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

In the Matter of )
) File Number EB-02-AT-380
Small Town Communications )
Partners I LP ) NAL/Acct. No.200332480013
Operator of Cable Television )
System in Cornersville, Tennessee ) FRN 0000-0131-51
Nashville, Tennessee

NOTICE OF APPARENT LIABILITY FOR FORFEITURE

Released: December 6, 2002

By the Enforcement Bureau, Atlanta Office:

I. INTRODUCTION

1. In this Notice of Apparent Liability for Forfeiture
(``NAL''), we find that Small Town Communications Partners I LP
(``STC''), willfully and repeatedly violated Section
76.605(a)(12) of the Commission's Rules (``Rules'')1 and
willfully violated Section 76.611(a)(1) of the Rules2 relating to
cable television signal leakage. We conclude that STC is
apparently liable for a forfeiture in the amount of eight
thousand dollars ($8,000).

II. BACKGROUND

2. On October 30, 2002, an agent from the FCC Enforcement
Bureau's Atlanta Field Office conducted a cable television signal
leakage inspection of STC's cable system located in Cornersville,
Tennessee. The agent found that, at seven locations, cable
signal leakage on the frequency 121.2625 MHz significantly
exceeded 20 microvolts per meter (µV/m) at a distance of at least
three meters from each leakage, in violation of Section
76.605(a)(12) of the Rules. The measured leaks ranged from 255
µV/m to 2080 µV/m. Based on these measurements, the agent
calculated the system's cumulative leakage index (``CLI'') at a
value of 68.7, exceeding the allowed cumulative signal leakage
performance criteria of 64, in violation of Section 76.611(a)(1)
of the Rules.3 (See Attachment B.)

III. DISCUSSION

3. Section 76.605(a)(12) of the Rules requires cable
operators to limit signal leakage in the frequency band from 54
MHz up to and including 216 MHz to 20 µV/m at a distance of 3
meters. On October 30, 2002, STC exceeded this limit at seven
locations on its system in Cornersville, Tennessee. Section
76.611(a)(1) of the Rules requires cable operators to limit the
CLI to a value at or below 64. On October 30, 2002, STC's cable
system in Cornersville, Tennessee operated with a CLI value of
68.7.

4. Based on the evidence before us, we find that on
October 30, 2002, Small Town Communications Partners I LP
willfully4 and repeatedly5 violated Section 76.605(a)(12) of the
Rules, and willfully violated Section 76.611(a)(1) of the Rules.

5. Pursuant to Section 1.80(b)(4) of the Rules, the base
forfeiture amount for the violations cited in this notice is
$8,000 (violation of rules relating to distress and safety
frequencies).6 Section 503(b)(2)(D) of the Communications Act of
1934, as amended (``Act''), requires us to take into account
``... the nature, circumstances, extent, and gravity of the
violation, and with respect to the violator, the degree of
culpability, any history of prior offenses, ability to pay, and
other such matters as justice may require.''7 Considering the
entire record and the factors listed above, this case warrants an
$8,000 forfeiture.

IV. ORDERING CLAUSES

6. Accordingly, IT IS ORDERED THAT, pursuant to Section
503(b) of the Act8 and Sections 0.111, 0.311 and 1.80 of the
Rules,9 Small Town Communications Partners I LP is hereby
NOTIFIED of its APPARENT LIABILITY FOR A FORFEITURE in the amount
of eight thousand dollars ($8,000) for willful and repeated
violation of Section 76.605(a)(12) of the Rules and willful
violation of Section 76.611(a)(1) of the Rules.

7. IT IS FURTHER ORDERED THAT, pursuant to Section 1.80 of
the Commission's Rules, within thirty days of the release date of
this NAL, Small Town Communications Partners I LP SHALL PAY the
full amount of the proposed forfeiture or SHALL FILE a written
statement seeking reduction or cancellation of the proposed
forfeiture.

8. Payment of the forfeiture may be made by mailing a
check or similar instrument, payable to the order of the Federal
Communications Commission, to the Forfeiture Collection Section,
Finance Branch, Federal Communications Commission, P.O. Box
73482, Chicago, Illinois 60673-7482. The payment MUST INCLUDE
the NAL/Acct. No. and FRN referenced in the letterhead above.
Requests for payment of the full amount of this NAL under an
installment plan should be sent to: Chief, Revenue and
Receivables Operations Group, 445 12th Street, S.W., Washington,
D.C. 20554.10

9. The response, if any, must be mailed to Federal
Communications Commission, Office of the Secretary, 445 12th
Street, SW, Washington, DC 20554, Attn: Enforcement Bureau-
Technical & Public Safety Division, and MUST INCLUDE THE
NAL/Acct. No. and FRN referenced in the letterhead above.

