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                           Before the
                Federal Communications Commission
                     Washington, D.C. 20554


In the matter of                 )
                                )
LB Cable Wyoming LLC             )
                                )
Operator of Cable Systems in:    )
                                )
Afton, Wyoming                   )
Dubois, Wyoming                  )    File No.:  EB-04-HS-022
Kemmerer, Wyoming                )
Medicine Bow, Wyoming            )
Meeteetse, Wyoming               )
Pinedale, Wyoming                )
                                )
Request for Waivers of Section   )
11.11(a) of the Commission's     )
Rules

                              ORDER

   Adopted:  July 6, 2004               Released:  July 8, 2004

By the:  Direct, Office of Homeland Security, Enforcement Bureau

     1.          In this Order, we grant LB Cable Wyoming LLC (LB 
Cable Wyoming) temporary waivers of section 11.11(a) of the 
Federal Communications Commission's (Commission) rules (Rules)1 
for the six-above captioned cable television systems in Wyoming.  
Section 11.11(a) of the Rules requires cable systems serving 
fewer than 5,000 subscribers from a headend to either provide 
national level Emergency Alert System (EAS) messages on all 
programmed channels or install EAS equipment and provide a video 
interrupt and audio alert on all programmed channels and EAS 
audio and video messages on at least one programmed channel by 
October 1, 2002.2

     2.          The Cable Act of 1992 added new Section 624(g) 
to the Communications Act of 1934, as amended3 and required that 
cable systems be capable of providing EAS alerts to their 
subscribers.4  In 1994, the Commission adopted rules requiring 
cable systems to participate in EAS.5  In 1997, the Commission 
amended the EAS rules to provide financial relief for small cable 
systems.6  The Commission declined to exempt small cable systems 
from the EAS requirements entirely, concluding that such an 
exemption would be inconsistent with the statutory mandate of 
section 624(g).7  The amended rules extended the deadline for 
cable systems serving fewer than 10,000 subscribers to begin 
complying with the EAS rules to October 1, 2002, and provided 
cable systems serving fewer than 5,000 subscribers the option of 
either providing national level EAS messages on all programmed 
channels or installing EAS equipment and providing a video 
interrupt and audio alert on all programmed channels and EAS 
audio and video messages on at least one programmed channel.8  In 
addition, the Commission stated that it would grant waivers of 
the EAS rules to small cable systems on a case-by-case basis upon 
a showing of financial hardship.9  

     3.   On March 2, 2004, LB Cable Wyoming filed a request for 
          temporary waivers of the EAS 
requirements for the recently acquired small cable systems in 
          rural Wyoming, asserting that the cost of 
immediate installation of EAS equipment in the six systems would 
cause financial hardship.  LB Cable Wyoming states that it 
acquired the six cable system in a bankruptcy sale in February 
2004, and therefore, has not had enough time to generate 
sufficient revenue to purchase and install EAS equipment at this 
time.  Based on price quotes from EAS equipment manufacturers, LB 
Cable Wyoming estimates that it would cost approximately $60,000 
to purchase and install the EAS equipment at the six headends.  
LB Cable Wyoming asserts that without the requested waivers, it 
may have to delay or eliminate the delivery of advanced broadband 
services to almost 2,000 subscribers.  Finally, LB Cable Wyoming 
contends that subscribers will continue to have ready access to 
national EAS information from other sources, including its cable 
system and over-the-air reception of broadcast television and 
radio stations.

4.    Based on our review of the information submitted by LB 
  Cable Wyoming, we conclude that temporary waivers of section 
  11.11(a) of the Rules for the above-captioned cable systems, 
  are warranted.  In particular, we find that the estimated cost 
  of $60,000 to purchase and install EAS equipment at these 
  recently acquired cable television systems could impose a 
  financial hardship on LB Cable Wyoming.  

5.   Accordingly, IT IS ORDERED that, pursuant to sections 0.111, 
  0204(b) and 0.311 of the rules,10 LB Cable Wyoming LLC's 
  request for temporary waivers of section 11.11(a) of the rules  
  are GRANTED until October 1, 2005, for the six above-captioned 
  cable television systems in Wyoming.11

6.   IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that LB Cable Wyoming LLC place a copy 
  of this waiver in its system files.

7.   IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that a copy of this Order shall be 
  sent by Certified Mail Return Receipt Requested to counsel for 
  LB Cable Wyoming LLC, Christopher C. Cinnamon, Esq., Cinnamon 
  Muller, 307 North Michigan Avenue, Suite 1020, Chicago, 
  Illinois  60601. 


                              FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION


                              James A. Dailey
                              Director, Office of Homeland 
                              Security
                              Enforcement Bureau








_________________________

1 47 C.F.R. § 11.11(a).
2 Id.
3  The   Communications  Act   of  1934   was  amended   by   the 
Telecommunications Act of 1996.  Pub.  L. No. 104-104, 110  Stat. 
56 (1996) (1996 Act). 

4 Cable  Television Consumer  Protection and  Competition Act  of 
1992, Pub. L. No. 102-385, § 16(b), 106 Stat. 1460, 1490  (1992).  
Section 624(g) provides that  ``each cable operator shall  comply 
with such standards as the  Commission shall prescribe to  ensure 
that viewers of video programming  on cable systems are  afforded 
the same emergency  information as is  afforded by the  emergency 
broadcasting system pursuant to Commission regulations ....''  47 
U.S.C. § 544(g).  
5 Amendment  of Part  73, Subpart  G, of  the Commission's  Rules 
Regarding the Emergency  Broadcast System, Report  and Order  and 
Further Notice of Proposed Rule  Making, 10 FCC Rcd 1786  (1994), 
reconsideration granted in part, denied in part, 10 FCC Rcd 11494 
(1995).
6 Amendment  of Part  73, Subpart  G, of  the Commission's  Rules 
Regarding the  Emergency  Broadcast  System,  Second  Report  and 
Order, 12 FCC Rcd 15503 (1997).
7 Id. at 15512-13.
8 Id. at 15516-15518.
9 Id. at 15513.
10 47 C.F.R. §§ 0.111, 0.204(b) and 0.311.
11 We clarify that these  waivers also encompass the EAS  testing 
and monitoring requirements.