The FCC is now taking public comment on whether ABC’s The View should qualify as a “bona fide news program,” and therefore be exempt from the agency’s equal time requirements.

FCC Chairman Brendan Carr announced the public comment period on Friday, with filings due by June 22 and replies by July 6.

Earlier this month, ABC challenged Carr’s crackdown on the equal time rule, including an investigation into The View after it featured a Democratic candidate for the U.S. Senate, James Talarico, as a guest.

The network claimed that the FCC’s actions were an effort to chill its First Amendment rights. The network said in its filing that “some may dislike certain—or even most—of the viewpoints expressed on The View or similar shows. Such dislike, however, cannot justify using regulatory processes to restrict those views.”

The FCC’s equal time rule requires broadcasters featuring candidates to offer rivals similar broadcast opportunities — if that time is requested. For decades, though, talk shows have booked candidates with the near certainty that they fall under an exemption to the equal time rule, carved out for news programming. But earlier this year, the FCC’s media bureau under Carr has warned that talk shows should not assume that they fall under the exemption, putting such programming under a new level of scrutiny.

In February, the FCC sent a letter of inquiry to KTRK-TV in Houston, which is owned and operated by ABC, concerning Talarico’s Feb. 2 appearance on The View, asking them why no paperwork was filed about the candidate’s appearance, another equal-time requirement. The station took the position that the exemption still applied, but the FCC in March required the outlet to file a petition for a “declaratory ruling.” In its filing, ABC called such an action “unprecedented,” while pointing to a 2002 FCC ruling that confirmed that The View was exempt. The show is produced under the network’s news division.

ABC’s filing was a signal that the network was prepared to mount a broader legal challenge, but any such litigation likely would not come until after the FCC rules on whether The View is exempt. A public comment period adds further delay to the process. The View could still feature midterm candidates, but per the FCC’s January guidance, their affiliates would be on the hook to provide airtime to rivals if requested.

The FCC proceeding asks for comment on questions including, “Does The View qualify as a bona fide news interview program? Does the federal equal opportunities statute pass relevant constitutional scrutiny, either as a general matter or as applied here? Are the relevant decisions on The View, including on format and participants, based on newsworthiness or on an attempt to oppose or support particular candidates within the meaning of FCC precedent?”