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Before the
Federal Communications Commission
Washington, D.C. 20554
In the Matter of )
) )
File No. EB-03-TP-231 ) File No. EB-03-CF-401
Louisa Communications, Inc. ) ) )
WZAQ ) FRN 0007006884
Louisa, Kentucky ) ) NAL/Acct. No. 200432340001
NAL/Acct. No. 200332700030 )
) ) FRN 0003-7801-03
)
FRN 0007006884
)
)
FORFEITURE ORDER
Adopted: November 9, 2004
Released: November 12, 2004
By the Assistant Chief, Enforcement Bureau:
I. INTRODUCTION
1. In this Forfeiture Order (``Order''), we issue a
monetary forfeiture in the amount of two thousand dollars
($2,000) to Louisa Communications, Inc., (``Louisa''),
licensee of Station WZAQ, Louisa, Kentucky, for repeated
violation of Section 17.4(a)(2) of the Commission's Rules
(``Rules'').1 The noted violation involves Louisa's failure
to register its antenna structure.
2. On January 12, 2004, the Commission's Columbia,
Maryland District Office (``Columbia Office'') issued a
Notice of Apparent Liability for Forfeiture (``NAL'') to
Louisa, in the amount of three thousand dollars ($3,000).2
Louisa filed a response to the NAL on March 10, 2004.
3. In its response to the NAL, Louisa did not
dispute the violation set forth in the NAL, but requested
cancellation of the proposed forfeiture, contending that it
cannot afford to pay the forfeiture. In support of its
request for cancellation due to inability to pay, Louisa
submitted its corporate tax returns for the years 2001
through 2003. Louisa also claimed that its owner, Mr. Harold
G. Britton, was not aware that the antenna needed to be
registered and thought that all reporting requirements had
been taken care of by Louisa's attorney.
II. DISCUSSION
4. Commission records indicate that Louisa's
license for WZAQ was issued on January 16, 1992. Because
Louisa admits that the tower was not registered as of the
date of the inspection by the Commission on July 16, 2003,
we find that the violation of Section 71.4(a)(2) was
repeated.3 Therefore, we need not address whether the
violation was willful.4 We concur, however, with Louisa's
assertion that the forfeiture should be reduced in light of
its inability to pay. Accordingly, we reduce the forfeiture
amount to two thousand dollars ($2,000).
III. ORDERING CLAUSES
5. 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,5 Louisa Communications IS LIABLE
FOR A MONETARY FORFEITURE in the amount of two thousand
dollars ($2,000) for repeatedly violating Section 17.4(a)(2)
of the Rules.
6. Payment of the forfeiture shall be made in
the manner provided for in Section 1.80 of the Rules 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.6 Payment may be made
by credit card through the Commission's Credit and Debt
Management Center at (202) 418-1995 or 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.
Payment by overnight mail may be sent to Bank One/LB 73482,
525 West Monroe, 8TH Floor Mailroom, Chicago, Illinois
60661. Payment by wire transfer may be made to ABA Number
071000013, receiving bank Bank One, and account number
1165259. The payment must include the FCC Registration
Number (FRN) and the NAL/Acct. No. referenced in the
caption. 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. 20554.7
7. IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that, a copy of this
Order shall be sent by Certified Mail Return Receipt
Requested and by First Class Mail to Harold G. Britton, 112
Madison Street, P. O. Box 176, Louisa, KY 41230.
FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS
COMMISSION
George R. Dillon
Assistant Chief, Enforcement
Bureau
_________________________
147 C.F.R. §§ 17.4(a)(2).
2Notice of Apparent Liability for Forfeiture, NAL/Acct. No.
200432340001 (Enf. Bur., Columbia Office, released January
12, 2004).
3 Section 312(f)(2) of the Act, 47 U.S.C. §312(f)(2),
which applies to violations for which forfeitures are
assessed under Section 503(b) of the Act, provides that a
continuous violation is ``repeated'' if it continues for
more than one day. The Conference Report for Section
312(f)(2) indicates that Congress intended to apply this
definition to Section 503 of the Act as well as Section
312. See H.R. Rep. 97th Cong., 2d Sess. 51 (1982). See
Southern California Broadcasting Company, 6 FCC Rcd 4387,
4388 (1991) and Western Wireless Corporation, 18 FCC Rcd
10319 at fn. 56 (2003).
4 Section 503(b)(1)(B) of the Act, 47 U.S.C §503(b)(1)(B),
authorizes imposition of forfeiture for any person who
``willfully or repeatedly failed to comply with any
provisions of this Act or with any rule, regulation, or
order issued by the Commission under this Act...''
547 C.F.R. §§ 0.111, 0.311, 1.80(f)(4).
6 47 U.S.C. § 504(a).
7See 47 C.F.R. § 1.1914.