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



In the Matter of                )       File No. EB-01-LA-142
                                )       
California Speedway             )       NAL/Acct.             No. 
200232900002
                                )       
Fontana, California             )       FRN# 0006-0339-97
                                )       



           NOTICE OF APPARENT LIABILITY FOR FORFEITURE


                                        Released:  May 30, 2002 

By the District Director, Los Angeles Office, Enforcement Bureau:


                        I.   INTRODUCTION

     1.   In this  Notice of  Apparent Liability  for  Forfeiture 
("NAL"),  we  find  that   California  Speedway  has   apparently 
willfully violated Section 301 of the Communications Act of 1934, 
as  amended,  (``Act''),1  by   operating  an  unlicensed   radio 
transmitter on frequency 104.7 MHz.  We conclude that  California 
Speedway is apparently liable for  a forfeiture in the amount  of 
ten thousand dollars ($10,000).

                         II.  BACKGROUND

     2.   On November  2,  2001,  the  Commission's  Los  Angeles 
Office received a complaint alleging that California Speedway  in 
Fontana,  California  was  operating  a  radio  station  on   the 
frequency 104.7  MHz.  A  search  of the  Federal  Communications 
Commission (``FCC'') licensee database revealed no license issued 
for the operation of an FM  broadcast station on 104.7 MHz in  or 
around Fontana, California and no broadcast authorization  issued 
to California Speedway.2 

     3.   On November  8, 2001,  an agent  with the  Los  Angeles 
Office spoke on the telephone with the Director of Operations for 
California Speedway.   The  Director of  Operations  stated  that 
California  Speedway  operates  a  one-watt  transmitter  on  the 
frequency 104.7 MHz.

     4.   On November 14,  2001, the  Los Angeles  Office sent  a 
Notice of Unlicensed  Radio Operation to  California Speedway  at 
9300  Cherry  Avenue  in  Fontana,  California.   The  Notice  of 
Unlicensed Radio Operation warned that operation of an unlicensed 
radio station on 104.7 MHz violated 47 U.S.C. §301; outlined  the 
potential  penalties  for  operating  an  unlicensed  station  in 
violation of 47 U.S.C. §301, including seizure of the  equipment, 
fines, forfeitures and imprisonment; and directed the operator of 
the station  to terminate  operation  of the  unlicensed  station 
immediately.  No  written response  to the  Notice of  Unlicensed 
Radio Operation was received by the Los Angeles Office.  On March 
22, 2002, an agent with the Los Angeles Office again spoke on the 
telephone  with   the  Director   of  Operations.    During   the 
conversation, the agent orally advised that the operation of  the 
unlicensed  radio  station  on  104.7  MHz  could  result  in   a 
forfeiture.

     5.   On March 24,  2002, agents from  the Los Angles  Office 
conducted an investigation at California Speedway at 9300  Cherry 
Avenue in  Fontana,  California.   Using  a  FCC  Mobile  Digital 
Direction Finding vehicle and  direction finding techniques,  the 
agents detected radio  transmissions on the  frequency 104.7  MHz 
from a  location  in the  middle  of the  grounds  of  California 
Speedway.  Field strength  measurements revealed  that the  radio 
emissions exceeded the level  allowed for non-licensed  operation 
under Sections 15.209(a)  and 15.239(b) of  the FCC Rules.3   The 
measured field  strength  was  63,500 mV/m,  or  254  times  that 
permitted by the rules.


                      III.      DISCUSSION

     6.   Section 503(b) of the Act provides that any person  who 
willfully fails  to  comply  substantially  with  the  terms  and 
conditions of any license, or willfully 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.4   The term  ``willful'' as  used in  Section 
503(b) has  been interpreted  to  mean simply  that the  acts  or 
omissions are committed knowingly.5  

     7.   Section 301 of the Act sets forth that no person  shall 
use or operate any  apparatus for the  transmission of energy  or 
communications or  signals  by  radio within  the  United  States 
except under and in accordance with  the Act and with a  license.  
The only exceptions to the  licensing requirement of Section  301 
of the Act are for certain  transmitters using or operating at  a 
power level that complies with the standards established in  Part 
15 of  the  FCC  Rules.  California  Speedway's  operation  of  a 
broadcast station on 104.7 MHz was not licensed and exceeded  the 
permissible   level    for   non-licensed    low-powered    radio 
transmissions by 254 times.  Based on the evidence before us,  we 
find that on March 24,  2002, California Speedway operated  radio 
transmission apparatus  without  a  Commission  authorization  in 
willful violation of Section 301 of the Act.

     8.   The  Commission's  Forfeiture   Policy  Statement   and 
Amendment of  Section  1.80  of  the  Rules  to  Incorporate  the 
Forfeiture Guidelines (``Forfeiture Policy Statement''),6 sets  a 
base forfeiture amount of  $10,000 for unlicensed operation.   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, any history of prior offenses, ability 
to pay, and other such matters as justice may require.7  Applying 
the Forfeiture  Policy Statement  and  statutory factors  to  the 
instant case, a $10,000 forfeiture is warranted.


                      IV.  ORDERING CLAUSES

     9.   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 California Speedway  is hereby NOTIFIED  of its  APPARENT 
LIABILITY FOR A FORFEITURE in the amount of ten thousand  dollars 
($10,000) for willfully violating Section 301 of the Act.

     10.  IT IS FURTHER ORDERED THAT, pursuant to Section 1.80 of 
the Commission's Rules, within thirty days of the release date of 
this NOTICE OF APPARENT LIABILITY, California Speedway 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 must  include 
the FCC Registration Number (FRN) 0006-0339-97, and NAL/Acct. No. 
200232900002.

     12.  Any response  to this  NAL 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. 200232900002.

     13.  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.

     14.  Requests for payment of the full amount of this  Notice 
of Apparent Liability  under an installment  plan should be  sent 
to: Chief,  Revenue and  Receivable  Operations Group,  445  12th 
Street, S.W., Washington, D.C. 20554.9
     15.  IT IS FURTHER  ORDERED THAT  a copy of  this NOTICE  OF 
APPARENT LIABILITY shall be sent  by Certified Mail, # 7001  2510 
0001 9914 6071, Return Receipt Requested, to California Speedway, 
9300 Cherry Avenue, Fontana, California, 92335.

                                FEDERAL            COMMUNICATIONS 
COMMISSION




                                Catherine Deaton
                                District Director
                                Los Angeles Office     
_________________________

1 47 U.S.C. § 301.
2 California Speedway holds a license to operate on several 
frequencies in the 461-466 MHz band under call sign WPJX911.
3 47 C.F.R. §§ 15.209(a), 15.239(b).
4 47 U.S.C. §503(b).
5 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 provision of 
this Act. . . .''  See Southern California Broadcasting Co., 6 
FCC Rcd 4387 (1991). 
6 12 FCC Rcd 17087 (1997), recon. denied, 15 FCC Rcd 303 (1999).
7 47 U.S.C. § 503(b)(2)(D). 
8 47 C.F.R. §§ 0.111, 0.311, 1.80.
9 See 47 C.F.R. § 1.1914.