FCC moves to eliminate the 39% national TV ownership cap, opening the door to a Nexstar-TEGNA megamerger

Congress set the 39% national TV ownership cap in the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2004 (P.L. 108-199), which explicitly removed the FCC's authority to revisit the cap during its mandatory quadrennial reviews — meaning FCC Chair Brendan Carr cannot legally eliminate it without an act of Congress

Nexstar Media Group, already the nation's largest local TV broadcaster, announced a $6.2 billion deal to acquire TEGNA — if approved, the combined company would own 265 full-power television stations in 44 states, reaching 80 percent of all U.S. television households

FCC Chair Brendan Carr launched a Quadrennial Review in September 2025 to examine all broadcast ownership rules, arguing the FCC does not need congressional approval to remove the 39% cap — a position challenged by both Republicans and Democrats in Congress

On July 23, 2025, the Eighth Circuit vacated the FCC's Top Four Prohibition (which blocked ownership of two of the top four local stations in one market) in Zimmer Radio of Mid-Missouri, Inc. v. FCC, ruling the FCC's decision to retain the rule was arbitrary and capricious

Rep. Frank Pallone (D-NJ), Ranking Member of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, wrote to Carr arguing the effort to eliminate ownership caps 'violates the law and reeks of political favoritism' — citing the 2004 statute that forbids FCC review of the 39% cap

Trump himself broke with Carr in November 2025, publicly opposing the lifting of the broadcast ownership cap — citing concerns about ABC and NBC's coverage — complicating Carr's deregulatory push

Nexstar spent $3.2 million on lobbying in 2025 as it sought FCC approval for the TEGNA acquisition