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                                   Before the

                       Federal Communications Commission

                             Washington, D.C. 20554


                                )                               
                                                                
     In the Matter of           )                               
                                                                
     Frank R. Truatt            )     File Number EB-05-NY-245  
                                                                
     Licensee of Station WTBQ   )   NAL/Acct. No. 200632380007  
                                                                
     Warwick, New York          )             FRN 0003 7763 90  
                                                                
     Facility ID #22292         )                               
                                                                
                                )                               


                                FORFEITURE ORDER

   Adopted: March 2, 2007 Released: March 8, 2007

   By the Regional Director, Northeast Region, Enforcement Bureau:

   I. INTRODUCTION

    1. In this Forfeiture Order ("Order"), we issue a monetary forfeiture in
       the amount of nine thousand six hundred dollars ($9,600) to Frank R.
       Truatt ("Truatt"), the licensee of AM station WTBQ in Warwick, New
       York, for willfully and repeatedly violating Sections 11.35(a),
       73.1590(a)(6), and 73.3526(e)(12) of the Commission's Rules ("Rules")
       by failing to maintain fully operational Emergency Alert System
       ("EAS") equipment, failing to conduct the annual transmitter equipment
       performance measurements, and failing to maintain a radio
       issues/programs list in the station's public inspection file.

   II. BACKGROUND

    2. On September 15, 2005, an agent from the Commission's New York Office
       conducted an inspection with Truatt at WTBQ's main studio located at
       62 North Main Street, Florida, NY 10921. Based on violations found by
       the agent during the inspection and additional information provided by
       Truatt in response to a Letter of Inquiry ("LOI"), the New York Office
       issued a Notice of Apparent Liability for Forfeiture in the amount of
       $14,000 to Truatt on July 19, 2006, for apparent willful and repeated
       violation of Sections 11.35(a), 73.1590(a)(6), and 73.3526(e)(12) of
       the Rules for failure to maintain fully operational EAS equipment,
       failure to conduct the annual transmitter equipment performance
       measurements, and failure to maintain a radio issues/programs list in
       the station's public inspection file.

    3. Truatt submitted a response to the NAL on August 17, 2006. Truatt does
       not dispute the findings in the NAL, but claims a cancellation or
       reduction is warranted because: (1) the EAS equipment was partially
       repaired prior to the FCC's inspection; (2) Truatt is unable to pay
       the forfeiture without undue financial hardship; (3) Truatt has a
       history of compliance with the FCC's Rules; and (4) Truatt has taken
       steps to ensure that the violations do not occur again.

    4. With regard to the EAS violation, Truatt claims that the forfeiture
       should be reduced because he partially resolved the EAS equipment
       problem several days prior to the agent's inspection. In the NAL, we
       found that WTBQ's EAS equipment had received only nine EAS tests from
       its LP-1 source and had received no tests from its LP-2 source between
       August 24, 2003, and September 15, 2005. As Truatt explained in
       response to a Letter of Inquiry ("LOI") from the New York Office, the
       tests were not received because of a malfunction in WTBQ's EAS
       equipment, which occurred around September 2003. Truatt also indicated
       in his response to the LOI that the problem with the receipt of tests
       from its LP-1 source was resolved on September 12, 2005, just three
       days before the FCC agent's inspection. Truatt also reported that the
       station had changed its LP-2 source on September 16  and that it was
       receiving tests from its LP-2 source. The logs submitted by Truatt in
       response to the LOI confirmed that tests were being received from the
       LP-1 source, but also showed that during the seventeen weeks following
       the September 15, 2005 inspection, WTBQ had received a total of only
       four weekly and one monthly EAS test from its new LP-2 source. In his
       response to the NAL, Truatt reports that WTBQ's EAS equipment is fully
       operational and that the partial repairs he made to the equipment
       prior to the agent's inspection warrant a reduction in the forfeiture.

   III. Discussion

    5. The forfeiture amount proposed in this case was assessed in accordance
       with Section 503(b) of the Communications Act of 1934, as amended
       ("Act"), Section 1.80 of the Rules, and the Commission's Forfeiture
       Policy Statement and Amendment of Section 1.80 of the Rules to
       Incorporate the Forfeiture Guidelines. In assessing forfeitures,
       Section 503(b)(2)(D) of the Act requires that we take into account the
       nature, circumstances, extent and gravity of the violation and, with
       respect to the violator, the degree of culpability, any history of
       prior offenses, ability to pay, and such other matters as justice may
       require.

    6. We agree with Truatt that the partial repairs made to the EAS
       equipment prior to the agent's inspection warrant a reduction in the
       proposed forfeiture. As the Commission has stated, however, the amount
       of a reduction based on good faith depends on the circumstances of the
       particular case. Here, in determining the amount of the reduction, we
       take into account that the repairs made prior to the agent's
       inspection did not, as Truatt concedes, fully resolve the problems
       with the EAS equipment. In addition, by Truatt's own admission, the
       EAS equipment was defective for more than two years. We conclude that
       a reduction in the amount of $1,600 is appropriate. We also agree that
       a reduction is warranted in light of Truatt's history of compliance
       with the Commission's Rules. Accordingly, we will further reduce the
       proposed forfeiture by an additional $2,800, which brings the total
       forfeiture amount to $9,600.

    7. We decline, however, to reduce the proposed forfeiture based on
       Truatt's claim that he has taken steps to ensure that the violations
       do not occur again. The Commission consistently has held that
       corrective action taken to come into compliance with the Rules is
       expected, and does not nullify or mitigate any prior forfeitures or
       violations. We also decline to reduce the proposed forfeiture based on
       Truatt's claim that payment of the forfeiture will cause an undue
       financial hardship.  The Commission has determined that, in general,
       an individual's or entity's gross revenues are the best indicator of
       an ability to pay a forfeiture.  We have reviewed the federal tax
       returns submitted by Truatt and find that the forfeiture, as reduced,
       represents a percentage of gross income that falls within the range
       that has been found acceptable.

