Licence Area Plan - Narrogin (Radio) - October 1996

The document organises regulatory detail around a small set of recurring legal-technical concepts. Those concepts appear in the Determination, Schedules and Attachments, and the plan ties them together as the legal instrument that authorises availability and technical parameters.

Licence area: The plan defines licence area boundaries by reference to ABS collection districts and municipal units (for example Narrogin (T), Narrogin (S), and a list of shires). Attachment 1.1 lists discrete ABS areas and population counts and aggregates them to a Total Persons figure (21 590 for the commercial licence area). Attachment 2.1 does the same for the community licence area (Total Persons 6 213). The plan therefore treats licence area as an ABS-derived, census-defined aggregate rather than as a free-form map in the determination itself.

Service category and service licence number: The plan records the category of service (Commercial; Community) and assigns or records a service licence number for each scheduled service (for example SL010399 for a commercial service). The Schedules identify each service by category and service licence number and then link those entries to transmitter specification numbers and attachments containing technical specifications.

Transmitter specification and technical specifications: Each service in the Schedules references a transmitter specification number (for example TS002340) and an attachment number where the technical specifications for the transmitter are set out. The Attachments specify a nominal transmitter site location (5 km SE of town Narrogin in all attachments), an Australian Map Grid co-ordinate, a site tolerance instruction (explicitly: "Refer to Technical Planning Guidelines"), emission band and mode (labelled MF-AM in the Attachments), a carrier frequency in kilohertz, and an output radiation pattern table that records "Maximum CMF" and an elevation value (0 in all tables). Each Attachment includes an identical Note: "The CMF at all elevations is not to exceed the specified CMF at 0 degrees elevation for all angles of azimuth." The plan therefore uses transmitter technical parameters as the primary technical control mechanism.

Output radiation pattern and CMF: The output radiation pattern is expressed in a compact table showing "Bearing or Sector", "Elevation" and "Maximum CMF" (for example 450 V in the commercial attachments, 225 V in the community attachment). The plan does not define the acronym CMF within the document. The Note appended to each Attachment constrains emissions by elevation and azimuth relative to the specified CMF at 0 degrees.

References to other instruments and data sources: The plan is explicit about two external references. The Determination states it is made under subsection 26(1) of the Broadcasting Services Act 1992. The Attachments instruct that site tolerance is to be determined with reference to the Technical Planning Guidelines. The licence area definitions rely on the ABS Census of 6 August 1991 terminology.

Linkages across parts: The Schedules operate as a map between service licence numbers and detailed transmitter specifications in attachments; the Attachments contain the operative technical parameters that an operator must follow for the transmitter(s) required to serve the stated general area.

In summary, the main concepts are: (1) assignment of service availability by category and licence number to an ABS-defined geographic licence area; (2) allocation of transmitter technical parameters (location, frequency, emission mode, CMF limits) via attachments; and (3) referral to external Technical Planning Guidelines and ABS classification for site tolerance and area definition.

The Determination identifies particular actors and groups that are directly implicated by its allocations and technical prescriptions.

Decision-maker: The instrument is made by the Australian Broadcasting Authority, which is the body that "hereby makes this plan for broadcasting services in the Narrogin area" and cites subsection 26(1) of the Broadcasting Services Act 1992 as its statutory basis. The Authority is therefore the decision-maker within the document.

Service licence holders and prospective licensees: The Schedules list service licence numbers that correspond to the services that are to be available in the area: SL010399 and SL010079 for commercial services (SCHEDULE ONE), and SL010084 for a community service (SCHEDULE TWO). Those licence numbers identify the particular service allocations the plan records. Entities that hold, apply for, or operate under those licence numbers will be the operational subjects of the plan’s technical instructions because the attachments tie technical obligations to the service licence numbers.

Transmitter operators and engineers: The Attachments set transmitter nominal location, Australian Map Grid references, carrier frequencies, emission mode and the output radiation pattern constraints. Whoever installs, operates or maintains the transmitters for the listed services , which may be the licensee itself or a contracted transmitter operator , must implement these technical parameters. The plan also instructs that site tolerance must be determined by reference to Technical Planning Guidelines; engineers will need to apply those Guidelines.

