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Before the
Federal Communications Commission
Washington, D.C. 20554
)
In the Matter of )
File Number: EB-05-TP-452
Rama Communications, Inc. )
NAL/Acct. No.:
Licensee of Station WKIQ ) 200732700013
Eustis, FL ) FRN: 0005008016
Facility ID # 29339 )
)
NOTICE OF APPARENT LIABILITY FOR FORFEITURE
Released: June 6, 2007
By the District Director, Tampa Field Office, South Central Region,
Enforcement Bureau:
I. INTRODUCTION
1. In this Notice of Apparent Liability for Forfeiture ("NAL"), we find
that Rama Communications, Inc. ("Rama"), licensee of station WKIQ, in
Eustis, Florida, apparently willfully and repeatedly violated
Sections 73.1125(a), 73.1350(b)(2) and 73.3526 of the Commission's
Rules ("Rules") by failing to maintain full-time managerial and staff
personnel at the main studio during normal business hours, failing to
maintain the continuous ability to turn its transmitter off, and
failing to maintain a complete public inspection file at its main
studio. We conclude, pursuant to Section 503(b) of the Communications
Act of 1934, as amended ("Act"), that Rama is apparently liable for a
forfeiture in the amount of twenty thousand dollars ($20,000).
II. BACKGROUND
2. In response to a complaint, agents from the Commission's Tampa Office
of the Enforcement Bureau ("Tampa Office") inspected the transmitter
site of AM broadcast station WKIQ in Eustis, Florida on August 31,
2006. When the agents first arrived, the transmitter site was locked.
After calling the contact number for Rama posted at the transmitter
site, the station's chief designated operator was dispatched to the
transmitter site. At the time of inspection on August 31, 2006, Rama
was engaged in a "time brokerage agreement" or "Local Marketing
Agreement" ("LMA") with Mary Banks Broadcasting Network ("MBBN"),
which became effective January 6, 2006. Employees of MBBN, also
accompanied the agents during the inspection. The transmitter site,
which is normally unattended, is located approximately 12 miles and
more than a 5-minute drive from the main studio. Agents from the Tampa
Office observed and the chief designated officer confirmed that Rama
had not installed self-monitoring or automatic transmission systems
(ATS) equipment to control the transmission system. On August 31,
2006, Rama's chief engineer stated over the telephone that Rama
removed its ATS unit about 2-3 weeks prior to the inspection.
Accordingly, personnel located at the main studio could not turn the
transmitter off from the main studio. During the inspection, MBBN
confirmed that this was the case.
3. During the inspection, MBBN stated that it staffed the main studio of
station WKIQ with three people Monday-Friday, 6:00 AM to 10:00 PM.
MBBN stated that, since it entered into the LMA, during those hours no
employees from Rama were present at the main studio. On October 5,
2006, when questioned about staffing at the main studio, Rama stated
that, starting the week of October 5th, at least one Rama employee
would be present at the main studio 2-3 days per week.
4. Still on August 31, 2006, the agents asked for information about the
station's public inspection file. MBBN staff brought the public
inspection file that was normally located in the main studio to the
transmitter site. This file only contained contour maps, The Public
and Broadcasting, and Time Brokerage Agreements. The public inspection
file also contained several empty folders for the other required
materials. The station's chief designated operator stated that Rama
kept the station's public inspection file at its central office in
Orlando, Florida. On September 21, 2006, the Commission's Media Bureau
confirmed that Rama had not requested a waiver to maintain its public
inspection file in Orlando, Florida.
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. The term "repeated" means the
commission or omission of such act more than once or for more than one
day.
6. Section 73.1125(a) of the Rules requires AM stations to maintain a main
studio. "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." The Commission has defined a minimally
acceptable "meaningful presence" as full-time managerial and full-time
staff personnel. MBBN maintained a meaningful management and staff
presence at the main studio from 6 AM until 10 PM, Monday through Friday.
MBBN stated that during those hours no Rama employees staffed the main
studio. After the inspection, when questioned about staffing at the main
studio, Rama stated that beginning the first week of October 2006 at least
one employee would be stationed at the main studio for 2-3 days per week.
Rama did not provide any information about staffing at the main studio
prior to the first week of October 2006.
7. Section 73.1350(b)(2) of the Rules requires that transmitter control
personnel must have the capability to turn the transmitter off at all
times. If the personnel are at a remote location, the control system must
provide this capability continuously or must include an alternate method
of acquiring control that can terminate operations within 3 minutes.
Station WKIQ's transmitter site is unattended and is located at a remote
site more than 5 minutes travel time away from the main studio. On August
31, 2006, there was no equipment installed at the transmitter site that
would allow personnel located at the main studio to turn the transmitter
off remotely. Rama's chief designated operator admitted that station WKIQ
had no ATS equipment, and the station engineer said that they hadn't had
such equipment installed at the station in 2-3 weeks. There were no logs
to reflect when the equipment had been removed. During the inspection,
MBBN also stated that there was no equipment located at station WKIQ's
main studio that would allow its staff to turn the transmitter off.
8. Section 73.3526 of the Rules requires every permittee of licensee of an
AM station in the commercial broadcast services to maintain a public
inspection file at the main studio of the station. The file shall be
available for public inspection at any time during regular business hours.
