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Before the
Federal Communications Commission
Washington, D.C. 20554
In the Matter of )
)
Econopage of Cleveland, Inc. ) File No. EB-00-TS-215
)
Licensee of Station KNKJ435 ) NAL/Acct. No. 200132100001
)
Columbus, Ohio )
FORFEITURE ORDER
Adopted: February 7, 2001 Released: February
9, 2001
By the Chief, Technical and Public Safety Division, Enforcement
Bureau:
I. INTRODUCTION
1. In this Forfeiture Order (``Order''), we issue a
monetary forfeiture in the amount of five thousand dollars
($5,000) against Econopage of Cleveland, Inc. (``Econopage'') for
willful violation of Section 301 of the Communications Act of
1934 (``Act'')1, as amended, and Section 22.3 of the Commission's
Rules (``Rules'').2 The violation involved Econopage's operation
of a paging facility without authorization from April 1, 1999 to
October 18, 1999.
II. BACKGROUND
2. Econopage's license to operate paging station KNKJ435
was set to expire on April 1, 1999. On April 1, 1999, Econopage
filed a renewal application for paging station KNKJ435. The
Wireless Telecommunications Bureau (``Wireless Bureau'')
dismissed the renewal application on April 19, 1999 because the
requisite filing fee did not accompany the application. When
Econopage's application was dismissed on April 19, 1999, its
license expiration became effective as of April 1, 1999. On
September 29, 1999, Econopage requested Special Temporary
Authority (``STA'') to operate. On October 15, 1999, Econopage
filed a renewal application for paging station KNKJ435 and a
request for a waiver of Section 1.949 of the Rules, which
requires, in pertinent part, that ``[a]pplications for renewal of
authorizations in the Wireless Radio Services must be filed no
later than the expiration date of the authorization for which
renewal is sought ....''3. The STA request was granted on
October 6, 1999. On December 13, 1999, the Wireless Bureau
granted the request for waiver of Section 1.949 and the late-
filed renewal application.
3. On October 17, 2000, the Chief of the Enforcement
Bureau, pursuant to Section 503(b) of the Act and Section 1.80 of
the Rules,4 issued a Notice of Apparent Liability in the amount
of $5,000 to Econopage for operating paging station KNKJ435
without authorization.5
4. On November 15, 2000, Econopage filed a response with
the Commission in which it requests reduction of the forfeiture
amount. Econopage asserts that the forfeiture amount should be
reduced because it did submit its renewal application timely;
however, the application was submitted by a third-party without
the required fees. Econopage contends that it did not receive
sufficient notice from the third-party for it to properly respond
to the application dismissal.
III. DISCUSSION
5. Section 301 of the Act sets forth the general mandate
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 22.3 of the Rules requires
stations in the Public Mobile Services to be used and operated
only in accordance with the rules and with a valid authorization.
6. Because Econopage's application was not renewed on
April 1, 1999, we find that it did operate in violation of the
Act and the Rules by operating paging station KNKJ435 without a
license. The unauthorized operation occurred, admittedly, from
April 1, 1999 to November 30, 1999. Even if Econopage had
received more timely notice of the dismissal of its renewal
application from the third-party who filed it, it would not have
been possible for Econopage to receive such notice prior to the
date its license expired, April 1, 1999. Consequently, there
would still have been some period of time , at least nineteen
days, during which Econopage would have been operating without a
license. Moreover, although Econopage relied on a third-party to
properly file its renewal application, ``[l]icensees are expected
to know and comply with the Commission's rules, and will not be
excused for violations thereof, absent clear mitigating
circumstances.''6 Econopage has not presented mitigating
circumstances that would warrant reducing the forfeiture amount.
IV. ORDERING CLAUSES
7. Accordingly, IT IS ORDERED THAT, pursuant to Section
503(b) of the Act and Sections 0.111, 0.311 and 1.80(f)(4) of the
Rules,7 Econopage of Cleveland, Inc. IS LIABLE FOR A MONETARY
FORFEITURE in the amount of five thousand dollars ($5,000) for
violating Section 301 of the Act and Section 22.3 of the Rules by
operating station KNKJ435 without a license.
8. Payment of the forfeiture shall be made in the manner
provided for in Section 1.80 of the Rules,8 within 30 days of the
release of this Order. If the forfeiture is not paid within the
period specified, the case may be referred to the Department of
Justice for collection pursuant to Section 504(a) of the Act.9
Payment may be made by mailing a check or similar instrument,
payable to the order of the "Federal Communications Commission,"
to the Federal Communications Commission, P.O. Box 73482,
Chicago, Illinois 60673-7482. The payment should note NAL/Acct.
No. 200132100001. Requests for full payment under an installment
plan should be sent to: Chief, Credit and Debt Management Center,
445 12th Street, S.W., Washington, D.C. 20554.10
9. IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that, a copy of this Forfeiture
Order shall be sent by Certified Mail Return Receipt Requested to
counsel for Econopage of Cleveland, Inc., Schwaninger &
Associates, Attention: Benjamin J. Aron, 1835 K Street, NW, Suite
650, Washington, DC 20006.
FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION
Joseph P. Casey
Chief, Technical and Public Safety
Division
Enforcement Bureau
_________________________
1 47 U.S.C. § 301.
2 47 C.F.R. § 22.3.
3 47 C.F.R. § 1.949.
4 47 U.S.C. § 503(b); 47 C.F.R. § 1.80.
5 Econopage of Cleveland, Inc., 15 FCC Rcd 20,074 (EB 2000).
6 Sitka Broadcasting Co., Inc., 70 FCC 2d 2375, 2378 (1979),
citing Lowndes County Broadcasting Co., 23 FCC 2d 91 (1970) and
Emporium Broadcasting Co., 23 FCC 2d 868 (1970).
7 47 U.S.C. § 503(b); 47 C.F.R. §§ 0.111, 0.311, 1.80(f)(4).
8 47 C.F.R. § 1.80.
9 47 U.S.C. § 504(a).
10 See 47 C.F.R. § 1.1914.