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                                   Before the

                       Federal Communications Commission

                             Washington, D.C. 20554


                        )                               
                                                        
                        )                               
                                                        
                        )                               
                                                        
     In the Matter of   )   File Number EB-07-TP-095    
                                                        
     Richard Ross       )   NAL/Acct. No. 200832700011  
                                                        
     Titusville, FL     )   FRN: 001-73713-29           
                                                        
                        )                               
                                                        
                        )                               
                                                        
                        )                               


                  NOTICE OF APPARENT LIABILITY FOR FORFEITURE

                                                     Released: March 31, 2008

   By the District Director, Tampa Office, South Central Region, Enforcement
   Bureau:

   I. Introduction

    1. In this Notice of Apparent Liability for Forfeiture ("NAL"), we find
       that Richard Ross, apparently willfully and repeatedly violated
       Section 301 of the Communications Act of 1934, as amended ("Act"), by
       operating an unlicensed radio transmitter. We conclude, pursuant to
       Section 503(b) of the Act, that Mr. Ross is apparently liable for a
       forfeiture in the amount of ten thousand dollars ($10,000).

   II. BACKGROUND

    2. On June 4, 2007, in response to complaints of interference, agents
       from the Commission's Tampa Office of the Enforcement Bureau ("Tampa
       Office") inspected the Citizens Band ("CB") station located at Mr.
       Ross' residence. During testing of Mr. Ross' equipment, the agents
       determined that two of his CB radio transmitters were non-certificated
       transceivers, capable of transmitting on unauthorized frequencies. The
       agents also measured the output power for his transmitters and found
       them to be operating with seven and eight watts, respectively, output
       powers greater than authorized in the Commission's Rules ("Rules").
       The agents orally warned Mr. Ross that use of non-certificated or
       modified equipment capable of transmitting on unauthorized frequencies
       and with greater power than authorized is strictly prohibited by the
       Rules and voided his authority to operate the CB station. Mr. Ross
       voluntarily surrendered both devices to the agents.

    3. On July 10, 2007, in response to additional complaints of
       interference, the Tampa office sent an official letter, certified and
       regular mail, to Mr. Ross, restricting his hours of operation for his
       CB station. Specifically, the letter instructed Mr. Ross not to
       operate his CB station from 6 AM EST to 11:59 PM EST. On July 11,
       2007, the Tampa office received a response to the official letter in
       which Mr. Ross claimed he was now in compliance with the rules.

    4. On August 16, 2007, agents from the Tampa Office inspected Mr. Ross'
       CB station to confirm that his CB station was in compliance with the
       Rules. The agents found that Mr. Ross' CB radio station included a CB
       transmitter and two linear amplifiers. The agents measured the power
       of the CB transmitter and found it had an average power output of 3.5
       watts carrier power. They tested the amplifiers combined power output
       and found the devices had the capability to boost the power of the
       station to several hundred times the authorized power level. The
       agents orally warned Mr. Ross that the use of linear amplifiers or any
       device that creates a power greater than the authorized limit is
       strictly prohibited by the Rules and voids the authority to operate
       the CB station. Mr. Ross voluntarily surrendered both linear
       amplifiers to the agents.

    5. On November 20, 2007, in response to additional complaints of
       interference, at approximately 10:15 A.M., agents from the Tampa
       Office located the source of a strong signal on a CB radio channel
       using direction finding methods to Mr. Ross' residence. An agent
       recognized the voice of the transmissions to be that of Mr. Ross.

    6. Still on November 20, 2007, agents from the Tampa Office inspected Mr.
       Ross CB station. A wattmeter measurement indicated the power of Mr.
       Ross' transmitter during the inspection to be two watts, under the
       maximum authorized power under the Rules. The agents then traced the
       coaxial cable from the output of the transmitter and found it was
       connected to a linear amplifier. Measurements taken with the amplifier
       connected to the CB transmitter indicated the amplifier had the
       capability to boost the power of the station to several hundred times
       the authorized power.

    7. Still on November 20, 2007, the agents observed an open notebook. The
       notebook showed log entries that indicated that Mr. Ross made several
       long distance calls using his CB radio during that morning. The
       entries coincided with the times the agents, using direction finding
       techniques, traced transmissions originating from Mr. Ross' residence.
       The agents orally warned Mr. Ross that the use and possession of the
       linear amplifier and operating out of the authorized hours prescribed
       on the official letter issued on July 10, 2007 violated the Rules and
       voided his authority to operate the CB station.

   III. DISCUSSION

    8. 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) of the Act 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.

    9. Section 301 of the Act requires 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. Section 95.404 of the
       Rules states that CB operators do not require an individual license to
       operate a CB station because they are authorized by this rule to
       operate in accordance with the rules in this subpart. Individuals
       operating, pursuant to this provision, however, must operate their CB
       stations in accordance with the rules in this subpart.

   10. Section 95.409(a) of the Rules states that you must use an FCC
       certificated CB transmitter at your CB station and that the use of a
       transmitter, which is not FCC certificated voids your authority to
       operate the station. Section 95.410 of the Rules states that your CB
       station transmitter power output must not exceed ... under any
       conditions: 4 watts (carrier power). Use of a transmitter which has
       carrier power in excess of that authorized voids your authority to
       operate the station. On June 4, 2007, agents from the Tampa Office
       determined that Mr. Ross operated his CB station with two
       non-certificated transmitters that had a power output of seven and
       eight watts (carrier power), respectively. On June 4, 2007, Mr. Ross
       was warned that operation of his CB station with a non-certificated
       transmitter and with a power level greater than authorized violated
       the Rules and voided his authority to operate his CB station.

