Media Council Hawaii has filed papers with the Federal Communications Commission opposing the planned transfer of the station’s FCC license from HITV to American Spirit Media.

The opposition is an extension of the nonprofit Media Council’s 2009 effort to get the FCC to disallow creation of the shared services agreement under which KFVE, KGMB-TV and KHNL-TV are jointly operated.

While the FCC later ruled that the shared services agreement was at odds with public policy and its own duopoly rules, the commission ruled against the media council.

The shared services agreement was structured in such a way that it did not involve a license transfer, so FCC approval wasn’t necessary.

New FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler has initiated an effort to crack down on similar agreements, according to broadcast industry trade publications.