Local populations and geographic units: The licence areas are defined by ABS areas and populations. The Determination therefore affects the people and communities in those specific ABS collection districts and municipal units listed in Attachments 1.1 and 2.1. The commercial licence area aggregates to 21 590 persons; the community licence area to 6 213 persons. The plan thus maps service availability to discrete, enumerated local populations, which affects coverage expectations and market definition for advertisers, listeners and community stakeholders.

Regulatory and planning bodies: The plan refers to Technical Planning Guidelines and uses ABS area definitions. Those external bodies and instruments (ABS as source of geographic definitions; the body producing Technical Planning Guidelines) are implicated because the plan requires reference to them for site tolerance and area delineation.

Third parties with spectrum interest: The document fixes carrier frequencies (918 kHz, 1251 kHz, 1035 kHz) and CMF limits at a nominal site. Other spectrum users and adjacent broadcasters who might be affected by interference will be indirectly affected by those parameters, because the plan constrains the permitted emissions at those frequencies within the licence area.

Costs bearers: The plan does not state licence fees or who bears explicit monetary obligations. However, the document imposes technical obligations (installing and operating transmitters at specified coordinates and within CMF limits, and consulting Technical Planning Guidelines) which will require capital and operating expenditure by whoever operates the transmitter(s). The plan therefore directly imposes technical compliance burdens on licence holders and their technical agents.

In short, the plan primarily affects the Australian Broadcasting Authority as decision-maker, the specific service licence holders named in the Schedules and the engineers/operators who must execute the transmitter installations, plus the defined local populations as the service recipients. It also implicates other spectrum users and bodies referenced for technical planning and population definitions.

The Determination allocates availability and prescribes technical parameters; it therefore creates a set of operational duties and de facto rights for the parties named in the instrument.

Duties arising from the Schedules and Attachments

• Provide the specified services in the named licence area. The Determination states that "Two commercial radio broadcasting services are to be available in the Narrogin area" and "One community radio broadcasting service is to be available" (Determination). The practical duty on the entity operating under each listed licence number is to ensure that the service is made available in the stated geographic area, consistent with the plan.

• Operate transmitters at specified nominal location and within site tolerance. Each Attachment specifies a nominal location ("Nominal location: 5km SE of town NARROGIN") and supplies an Australian Map Grid reference (Zone 50 Easting 520200 Northing 6352700). The Attachments also record "Site Tolerance: Refer to Technical Planning Guidelines". The duty is to locate transmitters at or within permitted tolerances determined by those Guidelines.

• Transmit on the assigned carrier frequency and emission mode. Each Attachment specifies a carrier frequency and records "Frequency Band & Mode" (listed in the Attachments as MF-AM). For example, Attachment 1.2 records a carrier frequency of 918 kHz, Attachment 1.3 1251 kHz and Attachment 2.2 1035 kHz. The duty is to adhere to those assigned frequencies and emission modes.

• Respect output radiation pattern and CMF limits. Every Attachment includes an output radiation pattern table with a "Maximum CMF" and the same Note: "The CMF at all elevations is not to exceed the specified CMF at 0 degrees elevation for all angles of azimuth." The duty is to ensure that emissions do not exceed the stated CMF parameters for the transmitter.

Rights created or recognised by the plan

• Right to operate a service identified by licence number in the defined licence area. The Schedules tie a service licence number to the availability of a service within the ABS-defined licence area and to a transmitter specification. That linkage creates the practical right for the holder of the licence number to operate the service subject to the specified technical parameters.

• Right to rely on the technical parameters provided in the Attachments as the plan’s specification of what is permitted at the transmitter site. The Attachments record frequencies, map grid coordinates and CMF values; an operator has the right to plan its transmitter installation in reliance on those figures, subject to reconciling any typographical or drafting anomalies (see Gotchas).

Cross-references and external duties

• Follow the Technical Planning Guidelines for site tolerance. The Attachments explicitly instruct that site tolerance is governed by those Guidelines. The duty is therefore not confined to the figures in the Attachments but extends to compliance with the external technical planning document.