   11. Section 95.411(a) of the Rules states that you may not attach external
       radio frequency (RF) power amplifiers to your certificated CB
       transmitter in any way. Section 95.411(b) of the Rules states that
       there are no exceptions to this rule and that use of a power amplifier
       voids your authority to operate the station. The Commission will
       presume that you have used a power amplifier if it is in your
       possession and if there is other evidence of overpower operation. On
       August 16, 2007, and on November 20, 2007, agents from the Tampa
       Office observed that Mr. Ross had attached linear amplifiers to his CB
       station. Immediately prior to the inspection on November 20, 2007, the
       agents observed Mr. Ross' CB station in operation. On August 16, 2007
       and November 20, 2007, the agents determined that the amplifiers
       attached to Mr. Ross' CB station had the capability to boost the power
       of the station to several hundred times the authorized power level. On
       August 16, 2007, and November 20, 2007, Mr. Ross was warned that
       attaching linear amplifiers to his CB station violated the Rules and
       voided his authority to operate his CB station.

   12. Section 95.423(a) of the Rules states that if the FCC tells you that
       your CB station is causing interference for technical reasons you must
       follow all instructions in the official FCC notice. Section 95.423(b)
       of the Rules states that you must comply with any restricted hours of
       CB station operation which may be included in the official notice.  On
       July 10, 2007, the Tampa Office sent an official letter, certified and
       regular mail, to Mr. Ross. In the official letter Mr. Ross was
       instructed not to operate his CB station from 6 AM EST to 11:59 PM
       EST. On November 20, 2007, the agents observed Mr. Ross operating his
       CB station out of the authorized hours (approximately 10:15 AM)
       established in the July 10, 2007 official letter. 

   13. Because Mr. Ross violated several sections of Part 95, Subpart D of
       the Rules, Mr. Ross voided his authority to operate his CB station
       pursuant to Section 95.404 of the Rules. Therefore, based on the
       evidence before us, we find that on June 4, August 16, and November
       20, 2007, Mr. Ross willfully and repeatedly violated Section 301 of
       the Act by operating a radio transmitter, his CB station, without
       authorization from the Commission.

   14. 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 operating without an instrument of
       authorization 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
       Mr. Ross  is apparently liable for a  $10,000 forfeiture.

   IV. ORDERING CLAUSES

   15. 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, Richard Ross, is hereby NOTIFIED of this APPARENT
   LIABILITY FOR A FORFEITURE in the amount of ten thousand dollars ($10,000)
   for violation of Section 301 of the Act.

   16. 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, Richard Ross, SHALL PAY the full amount of the
   proposed forfeiture or SHALL FILE a written statement seeking reduction or
   cancellation of the proposed forfeiture.

   17. 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/Account Number and FRN Number referenced
       above. Payment by check or money order may be mailed to Federal
       Communications Commission, P.O. Box 979088, St. Louis, MO 63197-9000.
       Payment by overnight mail may be sent to U.S. Bank - Government
       Lockbox #979088, SL-MO-C2-GL, 1005 Convention Plaza, St. Louis, MO
       63101. Payment[s] by wire transfer may be made to ABA Number
       021030004, receiving bank TREAS/NYC, and account number 27000001. For
       payment by credit card, an FCC Form 159 (Remittance Advice) must be
       submitted.  When completing the FCC Form 159, enter the NAL/Account
       number in block number 23A (call sign/other ID), and enter the letters
       "FORF" in block number 24A (payment type code). Requests for full
       payment under an installment plan should be sent to:  Chief Financial
       Officer -- Financial Operations, 445 12th Street, S.W., Room 1-A625,
       Washington, D.C.  20554.   Please contact the Financial Operations
       Group Help Desk at 1-877-480-3201 or Email: ARINQUIRIES@fcc.gov with
       any questions regarding payment procedures.

   18. The response, if any, must be mailed to Federal Communications
       Commission, Enforcement Bureau, South Central Region, Tampa Office,
       2203 N. Lois Avenue, Suite 1215, Tampa, Florida, 33607 and must
       include the NAL/Acct. No. referenced in the caption.

   19. 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.

   20. 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 Richard Ross at his address of record.

   FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION

   Ralph M. Barlow

   District Director

   Tampa Office

   South Central Region

   Enforcement Bureau

   47 U.S.C. S: 301.

   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."

   47 C.F.R. S: 95.404.

   47 C.F.R. S: 95.409(a).

   47 C.F.R. S: 95.410.

   47 C.F.R. S: 95.411(a).

   47 C.F.R. S: 95.411(b).

   See 47 C.F.R. S: 95.410.

   47 C.F.R. S: 95.423(a)

   47 C.F.R. S: 95.423(b)

   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:S: 301, 503(b), 47 C.F.R. S:S: 0.111, 0.311, 0.314, 1.80.

   (...continued from previous page)

                                                              (continued....)

   Federal Communications Commission

                                       5

   Federal Communications Commission