   IV. ORDERING CLAUSES

    8. Accordingly, IT IS ORDERED that, pursuant to Section 503(b) of the
       Communications Act of 1934, as amended, and Sections 0.111, 0.311 and
       1.80(f)(4) of the Rules, Frank R. Truatt IS LIABLE FOR A MONETARY
       FORFEITURE in the amount of nine thousand six hundred dollars ($9,600)
       for willful and repeated violation of Sections 11.35(a),
       73.1590(a)(6), and 73.3526(e)(12) of the Rules.

    9. Payment of the forfeiture shall be made in the manner provided for in
       Section 1.80 of the Rules within thirty (30) days of the release of
       this Order. If the forfeiture is not paid within the period specified,
       that case may be referred to the Department of Justice for collection
       pursuant to Section 504(a) of the Act. 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. Requests for full payment under an installment plan should
       be sent to: Associate Managing Director, Financial Operations, 445
       12th Street, S.W., Room 1A625, Washington, D.C. 20554.

   10. IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that a copy of this Forfeiture Order shall be
       sent by Certified Mail, Return Receipt Requested, and regular mail, to
       Frank R. Truatt at his address of record and to counsel for Frank R.
       Truatt at his address of record.

   FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION

   Russell Monie, Jr.

   Regional Director, Northeast Region

   Enforcement Bureau

   47 C.F.R. SS  11.35(a), 73.1590(a)(6), and 73.3526(e)(12).

   Frank R. Truatt., Notice of Apparent Liability for Forfeiture, NAL/Acct.
   No. 200632380007 (Enf. Bur., New York Office, July 19, 2006) ("NAL").

   Frank R. Truatt, Request for Remission and Mitigation of Forfeiture (Filed
   August 17, 2006).

   47 U.S.C. S 503(b).

   47 C.F.R. S 1.80.

   12 FCC Rcd 17087 (1997), recon. denied, 15 FCC Rcd 303 (1999) ("Forfeiture
   Policy Statement").

   47 U.S.C. S 503(b)(2)(D).

   See A-O Broadcasting Corporation, 2003 WL 23018131 (2003) (subsequent
   citations omitted) para. 25.

   The twenty percent reduction applied here is consistent with the
   reductions applied in A-O Broadcasting Corporation and Radio One Licenses,
   Inc., both of which Truatt relies upon in his response to the NAL to
   support a reduction based on his remedial efforts. See A-O Broadcasting
   Corporation, 2003 WL 23018131 (rel. Dec. 29, 2003); recon. denied, 20 FCC
   Rcd 756 (2005)(reducing forfeiture by twenty percent for obtaining, but
   not installing EAS equipment prior to FCC inspection) and Radio One, Inc.,
   18 FCC Rcd 15964 (Enf. Bur. 2003), recon. denied, 18 FCC Rcd 25481
   (reducing forfeiture by twenty percent for ordering new EAS equipment
   prior to FCC inspection).

   See, e.g., KGB, Inc., 13 FCC Rcd 16396, 16398 P 8 (1998) (reducing the
   proposed forfeiture from $11,500 to $9,200 for airing indecent material
   due to the broadcast licensee's "history of overall compliance prior to
   these broadcasts, and its apparent lack of violations in the period since
   these broadcasts"); Max Media of Montana, L.L.C., 18 FCC Rcd 21375, 21379
   P 14 (Enf. Bur. 2003) (reducing the proposed forfeiture from $11,000 to
   $8,800 for antenna structure lighting and registration violations due to
   the licensee's history of overall compliance); South Central
   Communications Corp., 18 FCC Rcd 700, 702 P 9 (Enf. Bur. 2003) (reducing
   the proposed forfeiture from $10,000 to $8,000 for antenna structure
   lighting violations due to the licensee's history of overall compliance).

   See Seawest Yacht Brokers, Forfeiture Order, 9 FCC Rcd 6099 (1994).

   In support of his request for a reduction based on an inability to pay,
   Truatt initially submitted his personal income tax returns. In his
   response to the NAL, however, Truatt reported that, for tax purposes, the
   radio station's operation are under FST Corp., T/A WTBQ ("FST"). FCC staff
   requested tax returns for FST and both sets of tax returns were reviewed
   for purposes of determining whether a reduction is warranted.

   See  PJB Communications of Virginia, Inc., 7 FCC Rcd 2088, 2089 (1992)
   (forfeiture not deemed excessive where it represented approximately 2.02
   percent of the violator's gross revenues); Local Long Distance, Inc., 15
   FCC Rcd 24385, 24389 P 11  (2000), recon. denied, 16 FCC Rcd 10023, 10025
   P 6 (2001) (forfeiture not deemed excessive where it represented
   approximately 7.9 percent of the violator's gross revenues); Hoosier
   Broadcasting Corporation,  14 FCC Rcd 3356 (CIB 1999), recon. denied, 15
   FCC Rcd 8640, 8641 (Enf. Bur. 2002) (forfeiture not deemed excessive where
   it represented approximately 7.6 percent of the violator's gross income).

   47 U.S.C. S 503(b).

   47 C.F.R. SS 0.111, 0.311, 1.80(f)(4).

   47 U. S. C. S 504(a).

   See 47 C.F.R. S 1.1914.

   (...continued from previous page)

                                                              (continued....)

   Federal Communications Commission DA 07-976

                                       3

   Federal Communications Commission DA 07-976