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


In the Matter of                )            
                                )       File No. EB-02-CF-427
                                )
Grass Roots Broadcasting, LLC   )       NAL/Acct.             No. 
200332340001
WAMM                            )       
Woodstock, Virginia             )       FRN: 0006-5780-41 


           NOTICE OF APPARENT LIABILITY FOR FORFEITURE

                                             Released:  October 
23, 2002

By the District Director, Columbia Office, Enforcement Bureau:

                        I.  INTRODUCTION

     1.   In this  Notice of  Apparent Liability  for  Forfeiture 
("NAL"), we  find that  Grass  Roots Broadcasting,  LLC  (``Grass 
Roots'') has apparently violated Sections 17.4(a)(2), 17.50,  and 
73.1125(a) of the Commission's Rules1 (``Rules''), by failing  to 
register its  antenna structure,  failing  to paint  its  antenna 
structure, and failing  to maintain a  main studio.  We  conclude 
that Grass Roots  is apparently  liable for a  forfeiture in  the 
amount of twenty thousand dollars ($20,000).

                         II.  BACKGROUND

     2.   On December 12,  2001, an agent  from the  Commission's 
Columbia, Maryland  office attempted  an  inspection of  WAMM  in 
Woodstock, Virginia.  The agent found that the main studio in the 
Edinburg Mill building was unmanned. 

     3.   On December  17, 2001,  the  Columbia Office  issued  a 
Notice of  Violation  to Grass  Roots  for violation  of  Section 
73.1125 of the Rules.   In response by  letter dated January  10, 
2002, Grass Roots stated that in order to correct the  violation; 
the main  studio was  moving  to 148  North Main  St,  Woodstock, 
Virginia.

     4.   On June 26, 2002, agents from the Commission's Columbia 
Maryland  office  conducted  an   inspection  of  station   WAMM, 
Woodstock, Virginia.   The  agents  observed  that  none  of  the 
production and  transmission  facilities or  the  management  and 
staff presence required at a broadcast station's main studio were 
present at 148 North Main Street, Woodstock, Virginia.  The  only 
person present at the  main studio was  employed by the  attorney 
located at the same  address, and not  employed by the  broadcast 
station.

     5.   The  agents  also  found  that  the  304-foot   antenna 
structure of the  station was  in need of  painting.  The  agents 
found that the structure  paint had faded,  peeled, and had  worn 
away to  the  extent that  many  sections of  the  structure  had 
rusted.  The agents  could not easily  distinguish between  white 
and red painted sections of the structure.  The condition of  the 
paint reduced the  visibility of the  tower.  The agents  further 
determined that the antenna structure was not registered with the 
Commission.

     6.   On July 17, 2002, the  Columbia Office issued a  Notice 
of Violation to Grass Roots  for violation of Sections  11.52(d), 
11.61(d),   17.4(a)(2),    17.50,   73.1125(a),    73.1225(d)(1), 
73.1545(a), 73.1560(b), 73.1590(b), 73.3526(b) and 73.3526(e)(12) 
of the Rules2.  In response by letter dated August 5, 2002, Grass 
Roots stated that the antenna registration issue had been brought 
to its attention by an FCC inspector in December 2001 and that an 
FAA study,  required  before  the structure  can  be  registered, 
commenced on  June 20,  2002.  Grass  Roots stated  the  previous 
owner  had  agreed  to  paint  the  antenna  structure  but   the 
contractor failed  to  perform, and  a  new contractor  had  been 
engaged to perform the painting.  Grass Roots further stated that 
it believed the requirements for a main studio were only that the 
public  inspection  file  and   management  (via  telephone)   be 
available during business hours. Grass Roots stated that the main 
studio, with  full  production and  transmission  facilities  and 
staff, is  now  located  at 118  North  Main  Street,  Woodstock, 
Virginia.   Grass  Roots  also  adequately  addressed  corrective 
action of the other violations in its reply.

                        III.  DISCUSSION

     7.   Section  17.4(a)(2)  of  the  Rules  requires   antenna 
structures  that  had   been  assigned   painting  and   lighting 
requirements prior to July 1, 1996 be registered prior to July 1, 
1998.  The station  license for  WAMM, issued  December 20,  1983 
lists antenna structure painting and lighting requirements.   The 
licensee stated that  an FCC inspector  had verbally brought  the 
registration issue  to  his  attention  in  December  2001.   The 
required FAA study was not begun until June 20, 2002.  As of  the 
date of this  Notice, Grass  Roots still had  not registered  the 
antenna structure.

