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Before the
Federal Communications Commission
Washington, D.C. 20554
In the Matter of )
)
Willis Broadcasting Corporation ) File No. EB-05-NF-014
Licensee of Radio Station WBTE(AM) )
Facility ID # 172 ) NOV No. V20053264004
Windsor, North Carolina )
)
NOTICE OF VIOLATION
Released: July 27,
2005
By the Resident Agent, Norfolk Office, South Central Region,
Enforcement Bureau:
1. This is a Notice of Violation (``Notice'') issued
pursuant to Section 1.89 of the Commission's Rules,1 to
Willis Broadcasting Corporation, licensee of radio station
WBTE(AM).
2. On March 14, 2005, an agent of the Commission's Norfolk
Office of the Enforcement Bureau inspected radio station
WBTE(AM) located in Windsor, North Carolina and observed the
following violations:
2.a. 47 C.F.R. § 73.1350: ``(a) Each
licensee is responsible for maintaining
and operating its broadcast station in a
manner which complies with the technical
rules set forth elsewhere in this part and
in accordance with the terms of the
station authorization...(c) [t]he licensee
must establish monitoring procedures and
schedules for the station...'' Although
the Commission authorized Station WBTE(AM)
to broadcast from latitude 35º 58' 00"
North and longitude 076º 56' 54" West
(NAD27), the station was actually
broadcasting from a location more than 0.5
km from its authorized coordinates. In
addition, the station had not established
monitoring procedures and schedules to
determine compliance with §73.1560
regarding operating power and §73.1570
regarding modulation levels.
2.b. 47 C.F.R. § 73.1560(a)(1):
``...]T]he antenna input power of an AM
station as determined by the procedures
specified in § 73.51 must be maintained as
near as is practicable to the authorized
antenna input power and may not be less
than 90% nor more than 105% of the
authorized power.'' The Commission
authorized Station WBTE(AM) to broadcast
during daytime only. However, the station
broadcast up to 139 watts after sunset on
March 9, 13 and 14, 2005. Additionally,
during the inspection on March 14, 2005,
the station operated at more than 230% of
its authorized power.
2.c. 47 C.F.R. § 73.1590(a): ``The
licensee of each AM, FM, TV and Class A TV
station...must make equipment performance
measurements for each main
transmitter...'' Station staff were not
aware of the requirements for equipment
performance or spurious and harmonic
measurements; nor could they make copies
of those measurements available.
2.d. 47 C.F.R. § 73.1870(c)(3): ``The
chief operator is responsible for
``[r]eview of the station records at least
once each week to determine if required
entries are being made correctly.
Additionally, verification must be made
that the station has been operated as
required by the rules or the station
authorization. Upon completion of the
review, the chief operator or his designee
must date and sign the log, initiate any
corrective action which may be necessary,
and advise the station licensee of any
condition which is repetitive.'' At the
time of inspection, the chief operator was
not signing the station logs to indicate
that they had been reviewed.
2.e. 47 C.F.R. § 73.3526(c): Material
in the public inspection file ``shall be
available for public inspection at any
time during regular business hours.'' At
the time of inspection, the following
items were missing from the public
inspection file of Station WBTE(AM):
2.e.i. A copy of the current FCC
authorization. (§ 73.3526(e)(1))
2.e.ii. Contour maps. (§
73.3526(e)(4))
2.e.iii. Ownership reports and related
materials. (§ 73.3526(e)(5))
2.e.iv. Political file. (§
73.3526(e)(6))
2.e.v. Letters and e-mail from the
public. (§ 73.3526(e)(9))
2.e.vi. Radio issues/programs lists.
(§ 73.3526(e)(12))
2.e.vii. Local public notice
announcements. (§ 73.3526(e)(13))
3. In addition to the violations noted above, provide a
statement describing the status of ownership and control of
the Station WBTE(AM) facilities in March 2005. Include an
explanation as to what might have caused three different
station managers to claim that Willis Broadcasting
Corporation sold Station WBTE(AM) in 2002, and why during
inspections in 2004 and 2005, all Station WBTE(AM) staff
admitted to being volunteers for entities other than Willis
Broadcasting Corporation.
4. Pursuant to Section 308(b) of the Communications Act of
1934, as amended,2 and Section 1.89 of the Commission's
Rules, Willis Broadcasting Corporation, must submit a
written statement concerning this matter within twenty (20)
days of release of this Notice. The response must fully
explain each violation, must contain a statement of the
specific action(s) taken to correct each violation and
preclude recurrence, and should include a time line for
completion of pending corrective action(s). The response
must be complete in itself and signed by a principal or
officer of the licensee. All replies and documentation sent
in response to this Notice should be marked with the File
No. and NOV No. specified above, and mailed to the following
address:
Federal Communications Commission
Norfolk Office
1457 Mt. Pleasant Rd., Ste. 113
Chesapeake, VA 23322
5. This Notice shall be sent to Willis Broadcasting
Corporation at its address of record.
6. The Privacy Act of 19743 requires that we advise you
that the Commission will use all relevant material
information before it, including any information disclosed
in your reply, to determine what, if any, enforcement action
is required to ensure compliance. Any false statement made
knowingly and willfully in reply to this Notice is
punishable by fine or imprisonment under Title 18 of the
U.S. Code.4
FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION
Joseph P. Husnay
Resident Agent
Norfolk District Office
South Central Region
Enforcement Bureau
Willis Broadcasting Corporation
645 Church Street
Suite 400
Norfolk VA 23510
_________________________
147 C.F.R. § 1.89.
247 U.S.C. § 308(b).
3P.L. 93-579, 5 U.S.C. § 552a(e)(3).
418 U.S.C. § 1001 et seq.