10. The Commission will not consider reducing or canceling
a forfeiture in response to a claim of inability to pay unless
the petitioner submits: (1) federal tax returns for the most
recent three-year period; (2) financial statements prepared
according to generally accepted accounting practices (``GAAP'');
or (3) some other reliable and objective documentation that
accurately reflects the petitioner's current financial status.
Any claim of inability to pay must specifically identify the
basis for the claim by reference to the financial documentation
submitted.

11. Under the Small Business Paperwork Relief Act of 2002,
Pub L. No. 107-198, 116 Stat. 729 (June 28, 2002), the FCC is
engaged in a two-year tracking process regarding the size of
entities involved in forfeitures. If you qualify as a small
entity and if you wish to be treated as a small entity for
tracking purposes, please so certify to us within thirty (30)
days of this NAL, either in your response to the NAL or in a
separate filing to be sent to the Technical and Public Safety
Division. Your certification should indicate whether you,
including your parent entity and its subsidiaries, meet one of
the definitions set forth in the list provided by the FCC's
Office of Communications Business Opportunities (OCBO) set forth
in Attachment A of this Notice of Apparent Liability. This
information will be used for tracking purposes only. Your
response or failure to respond to this question will have no
effect on your rights and responsibilities pursuant to Section
503(b) of the Communications Act. If you have questions
regarding any of the information contained in Attachment A,
please contact OCBO at (202) 418-0990.

12. IT IS FURTHER ORDERED THAT a copy of this NAL shall be
sent by regular mail and Certified Mail Return Receipt Requested
to Small Town Communications Partners I LP, 225 Highland Villa
Circle, Nashville, Tennessee 37211.

FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION

Fred L. Broce
District Director
Atlanta Office, Enforcement Bureau

Attachments
Small Town Communications Partners I LP NAL
Acct. No. 200232480013

ATTACHMENT B

FIELD STRENGTH MEASUREMENTS OF SMALL TOWN COMMUNICATIONS PARTNERS
I LP, CORNERSVILLE, TN

MEASUREMENT DATE: OCTOBER 30, 2002 FREQUENCY: 121.2625
MHZ

Measurement Location - Leakage Field
Cornersville, Tennessee Strength, µV/m
1 Pole #3 just west of intersection of
Ostella Road. & Hatchell Hollow Road
next to 109 Ostella Road 270
2 Pole #4 across street from 109
Ostella Road 779
3 Pole #5 across street from 109
Ostella Road 2080
4 Pole at street between 109 and 111
Ostella Road 1449
5 Pole between properties 109 and 111
Ostella Road 520
6 Pole across street from 111 Ostella
Road 255
7 Pole on Main Street just west of
Valley View Ave. at creek 286

_________________________

1 47 C.F.R. § 76.605(a)(12).
2 47 C.F.R. § 76.611(a)(1).
3 The calculated CLI included only leaks greater than 50 µV/m,
included leaks found in only 20 miles or 80% of the system
inspected, and assumed no leaks in the 20% of the system not
checked.
4 Section 312(f)(1) of the Act, 47 U.S.C. § 312(f)(1), which
applies equally to Section 503(b) of the Act, provides that
``[t]he term `willful,' when used with reference to the
commission or omission of any act, means the conscious and
deliberate commission or omission of such act, irrespective of
any intent to violate any provision of this Act ....'' See
Southern California Broadcasting Co., 6 FCC Rcd 4387 (1991).
5 The term ``repeated,'' when used with reference to the
commission or omission of any act, ``means the commission or
omission of such act more than once or, if such commission or
omission is continuous, for more than one day.'' 47 U.S.C. §
312(f)(2).
6 47 C.F.R. § 1.80(b)(4).
7 47 U.S.C. § 503 (b)(2)(D).
8 47 U.S.C. § 503(b).
9 47 C.F.R. §§ 0.111, 0.311, 1.80.
10 See 47 C.F.R. § 1.1914.