Click here for Adobe Acrobat version
Click here for Microsoft Word version
********************************************************
NOTICE
********************************************************
This document was converted from Microsoft Word.
Content from the original version of the document such as
headers, footers, footnotes, endnotes, graphics, and page numbers
will not show up in this text version.
All text attributes such as bold, italic, underlining, etc. from the
original document will not show up in this text version.
Features of the original document layout such as
columns, tables, line and letter spacing, pagination, and margins
will not be preserved in the text version.
If you need the complete document, download the
Microsoft Word or Adobe Acrobat version.
*****************************************************************
Before the
Federal Communications Commission
Washington, D.C. 20554
)
In the Matter of )
) File No. EB-02-CG-
083
Meade County Communications, Inc. )
WMMG-FM ) NAL/Acct. No.
200332320001
Brandenburg, Kentucky )
) FRN 0003-7623-33
NOTICE OF APPARENT LIABILITY FOR FORFEITURE
Released: October
18, 2002
By the District Director, Chicago Office, Enforcement Bureau:
I. Introduction
1. In this Notice of Apparent Liability for Forfeiture
(``NAL''), we find that Meade County Communications, Inc.
(``Meade''), has apparently violated Section 17.4(a)(2) of the
Commission's Rules (the ``Rules'').1 This violation occurred as
a result of Meade's failure to register their antenna structure
with the Commission. We conclude that Meade is apparently liable
for a forfeiture in the amount of three thousand dollars
($3,000).
II. Background
2. On February 5, 2002, an agent from the Commission's
Chicago Office inspected the antenna structure of Radio Station
WMMG-FM. WMMG-FM is licensed to Meade and located in
Brandenburg, Kentucky. After the inspection, the agent checked
the FCC tower registration database, and discovered that WMMG-
FM's antenna structure was not registered with the Commission.
3. The Chicago Office issued a Notice of Violation
(``NOV'') to Meade on February 26, 2002 for violation of 17.4(a)
of the Rules. In their reply, dated March 4, 2002, Meade
indicated that they had corrected the violation.
III. Discussion
4. 17.4(a)(2) of the Rules specifies that antenna
structures assigned painting or lighting requirements prior to
July 1, 1996, were to have been registered prior to July 1, 1998.
Meade did not register their structure until after receiving the
NOV.
5. The Commission assesses monetary forfeitures pursuant
to Section 503(b) of the Communications Act of 1934, as amended,
(the ``Act'')2 as implemented in Section 1.80 of the Rules.3 A
forfeiture may be assessed against a person who the Commission
finds to have willfully4 failed to comply with the provisions of
the Act or the Rules. Forfeiture amounts are decided in
accordance with Section 503(b)(2) of the Act5 and the
Commission's forfeiture guidelines in Section 1.80(b)(4) of the
Rules.6
6. Based on the evidence before us, we find that Meade
willfully violated Section 17.4(a) of the Rules by failing to
register an antenna structure. Pursuant to The Commission's
Forfeiture Policy Statement and Amendment of Section 1.80 of the
Rules to Incorporate the Forfeiture Guidelines, 12 FCC Rcd 17087
(1997), recon. denied, 15 FCC Rcd 303 (1999) (``Forfeiture Policy
Statement''), the base forfeiture amount for failure to file
required forms or information (e.g., failure to file an antenna
registration form) 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 Communications
Act of 1934 (``Act''), as amended, which include the nature,
circumstances, extent, and gravity of the violation(s), 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 After applying the Forfeiture Policy
Statement and the statutory factors to the instant case, we
believe that a three thousand dollar ($3,000) monetary forfeiture
is warranted.
IV. Ordering Clauses
7. Accordingly, IT IS ORDERED THAT, pursuant to Section
503(b) of the Act, and Sections 0.111, 0.311 and 1.80 of the
Rules,8 Meade County Communications, Inc. is hereby NOTIFIED of
its APPARENT LIABILITY FOR A FORFEITURE in the amount of three
thousand dollars ($3,000) for failure to register an antenna
structure, in violation of Sections 17.4(a)(2) of the Rules.
8. IT IS FURTHER ORDERED THAT, pursuant to Section 1.80 of
the Rules, within thirty days of the release date of this NOTICE
OF APPARENT LIABILITY, Meade County Communications, Inc. SHALL
PAY the full amount of the proposed forfeiture or SHALL FILE a
written statement seeking reduction or cancellation of the
proposed forfeiture.
9. 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. 200332320001 and FRN 0003-7623-33.
10. The response, if any, must be mailed to Federal
Communications Commission, Enforcement Bureau, Technical and
Public Safety Division, 445 12th Street, S.W., Washington, D.C.
20402 and MUST INCLUDE THE NAL/Acct. No. 200332320001 and FRN
0003-7623-33.
11. 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.
12. 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. 20554.9
13. 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.
14. IT IS FURTHER ORDERED THAT a copy of this NOTICE OF
APPARENT LIABILITY shall be sent by Certified Mail, Return
Receipt Requested, to Meade County Communications, Inc., 1715
Bypass Road, P.O. Box 505, Brandenburg, Kentucky, 40108.
FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION
G. Michael Moffitt
District Director
Chicago Office
_________________________
1 47 C.F.R. § 17.4(a)(2).
2 47 U.S.C. § 503(b).
3 47 C.F.R. § 1.80.
4 Section 312(f)(1), which also applies to Section 503(b),
provides: [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 the Act or any rule or
regulation of the Commission authorized by this Act or by a
treaty ratified by the United States. See Southern California
Broadcasting Co., 6 FCC Rcd 4387 (1991).
5 47 U.S.C. § 503(b)(2).
6 47 C.F.R. § 1.80(b)(4).
7 47 U.S.C. § 503(b)(2)(D); see also Forfeiture Policy Statement,
12 FCC Rcd at 17100-01.
8 47 C.F.R. §§ 0.111, and 0.311.
9 See 47 C.F.R. § 1.1914.