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                            Before the
                Federal Communications Commission
                      Washington, D.C. 20554

                                )
In the Matter of                )
                                )
 Adelphia Communications Corporation)
                                 )
                                 )
                                )
                                )
                                )
Motion For Extension of Time To File)
Petition For Reconsideration    )
                                 

                              ORDER

    Adopted:  July 22, 1997  Released:  July 24, 1997

By the Commission:

                        I.  INTRODUCTION

      1.  This matter concerns a request for extension of time filed by Mr. Anthony W. Daniel.  Mr.
Daniel, a cable television subscriber, filed a cable programming service tier ("CPST") complaint against
Adelphia Communications Corporation ("Adelphia").  This complaint was resolved as part of a resolution
of multiple complaints filed against Adelphia ("Rate Resolution").  The Commission approved the Rate
Resolution by an Order ("Adelphia Order") released on May 5, 1997.  By letter dated June 3, 1997, Mr.
Daniel seeks an extension of time to file a petition for reconsideration of the Adelphia Order.  To date, Mr.
Daniel has not filed any petition for reconsideration. 


                        II.  DISCUSSION
                                
      2.  Under Section 405 of the Communications Act of 1934 ("Section 405"), petitions for
reconsideration must be filed "within thirty (30) days from the date upon which public notice is given of the
order . . . ."  For non-rulemaking documents, such as the order adopting the Adelphia rate resolution, public
notice occurs when the document is "released", when the full text is made available to the press and public
in the Commission's Office of Public Affairs. Computation of the thirty-day period begins to run on the day
after the order is released.  

      3.  In the instant matter, the public notice for the Order in question occurred on May 5, 1997,
since the full text of the Order was released to the public and press on that date.  Thus, the thirty-day period
to file a petition for reconsideration began on May 6, 1997, and expired on June 4, 1997, at 5:30 p.m.  

      4.  The Commission may entertain petitions for reconsideration filed beyond the statutory
deadline only where "extraordinary circumstances indicate that justice would thus be served."  Such
circumstances may exist where the Commission's failure to follow its own public notice regulations causes
a petitioner to miss the filing deadline.  Even in such cases the petitioner nonetheless has the burden to show
that the defective notice, in fact, made it reasonably impossible for him to comply with the filing deadline. 


      5.  Extensions of the statutory deadline set forth in Section 405 are strongly disfavored. 
Absent a showing of an extraordinary circumstance, the Commission lacks authority to waive or extend the
Section 405 filing deadline.  

      6.  In his one page petition, Mr. Daniel merely references telephone conversations with
Commission staff as the sole basis for his extension of time.  This, however, is not sufficient to establish
the existence of an extraordinary circumstance.  The relevant focus of the inquiry is on the Commission's
conduct, i.e., whether it specifically violated any notice requirement and thereby caused a delay in the filing
of the petition for reconsideration.  No extraordinary circumstance exists in this matter, for the Commission
has complied with all applicable procedural rules and notice requirements.  In adherence to well established
precedent interpreting Section 405, we conclude that Mr. Daniel is not entitled to an extension or waiver of
the 30-day period for filing petitions for reconsideration.


              III.  CONCLUSION AND ORDERING CLAUSE
                                
      7.  For the reasons discussed above, IT IS ORDERED that Mr. Daniel's motion for an
extension of time to file his petition for reconsideration is hereby DENIED.

     FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION


                                                                                                                      
     William F. Caton
     Acting Secretary