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Before the
Federal Communications Commission
Washington, D.C. 20554
)
In the Matter of )
Radio Woodville, Inc. ) File Number: EB-07-HU-009
Licensee of Station KVLL-FM ) NAL/Acct. No. 200732540005
Wells, Texas ) FRN: 0005838883
Facility ID # 68130 )
)
NOTICE OF APPARENT LIABILITY FOR FORFEITURE
Released: July 10, 2007
By the Resident Agent, Houston Office, South Central Region, Enforcement
Bureau:
I. INTRODUCTION
1. In this Notice of Apparent Liability for Forfeiture ("NAL"), we find
that Radio Woodville, Inc. ("Radio Woodville"), licensee of station
KVLL-FM, in Wells, Texas, apparently willfully and repeatedly violated
Sections 73.1125(a) and 73.3526 of the Commission's Rules ("Rules")
by failing to maintain a main studio and by failing to make maintain
or make available a complete public inspection file. We conclude,
pursuant to Section 503(b) of the Communications Act of 1934, as
amended ("Act"), that Radio Woodville is apparently liable for a
forfeiture in the amount of eleven thousand dollars ($11,000).
II. BACKGROUND
2. On March 27, 2007, in response to a complaint, an agent from the
Commission's Houston Office of the Enforcement Bureau ("Houston
Office") inspected the main studio of station KVLL-FM in Nacogdoches,
Texas. The main studio of station KVLL-FM was housed in a building
also containing the main studio of station KJCS, licensed to Radio
Licensing, Inc. During the inspection, there were no employees of
station KVLL-FM located at the main studio. The people present were
all employees of station KJCS. The agent confirmed that station
KVLL-FM's studio equipment was housed in the building. In response to
a request to inspect station KVLL-FM's public inspection file,
employees of station KJCS provided the station's file. The public
inspection file contained no Issues/Programs lists for the year 2006,
or for the last two quarters of 2005. A document placed in the
Issues/Programs lists folder stated there were no quarterly issues for
station KVLL-FM since April 2004.
3. Still on March 27, 2007, the agent of the Houston Office interviewed
by telephone an officer of Radio Licensing, Inc., licensee of station
KJCS. The officer stated that station KJCS and Radio Woodville
previously had a local marketing agreement ("LMA") for station KJCS to
operate station KVLL-FM. He further stated that, during the term of
the LMA, Radio Woodville had its own employees working at the studio
facilities, but when the LMA ended, about June of 2005, employees of
Radio Woodville no longer reported to the studio facilities. After the
LMA expired, station KJCS agreed to continue leasing space to Radio
Woodville for the studio equipment of station KVLL-FM and to make the
public inspection file of station KVLL-FM available to the public.
4. On March 28, 2007, an agent of the Houston Office spoke by telephone
with an employee of Radio Woodville. This employee confirmed that
Radio Woodville and station KJCS did have an LMA, which expired in May
of 2005. This employee further confirmed that Radio Woodville
maintains studio equipment and a public inspection file at the
facilities of station KJCS, and that the employees of station KJCS
make the public inspection file for station KVLL-FM available to the
public. Additionally, the employee of Radio Woodville stated that
after the LMA expired, Radio Woodville no longer maintained its own
employees at its main studio in Nacogdoches, Texas.
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 broadcast 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. On March 27, 2007, during normal
business hours, no management or staff employees of Radio Woodville
were present at its main studio in Nacogdoches, Texas. Employees of
station KJCS stated that Radio Woodville had not maintained employees
at its main studio for more than a year. Radio Woodville confirmed
that it had not maintained a management or staff presence at its main
studio since June 2005.
7. Section 73.3526 of the Rules requires every permittee of licensee of
an FM 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. Section
73.3526(e)(12) of the Rules requires licensees to place in the public
inspection file, for each calendar quarter, a list of programs that
have provided the station's most significant treatment of community
issues during the preceding three month period. This list is known as
the radio Issues/Programs list. On March 27, 2007, in response to a
request to inspect the station's public inspection file, an agent was
provided an incomplete public inspection file for station KVLL-FM. The
file contained no issues programs lists after June 2005. The file
contained a document stating that there were no quarterly issues for
station KVLL-FM since April of 2004. However, this single document is
not sufficient to comply with Section 73.3526 of the Rules. There was
no evidence that issues programs lists after June 2005 had ever been
maintained.
8. Based on the evidence before us, we find that Radio Woodville
apparently willfully and repeatedly violated Sections 73.1125(a) and
73.3526 of the Rules by failing to maintain a meaningful managerial
and staff presence at its local main studio, and by failing to
maintain quarterly issues programs lists in its public inspection
file. We also find that Radio Woodville apparently willfully violated
Section 73.3526 of the Rules by failing to make available a complete
public inspection file.
9. 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 failing to comply with the main studio
requirements is $7,000 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. However, because station KVLL-FM's public inspection file
contained a portion of the required items, a downward adjustment of
the base forfeiture amount for this violation to $4,000 is warranted.
Applying the Forfeiture Policy Statement, Section 1.80 of the Rules,
and the statutory factors to the instant case, we conclude that Radio
Woodville is apparently liable for a $11,000 forfeiture.
IV. ORDERING CLAUSES
10. 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, Radio Woodville, Inc. is
hereby NOTIFIED of this APPARENT LIABILITY FOR A FORFEITURE in the
amount of eleven thousand dollars ($11,000) for violations of
Sections 73.1125(a) and 73.3526 of the Rules.
11. 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, Radio Woodville, Inc.
SHALL PAY the full amount of the proposed forfeiture or SHALL FILE a
written statement seeking reduction or cancellation of the proposed
forfeiture.
12. 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.
13. The response, if any, must be mailed to Federal Communications
Commission, Enforcement Bureau, South Central Region, Houston Office,
9597 Jones Road, #362, Houston, Texas, 77065 and must include the
NAL/Acct. No. referenced in the caption.
14. 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.
15. 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. 20554.8
16. 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 Radio Woodville, Inc. at its address
of record.
FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION
Stephen P. Lee
Resident Agent
Houston Office
South Central Region
Enforcement Bureau
47 C.F.R. S:S: 73.1125(a) and 73.3526.
47 U.S.C. S: 503(b).
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. S:S: 73.3526(a)(2), 73.3526(b).
47 C.F.R. S: 73.3526(c).
47 C.F.R. S: 73.3526(a)(2).
47 C.F.R. S: 73.3526(e)(12).
12 FCC Rcd 17087 (1997), recon. denied, 15 FCC Rcd 303 (1999); 47 C.F.R.
S:1.80.
47 U.S.C. S: 503(b)(2)(E).
47 U.S.C. S: 503(b), 47 C.F.R. S:S: 0.111, 0.311, 0.314, 1.80, 73.1125(a),
and 73.3526.
8See 47 C.F.R. S: 1.1914.
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(continued....)
Federal Communications Commission
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Federal Communications Commission