• Use ABS definitions for licence area boundaries. The plan specifies ABS census areas as the basis for its licence-area definition; the duty of any party interpreting coverage or market size is to work with those ABS-defined units.

Administrative and practical implications

• The document does not itself set out operational licence conditions such as programming obligations, community broadcasting requirements, licensing fees or sanctioning mechanisms. Those matters are outside the text of the Determination as presented and would be specified elsewhere under the relevant Act or licence instrument. The Duties and Rights described above are the immediate operational constraints and entitlements that follow from the Schedules and Attachments in this plan.

In short, the plan imposes duties to provide services in defined areas and to operate transmitters at specific nominal sites, frequencies and CMF limits; it confers the practical right on named licence numbers to provide the services subject to those constraints and to consult the referenced Technical Planning Guidelines for site tolerance.

The Determination itself does not contain explicit penalty provisions or an enforcement regime within its text. The document records the authority under which it is made , subsection 26(1) of the Broadcasting Services Act 1992 , but does not set out enforcement powers, sanctions, administrative penalties or criminal offences in the plan text.

What the plan does provide that is relevant to enforcement:

• Technical limits that create measurable compliance benchmarks. The Attachments supply carrier frequencies, Australian Map Grid coordinates, and a numerical limit described as "Maximum CMF" together with a specific Note requiring that "The CMF at all elevations is not to exceed the specified CMF at 0 degrees elevation for all angles of azimuth." Those technical parameters are precise compliance metrics that an enforcement body or engineer could measure.

• Referral to external standards for site tolerance. "Site Tolerance: Refer to Technical Planning Guidelines" delegates a subset of technical compliance detail to another instrument. Any compliance assessment that focuses on site coordinates will therefore require applying those Guidelines.

What the document does not do

• It does not identify the enforcement agent within the document text beyond naming the Australian Broadcasting Authority as the maker of the plan. The Determination records the AA B as the organisation that made the plan but does not elaborate on its enforcement powers or the process for rectifying non-compliance.

• It does not specify administrative procedures for monitoring, inspection, remedial directions, infringement notices or fines in this text. No time frames, notice procedures or appeal mechanisms are set out in the plan as provided.

Operational consequences and practical enforcement pathways (document-implied, not legislatively stated)

• The technical parameters and precise geographic coordinates provide a concrete basis for post-installation compliance testing (for example frequency occupancy and field strength measurements against the CMF limit), and the "Refer to Technical Planning Guidelines" instruction means technical compliance verification will require applying external technical criteria.

• Where the plan appears internally inconsistent or ambiguous (see Gotchas), compliance and enforcement will require clarifying which text controls. The plan contains typographical and labelling inconsistencies between Schedules and Attachments which will complicate enforcement unless the issuing authority clarifies them.

Because the Determination does not itself include penalties or a procedural enforcement framework, readers who require detail on sanctions, infringements, or the process for resolving non-compliance must consult the Broadcasting Services Act 1992 and any licence conditions or regulatory procedures issued by the Australian Broadcasting Authority that are not reproduced in this plan.

The Determination explicitly links itself to, and relies on, external legal and technical instruments. The plan is not a standalone code; it cross-references both the Broadcasting Services Act 1992 and other non-legislative technical and statistical materials.

Statutory basis: subsection 26(1) of the Broadcasting Services Act 1992 is cited as the statutory provision under which the Australian Broadcasting Authority makes the plan. The plan therefore sits as an instrument made under that Act and should be read in the legal context that the Act provides. The Determination does not reproduce the operative text of the Act within the plan, but it adopts the Act as its statutory authority.

Technical planning guidance: each Attachment states "Site Tolerance: Refer to Technical Planning Guidelines." The plan therefore expressly imports or defers to a separate set of technical planning materials , likely promulgated by the regulator or a technical advisory body , for the detailed rules on permissible site variation. That creates an operational interaction: to interpret the licence area plan correctly, a reader must consult those Technical Planning Guidelines.

