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Before the
Federal Communications Commission
Washington, D.C. 20554
In the Matter of )
)
Sutro Corporation, c/o John H. ) File Number EB-02-PO-
Runkle ) 136
Owner of Antenna Structure at ) NAL/Acct. No.
44º03'44'' North ) 200232920001
Latitude and 116º54'22'' West ) FRN 0007-2822-39
Longitude )
Payette, Idaho )
NOTICE OF APPARENT LIABILITY FOR FORFEITURE
Released: July 31,
2002
By the Enforcement Bureau, Portland Resident Agent Office:
I. INTRODUCTION
1. In this Notice of Apparent Liability for Forfeiture, we
find that Sutro Corporation c/o John H. Runkle, willfully and
repeatedly violated Section 17.4(a) of the Commission's Rules
(``Rules'')1 by failing to register its antenna structure located
in Payette, Idaho at 44º03'44'' North Latitude and 116º54'22''
West Longitude. We find Sutro Corporation c/o John H. Runkle
apparently liable for forfeiture in the amount of three thousand
dollars ($3,000).
II. BACKGROUND
2. On November 30, 1995, the Commission adopted rules
requiring tower owners to conform to antenna structure
registration procedures.2 On January 13, 1999, the
Commission released a Public Notice, ``No-Tolerance
Policy Adopted For Unregistered Antenna Structures,''
stating that the Commission would ``issue monetary
forfeitures to owners and licensees whose structures
are not in compliance with the Commission's
registration and lighting rules.''3
3. On May 23, 2002, a search of the Commission's antenna
structure registration records was conducted while
investigating a radio frequency interference problem.
The search revealed that the 405 foot tower located at
44º03'44'' North Latitude and 116º54'22'' West
Longitude in Payette, Idaho was not registered with the
Commission. According to the City of Payette tax
assessor's office, the tower belongs to Sutro
Corporation c/o John H. Runkle.
4. On June 11, 2002, an Agent from the Portland Resident
Agent Office advised John H. Runkle that the tower must
be registered. A subsequent search on July 30, 2002,
of the Commission's antenna structure registration
records found that the tower remains unregistered.
III. DISCUSSION
5. Section 503(b) of the Act provides that any person who
willfully or repeatedly fails to comply substantially
with the terms and conditions of any license, or
willfully or repeatedly fails to comply with any of the
provisions of the Act or of any rule, regulation or
order issued by the Commission thereunder, shall be
liable for a forfeiture penalty. The term ``willful''
as used in Section 503(b) has been interpreted to mean
simply that the acts or omissions are committed
knowingly.4 The term ``repeated'' means the commission
or omission of such act more than once or for more than
one day.5
6. The Commission's antenna structure registration,
construction, marking and lighting requirements operate
in concert with FAA regulations to ensure that antenna
structures do not present hazards to air navigation.
Generally, Sections 17.4 and 17.7 of the Rules require
owners of antenna structures that are greater than 200
feet in height to register the structure with the
Commission and comply with prescribed painting and
lighting specifications designed to ensure air safety.
7. Specifically, Section 17.4(a) of the Rules provides
that, effective July 1, 1996, owners of any existing antenna
structures that require notification to the Federal Aviation
Administration (e.g., structures 200 feet or more in HAAT) must
register the structure with the Commission. Section 17.4(a)(2)
of the Rules provides that, effective July 1, 1998, owners of an
antenna structure that had been assigned painting or lighting
requirements prior to July 1, 1996, must register the structure
with the Commission. The tower structure located at 44º03'44''
North Latitude and 116º54'22'' West Longitude and owned by Sutro
Corporation c/o John H. Runkle requires registration, yet is
unregistered. Based on the evidence before us, we find that
Sutro Corporation c/o John H. Runkle willfully and repeatedly
violated Section 17.4(a) of the Commission's Rules by failing to
register the antenna structure.
8. The base forfeiture amount set by The Commission's
Forfeiture Policy Statement and Amendment of Section 1.80 of the
Rules to Incorporate the Forfeiture Guidelines, (``Forfeiture
Policy Statement'') and Section 1.80(b)(4) of the Rules,6 for
failure to file required forms is $3,000. In assessing the
monetary forfeiture amount, we must also take into account the
statutory factors set forth in Section 503(b)(2)(D) of the Act,
which include the nature, circumstances, extent, and gravity of
the violation(s), and with respect to the violator, the degree of
culpability, and history of prior offenses, ability to pay, and
other such matters as justice may require. Considering the
record as a whole and the statutory factors listed above, this
case warrants a forfeiture in the amount of $3,000.
IV. ORDERING CLAUSES
9. Accordingly, IT IS ORDERED THAT, pursuant to Section
503(b) of the Act,7 and Sections 0.111, 0.311 and 1.80 of the
Commission's Rules, Sutro Corporation c/o John H. Runkle is
hereby NOTIFIED of its APPARENT LIABILITY FOR A FORFEITURE in the
amount of three thousand dollars ($3,000) for willfully and
repeatedly violating Section 17.4(a) of the Commission's Rules by
failing to register an antenna structure that requires
notification to the Federal Aviation Administration.8
10. IT IS FURTHER ORDERED THAT, pursuant to Section 1.80 of
the Commission's Rules,9 within thirty days of the release date
of this NOTICE OF APPARENT LIABILITY, Sutro Corporation c/o John
H. Runkle SHALL PAY the full amount of the proposed forfeiture or
SHALL FILE a written statement seeking reduction or cancellation
of the proposed forfeiture.
11. 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 should note the
NAL/Acct. No. and FRN referenced above.
12. The response, if any, must be mailed to the 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 above.
13. Requests for payment of the full amount of this Notice
of Apparent Liability under an installment plan should be sent
to: Chief, Revenue and Receivables Operations Group, 445 12th
Street, S.W., Washington, D.C. 20554.10
14. IT IS FURTHER ORDERED THAT a copy of this NOTICE OF
APPARENT LIABILITY shall be sent by Certified Mail Return Receipt
Requested to Sutro Corporation c/o John H. Runkle, P.O. Box 1826,
Boise, Idaho 83701.
FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION
James M. Lafontaine
Resident Agent, Portland Office
Enforcement Bureau
_________________________
1 47 C.F.R. § 17.4(a).
2 Streamlining the Commission's Antenna Structure Clearance
Procedures and Revision of Part 17 of the Commission's Rules
Concerning Construction, Marking, and Lighting of Antenna
Structures, WT Docket No. 95-5, Report and Order, 11 FCC Rcd 4272
(1995).
3 Public Notice, "No-Tolerance Policy Adopted for Unregistered
Antenna Structures," 1999 WL 10060 (WTB rel. January 13, 1999).
4 Section 312(f)(1) of the Act, 47 U.S.C § 312(f)(1), which
applies to violations for which forfeitures are assessed under
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 provisions of
this Act....'' See Southern California Broadcasting Co., 6 FCC
Rcd 4387 (1991).
5 Section 312(f)(2) of the Act, 47 U.S.C § 312(f)(2), which also
applies to violations for which forfeitures are assessed under
Section 503(b) of the Act, provides that ``[t]he 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.''
6 12 FCC Rcd 17087 (1997), recon. denied, 15 FCC Rcd 303 (1999);
47 C.F.R. §1.80.
7 47 U.S.C. § 503(b).
8 47 C.F.R. §§ 0.111, 0.311, 1.80, 17.4.
9 47 C.F.R. § 1.80.
10 See 47 C.F.R. § 1.1914.