The public inspection file shall contain the material, relating to the
station, listed in that section. On August 31, 2006, agents of the Tampa
Office inquired about the station's public inspection file. The station's
chief designated officer advised that the station's public inspection file
was maintained at Rama's central office located in Orlando, Florida. MBBN
also brought the public inspection file that was normally located in the
main studio to the transmitter site. That file contained many empty
folders and contour maps, The Public and Broadcasting, and Time Brokerage
Agreements. On September 21, 2006, the Commission's Media Bureau confirmed
that a waiver had never been filed by Rama on behalf of station WKIQ to
keep its public inspection file at a location other than its main studio.
9. Based on the evidence before us, we find that Rama apparently willfully
and repeatedly violated Sections 73.1125(a), 73.1350(b)(2) and 73.3526 of
the Rules by failing to maintain full-time managerial and staff personnel
at the main studio during normal business hours, failing to maintain the
continuous ability to turn its transmitter off, and failing to maintain a
complete public inspection file at its main studio.
10. Pursuant to 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 of the Rules, the base
forfeiture amount for violation of main studio rule is $7,000, the base
forfeiture amount for violation of transmitter control and metering
requirements is $3,000 and the base forfeiture amount for violation of
public file rules is $10,000. In assessing the monetary forfeiture amount,
we must also take into account the statutory factors set forth in Section
503(b)(2)(E) of the Act, which include the nature, circumstances, extent,
and gravity of the violations, 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. Applying the Forfeiture Policy
Statement, Section 1.80 of the Rules, and the statutory factors to the
instant case, we conclude that Rama is apparently liable for a $20,000
forfeiture.
IV. ORDERING CLAUSES
11. Accordingly, IT IS ORDERED that, pursuant to Section 503(b) of the
Communications
Act of 1934, as amended, and Sections 0.111, 0.311, 0.314 and 1.80 of the
Commission's Rules, Rama Communications, Inc. is hereby NOTIFIED of this
APPARENT LIABILITY FOR A FORFEITURE in the amount of twenty thousand
dollars ($20,000) for violations of Sections 73.1125(a), 73.1350(b)(2),
73.3526 of the Rules.
12. 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 for Forfeiture, Rama 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.
13. Payment of the forfeiture must be made by check or similar instrument,
payable to the order of the Federal Communications Commission. The payment
must include the NAL/Acct. No. and FRN No. referenced above. Payment by
check or money order may be mailed to Federal Communications Commission,
P.O. Box 358340, Pittsburgh, PA 15251-8340. Payment by overnight mail may
be sent to Mellon Bank /LB 358340, 500 Ross Street, Room 1540670,
Pittsburgh, PA 15251. Payment by wire transfer may be made to ABA
Number 043000261, receiving bank Mellon Bank, and account number 911-6106.
14. The response, if any, must be mailed to Federal Communications
Commission, Enforcement Bureau, South Central Region, Tampa Field Office,
2203, N. Lois Ave., Suite 1215, Tampa, FL 33607 and must include the
NAL/Acct. No. referenced in the caption.
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 for Forfeiture under an installment plan should be sent to:
Associate Managing Director, Financial Operations, 445 12th Street, S.W.,
Room 1A625, Washington, D.C. 20554.
17. IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that a copy of this Notice of Apparent Liability
for Forfeiture shall be sent by Certified Mail, Return Receipt Requested,
and regular mail, to Rama Communications, Inc. at its address of record.
FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION
Ralph M. Barlow
District Director
Tampa Office
South Central Region
Enforcement Bureau
47 C.F.R. SS 73.1125(a), 73.1350(b)(2), 73.3526.
47 U.S.C. S 503(b).
On September 7, 2006, agents from the Tampa Office went to Rama's Orlando
office to inspect the public inspection file. The public inspection file
was also incomplete and only contained contour maps, ownership reports,
and the political file. See 47 C.F.R. SS 73.3526(e)(4), (e)(5), (e)(6).
Section 312(f)(1) of the Act, 47 U.S.C. S 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 or any rule or regulation of the Commission
authorized by this Act...." See Southern California Broadcasting Co., 6
FCC Rcd 4387 (1991).
Section 312(f)(2) of the Act, 47 U.S.C. S 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."
Main Studio and Program Origination Rules, Memorandum Opinion and Order,
3 FCC Rcd 5024, 5026 (1988).
Jones Eastern of the Outer Banks, Inc., Memorandum Opinion and Order, 6
FCC Rcd 3615, 3616 (1991), clarified 7 FCC Rcd 6800 (1992).
See 47 C.F.R. SS 73.3526(a)(2), 73.3526(b).
47 C.F.R. S 73.3526(c).
47 C.F.R. S 73.3526(a)(2).
Even if a waiver had been granted, the public inspection file for the
station maintained in Orlando was also incomplete. See supra note 3.
12 FCC Rcd 17087 (1997), recon. denied, 15 FCC Rcd 303 (1999); 47 C.F.R.
S1.80.
47 U.S.C. S 503(b)(2)(E).
47 U.S.C. S 503(b), 47 C.F.R. SS 0.111, 0.311, 0.314, 1.80, 73.1125(a),
73.1350(b)(2), 73.3526.
See 47 C.F.R. S 1.1914.
(...continued from previous page)
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Federal Communications Commission
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Federal Communications Commission