Census and geographic definitions: the plan defines licence areas "in terms of areas defined by the Australian Bureau of Statistics at the Census of 6 August 1991." The ABS census categories and collection districts supplied are therefore part of the plan’s delimitation of territory. Any legal interpretation of coverage or market definitions under this plan requires applying ABS definitions as of that census date.

Spectrum and communications law: the plan allocates carrier frequencies and emission modes (listed in the Attachments as MF-AM and with specified carrier frequencies in kHz). These allocations engage spectrum management principles and will interact with broader spectrum licensing regimes, frequency planning obligations, and interference management rules. The Determination does not restate those regimes, but its frequency allocations must be implemented within that larger legal framework.

External licence instruments and licence conditions: the plan ties service licence numbers to services and transmitter specifications. The actual legal rights and obligations attaching to a licence number (for example, any specific licence conditions, fees, or programming obligations) are not set out in the plan; those are matters that presumably arise under the licence instrument and the Broadcasting Services Act. Users of the plan must therefore reconcile the plan’s allocations with any separate licence document or statutory conditions.

Inter-administrative coordination: because the plan fixes physical transmitter coordinates and emission limits, it interacts in practice with local planning regimes, environmental and land-use approvals, and building or construction permits that are needed to install equipment at the prescribed site. The plan does not address those processes directly but they are practical constraints on implementation.

In summary, the Determination is an instrument made under the Broadcasting Services Act 1992 that depends on and must be implemented with reference to external Technical Planning Guidelines and ABS census area definitions; it also operates within the broader spectrum management and licensing ecosystem, and it will interact with non-federal regulatory regimes involved in transmitter siting and construction.

The document as provided carries a single effective date and does not include any record of amendment, variation or repeal within its text.

• Date of instrument: The Determination is dated 4 October 1996. The front matter states "Date: 4 October 1996" immediately following the descriptive paragraphs that set out the number of services and reference subsection 26(1) of the Broadcasting Services Act 1992.

• No recorded amendments or superseding entries: There is no section in the Determination, Schedules or Attachments that records later amendments, revocations, or historical changes to the plan. No footnote, marginal note or table of revisions appears in the supplied text.

• No cross-reference to subsequent plans: The document does not indicate that the plan supersedes prior plans nor that it will be automatically reviewed or replaced at a specified interval. It simply states the allocations and technical specifications as of the date shown.

Implication for practitioners: Because the supplied text contains a single dated instrument and no amendment history, any practitioner relying on this Determination should verify whether later determinations, replacement licence area plans, or subsequent regulatory instruments have modified the allocations, frequencies, site locations, or technical parameters since 4 October 1996. That verification step is not within the content of the plan itself but is necessary to establish current legal effect.

In short, the instrument presents itself as a snapshot dated 4 October 1996 and contains no internal record of amendments or later modifications.

The Determination and its Attachments do not record any litigation. The text contains no references to court decisions, tribunal determinations, appeals, disputed interpretations, or litigation outcomes. No case names are cited in the document.

What the document does show for the litigation-aware practitioner

• There is no internal indication of dispute or adjudication record in the plan. The Determination is an administrative instrument setting out technical allocations and geographic definitions; the supplied document does not recount any challenges to its terms or any adjudicative history.

• Ambiguities and typographical inconsistencies in the plan (noted below in Gotchas) are potential sources of later dispute, but the plan itself contains no record of litigation arising from those ambiguities.

If litigation or dispute history is required, the practitioner must look beyond this document to the public record of the Australian Broadcasting Authority, administrative appeals, tribunals or courts that might have considered disputes over licence area plans, frequencies or transmitter specifications. That material is not part of the Determination as provided.

In summary, there is no litigation history contained in the text; the plan contains no case citations and records no legal proceedings.

The plan contains several drafting, labelling and cross-reference issues that materially affect interpretation and implementation. These should be resolved with the issuing authority before relying on the plan for construction, operation, or enforcement.

1. Inconsistent or altered service licence number formatting

• SCHEDULE ONE lists a commercial service with Service Licence No: SL010399. Attachment 1.2, which purports to be the technical specification for that service, lists "Service Licence Number : SL10399" (note: missing a zero). That is a typographical discrepancy between the Schedule and the Attachment. Practitioners and operators must clarify which service licence number is the operative identifier.

