed to prevent quick flips, but it also creates a massive financial risk for the new owners: any slip-up in management could have severe tax consequences for the person who sold them the station, which could complicate the deal structure.

The Training and Donation Angle

The Act also creates a brand-new tax credit aimed at boosting training and education. If you donate a broadcast station, or even a partial interest in one, to a qualifying charity, you can claim a tax credit equal to the fair market value of the donation. To qualify, the charity must be focused on training socially disadvantaged individuals in running broadcast stations, and they must hold onto the asset for at least two years. The trade-off here is crucial: if you take this new tax credit, you can’t also take the standard charitable deduction for the same donation. It forces donors to choose which tax benefit works best for them.

What the FCC Has to Do Now

Beyond creating the rules for the tax certificate program within one year, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is mandated to step up its data collection. They have to report to Congress every two years, detailing the current count of stations owned by socially disadvantaged individuals and offering concrete recommendations on how to increase both the number and the total value of these stations. This mandate ensures that the push for diversity isn't just a one-time effort but an ongoing, data-driven regulatory focus. The entire tax certificate program is designed to be temporary, with a sunset clause that ends the program 16 years after the law is enacted.