     8.   Section  17.50  of  the  Rules  requires  that  antenna 
structures be  cleaned  and  painted as  often  as  necessary  to 
maintain good visibility.  On June  26, 2002, the required  paint 
on Grass Roots' antenna structure was severely faded, and was  no 
longer the required  aviation orange  and white in  color.  As  a 
result, the structure was not clearly visible.

     9.   Section 73.1125(a) of the  Rules requires that each  AM 
FM and  TV broadcast  station  maintain a  main studio.   In  the 
Commission's Memorandum Opinion and  Order3 on main studio  rules 
released August 17, 1988, the Commission stated that ``a  station 
must equip  the  main  studio with  production  and  transmission 
facilities that  meet applicable  standards, maintain  continuous 
program  transmission  capability,  and  maintain  a   meaningful 
management and  staff presence.''   At  the time  of  inspection, 
Grass Roots had no main studio with production facilities and  no 
meaningful management and staff presence. 

     10.  Based on the  evidence before  us, we  find that  Grass 
Roots  willfully4  and  repeatedly5  violated  Section  17(4)(a), 
17.50, and 73,1125(a)  of the  Rules by failing  to register  its 
antenna structure, by failing to  paint its antenna structure  as 
often as necessary to maintain good visibility, and by failing to 
equip and  staff  a  main studio.   The  Commission's  Forfeiture 
Policy Statement and Amendment  of Section 1.80  of the Rules  to 
Incorporate the Forfeiture  Guidelines, 12 FCC  Rcd 17087,  17113 
(1997), recon. denied, 15 FCC Rcd 303(1999) (``Forfeiture  Policy 
Statement'')6, sets  the base  forfeiture amounts  at $3,000  for 
failure to file the required  forms or information (e.g.  failure 
to register the antenna structure), $10,000 for failure to comply 
with prescribed lighting and/or marking, and $7,000 for violation 
of the main  studio rule.  In  assessing the monetary  forfeiture 
amount, we must take into account the statutory factors set forth 
in  Section  503(b)(2)(D)  of  the  Communications  Act  of  1934 
(``Act''), as amended,7 which include 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.   Applying  the  Forfeiture  Policy  Statement  and  the 
statutory factors to the instant case and applying the  inflation 
adjustments, we believe that  a twenty thousand dollar  ($20,000) 
monetary forfeiture is warranted.  

                      IV.  ORDERING CLAUSES

     11.  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 Grass Roots is hereby NOTIFIED of this APPARENT LIABILITY 
FOR A  FORFEITURE  in  the  amount  of  twenty  thousand  dollars 
($20,000) for willfully violating Sections 17.4(a)(2), 17.50  and 
73.1125(a) of the Rules.

     12.  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, Grass Roots  SHALL PAY the full amount  of 
the proposed forfeiture or SHALL FILE a written statement seeking 
reduction or cancellation of the proposed forfeiture.

     13.  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. 200332340001, and FRN 0006-5780-41. 

     14.  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. 
20554 and MUST INCLUDE THE NAL/Acct. No. 200332340001. 

     15.  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.

     16.  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

     17.  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 [relevant  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.

     18.  IT IS FURTHER  ORDERED THAT  a copy of  this NOTICE  OF 
APPARENT LIABILITY  shall  be  sent  by  Certified  Mail,  Return 
Receipt Requested,  to Grass  Roots Broadcasting,  LLC, P.O.  Box 
107, Toms Brook, VA  22660.  A copy shall  also be sent to  Grass 
Roots Broadcasting, 100 Wolf's Lane, Fort Valley, VA  22652.


                                FEDERAL            COMMUNICATIONS 
COMMISSION




                                Charles C. Magin
                                District Director
                                Columbia Office

_________________________

1 47 C.F.R. §§ 17.4(a)(2), 17.50 and 73.1125(a).

247 C.F.R. §§  11.52(d), 11.61(d), 73.1225(d)(1), 73.1545(a), 
73.1560(b), 73.1590(b), 73.3526(b) and 73.3526(e)(12)

3 See Memorandum Opinion and Order, 3 FCC Rcd No. 17 (1988) at 
5026.

4 Section 312(f)(1) of the Act, 47 U.S.C. § 312(f)(1), which 
applies 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 Section 312(f)(2), which also applies to Section 503(b), 
provides: [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.

647 C.F.R. § 1.80.

7 47 U.S.C. § 503(b)(2)(D).

8 47 U.S.C. § 503(b).

9 47 C.F.R. §§ 0.111, and 0.311.

10 See 47 C.F.R. § 1.1914.