2. Mismatch between label "FM Radio" and emission mode MF-AM

• Attachment 1.3 has the header "TECHNICAL SPECIFICATION - FM Radio" but immediately below it records "Frequency Band & Mode MF-AM" and a carrier frequency of 1251 kHz. FM broadcasting typically uses VHF band frequencies, whereas 1251 kHz is within the medium frequency AM band. This is an internal inconsistency: the header designates FM, while the emission mode and carrier frequency indicate AM. That affects equipment selection, modulation format, and regulatory classification. The responsible licence holder must obtain clarification from the Authority as to whether the allocation is AM or FM in practice and which carrier/modulation is authorised.

3. Transmitter specification number formatting and duplication

• The SCHEDULE ONE lists Transmitter Specification No: TS002340 for one commercial service, but Attachment 1.2 records "Specification Number : TS10002340." The extra digits or altered formatting could be a transcription artifact but must be resolved before procurement or licensing actions.

4. Uniform nominal location but multiple services

• All Attachments list the same nominal location and map grid coordinates (Nominal location: 5 km SE of town NARROGIN; Australian Map Grid Zone 50 Easting 520200 Northing 6352700). Multiple services and multiple transmitters using the same nominal coordinates can be implemented co-located, but the plan does not specify separation distances, co-location constraints, antenna heights, or stacking instructions. Operators should clarify whether the coordinates are to be used by multiple licence-holders at the same physical transmitter site or whether multiple, separately sited transmitters are permitted within the site tolerance permitted by the Technical Planning Guidelines.

5. Undefined technical term "CMF"

• The Attachments specify "Maximum CMF" as the output radiation pattern parameter and set numeric values (450 V in commercial attachments, 225 V in the community attachment). The Determination does not define CMF. Without a definition within the plan, engineers and compliance officers must consult external technical documents or ask the regulator to confirm whether CMF refers to a field strength metric, a composite measure, or another technical parameter. Implementation and measurement protocols depend on that definition.

6. Emission band label inconsistent across document

• The Attachments list "Frequency Band & Mode MF-AM" even where the header states "FM Radio." The plan therefore conflates band labelling inconsistently, which creates legal and technical uncertainty about which radio services are authorised as FM versus AM.

7. Reliance on external Technical Planning Guidelines for site tolerance

• The Attachments defer site tolerance to the Technical Planning Guidelines. That leaves crucial implementation detail outside the plan. Site tolerance can affect coverage patterns and interference, so operators must obtain and apply the correct edition of the Technical Planning Guidelines to determine permitted deviation from the nominal coordinates.

8. ABS census vintage and fixed population numbers

• The plan uses ABS Census definitions and enumerated population counts from the Census of 6 August 1991. Those figures are dated relative to the Determination and to any later practical use of the plan. If licence-area population is relevant to market definition, community-license thresholds or coverage obligations, parties should be aware that the plan anchors area definitions to that census rather than more current data.

9. No enforcement specifics in the text

• The plan supplies measurable technical limits but contains no internal enforcement process. Where ambiguity exists, such as those noted above, the absence of remediation or dispute-resolution text increases the practical need to obtain clarifications or formal amendments from the Authority.

These drafting and cross-reference anomalies are not merely clerical: they affect which frequency and modulation an operator may lawfully use, what equipment to procure, how emissions are measured and whether multiple services can be co-located. Before construction, broadcast operation or enforcement action, affected parties should obtain clarifying direction from the Australian Broadcasting Authority and the referenced Technical Planning Guidelines.

Compliance with this Licence Area Plan requires interpreting and implementing the technical and geographic specifications in the Schedules and Attachments, and resolving any ambiguities in consultation with the Australian Broadcasting Authority and the referenced Technical Planning Guidelines. The following practical steps summarise what the plan requires operationally, and the immediate actions a licensee or prospective licensee should take.

1. Confirm the correct service licence number and matching attachment

• Check SCHEDULE ONE and SCHEDULE TWO entries against the Attachments to ensure the service licence number in the Schedule correctly matches the Attachment labelled as its technical specification. Where the plan contains typographical inconsistencies (for example SL010399 vs SL10399), obtain written clarification from the Authority before proceeding with procurement, licensing filings or construction.

2. Secure and apply the relevant Technical Planning Guidelines

• The Attachments state "Site Tolerance: Refer to Technical Planning Guidelines." Obtain the specific edition of those Guidelines that was applicable at the time of the Determination or a subsequently updated edition as specified by the Authority. Use the Guidelines to determine permissible site deviation from the nominal coordinates (Zone 50 Easting 520200 Northing 6352700) and to resolve any technical measurement standards required for CMF and radiation pattern verification.

3. Build or commission transmitters to the specified technical parameters

• Install transmitters at or within permitted site tolerance of the nominal location specified in each Attachment. Program and operate transmitters on the specified carrier frequency and emission mode indicated in the Attachment: 918 kHz (Attachment 1.2), 1251 kHz (Attachment 1.3), and 1035 kHz (Attachment 2.2), subject to confirmation of any FM/AM labelling inconsistencies noted in the document.

• Ensure the transmitted emissions do not exceed the "Maximum CMF" specified in the Attachments. The Attachments state the CMF at all elevations must not exceed the specified CMF at 0 degrees elevation for all angles of azimuth. You must establish the measurement protocol for CMF (see step 4).

4. Clarify and document the definition and measurement method for CMF

• The term CMF is used as the emission limit but is not defined in the plan. Before commissioning, secure from the Authority (or Technical Planning Guidelines) the definition of CMF and the standard measurement methodology (including measurement distance, instrumentation, calibration, and environmental conditions) that will be used for compliance testing. Document the measurement protocol and retain test reports for regulatory inspection.

5. Resolve FM/AM labelling inconsistencies before operational deployment

• Attachment 1.3 is labelled "FM Radio" yet specifies MF-AM and a 1251 kHz carrier. Confirm with the Authority whether the authorised emission is AM on that frequency or if the header is correct and the carrier/emission entry is mistaken. Do not rely on ambiguous labelling when purchasing transmitters or antennas.

6. Coordinate co-location and spectrum planning

• Multiple Attachments reference the same nominal coordinates. If co-location of multiple transmitters is intended, coordinate antenna patterns, inter-transmitter interference mitigation and physical layout to meet the specified output radiation patterns and CMF limits for each service. If separate physical sites are intended within the permitted site tolerance, ensure separation and orientation meet both the plan’s radiation pattern constraints and any Technical Planning Guidelines.

7. Keep a written record of regulatory clarifications and approvals

• For each ambiguity you resolve with the Authority (for example transmitter specification number corrections, licence number confirmation, CMF definition), obtain written confirmation. Retain correspondence and revised technical documentation as part of compliance records.

8. Apply ABS-defined licence area boundaries to coverage and community obligations

• Use the ABS collection district and local government area listings in Attachments 1.1 and 2.1 to determine which population and territory your service must serve. If the licence or any separate condition references population thresholds or community representation, use the ABS areas and the census vintage stated in the plan as the baseline unless the Authority provides an updated position.

9. Prepare for verification testing and possible inspection

• Because the plan provides numerical technical limits but not an internal enforcement procedure, ensure readiness for any regulator inspection or measurement by having calibrated instruments, test reports, antenna patterns and site documentation available to demonstrate compliance with frequencies, CMF limits and site tolerance.

10. Coordinate with spectrum neighbours and non-federal planning regimes

• Consider the interaction of the plan’s assigned frequencies with neighbouring spectrum users. Also obtain any local land-use, building or environmental permits required to install and operate the transmitter at the nominated site.

Following these steps will align operational activity with the technical and geographic prescriptions in the Narrogin Licence Area Plan. Given the plan’s drafting inconsistencies and references to external technical guidance, early and documented engagement with the Australian Broadcasting Authority and the custodians of the Technical Planning Guidelines is essential to reduce implementation risk.