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Before the
Federal Communications Commission
Washington, D.C. 20554
)
) File No.: EB-11-HU-0104
In the Matter of
) NAL/Acct. No.:
JHT Ventures, Inc. 201232540002
)
Licensee of Station KULF FRN: 0019299098
)
Bellville, Texas Facility ID No.: 48653
)
)
NOTICE OF APPARENT LIABILITY FOR FORFEITURE AND ORDER
Adopted: March 13, 2012 Released: March 13, 2012
By the Resident Agent, Houston Office, South Central Region, Enforcement
Bureau:
I. INTRODUCTION
1. In this Notice of Apparent Liability for Forfeiture (NAL), we find
that JHT Ventures, Inc. (JHT Ventures), licensee of Station KULF, in
Bellville, Texas, apparently willfully and repeatedly violated Section
73.1745(a) of the Commission's rules (Rules), by operating at times
other than those specified in its license. We conclude that JHT
Ventures is apparently liable for a forfeiture in the amount of four
thousand dollars ($4,000). In addition, we direct JHT Ventures to
submit, no later than thirty (30) calendar days from the date of this
NAL, a statement signed under penalty of perjury stating that it is
discontinuing operations at sunset.
II. BACKGROUND
2. Station KULF is licensed by the Commission as a daytime only AM
broadcast station. The license for Station KULF specifies the average
sunset hour for the month of December to be 5:30 p.m. local time. On
December 12 and 13, 2011, in response to a complaint about the Station
operating at night, an agent from the Enforcement Bureau's Houston
Office (Houston Office) monitored the field strength of Station KULF's
transmissions before and after sunset and observed no noticeable
change in field strength on either day. Additionally, on both days,
the Station's signal remained on the air until the program that was on
the air ended at 6 p.m. On January 19, 2012, the agent inspected the
main studio of Station KULF, and JHT Ventures had no explanation for
why the Station aired its programming in its entirety, past sunset on
December 12 and 13, 2011.
III. DISCUSSION
3. Section 503(b) of the Communications Act of 1934, as amended (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. Section
312(f)(1) of the Act defines "willful" as the "conscious and
deliberate commission or omission of [any] act, irrespective of any
intent to violate" the law. The legislative history to Section
312(f)(1) of the Act clarifies that this definition of willful applies
to both Sections 312 and 503(b) of the Act, and the Commission has so
interpreted the term in the Section 503(b) context. The Commission
may also assess a forfeiture for violations that are merely repeated,
and not willful. The term "repeated" means the commission or omission
of such act more than once or for more than one day.
A. Operation at Times not Authorized by Station License
4. Section 73.1745(a) of the Rules states that "[n]o broadcast station
shall operate at times, or with modes or power, other than those
specified and made a part of the license, unless otherwise provided in
this part." JHT Ventures is authorized to operate its Station until
5:30 p.m. each day in the month of December. On December 12 and 13,
2011, an agent from the Houston Office observed Station KULF operate
with full daytime power between 5:30 p.m. and 6 p.m. Based on the
evidence before us, we find that JHT Ventures apparently willfully and
repeatedly violated Section 73.1745(a) of the Rules by operating at
times other than those specified in its license.
B. Proposed Forfeiture Amount and Reporting Requirement
5. Pursuant to the Commission's Forfeiture Policy Statement and Section
1.80 of the Rules, the base forfeiture amount for unauthorized
emissions is $4,000. 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, any 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 JHT
Ventures is apparently liable for a forfeiture in the amount of
$4,000.
6. We further order JHT Ventures to submit a written statement, pursuant
to Section 1.16 of the Rules, signed under penalty of perjury by an
officer or director of JHT Ventures, stating that it is operating
Station KULF only during daytime hours and consistent with its license
authorization. This statement must be provided to the Houston Office
at the address listed in paragraph 11, below, within thirty (30)
calendar days of the release date of this Notice of Apparent Liability
for Forfeiture and Order.
IV. ORDERING CLAUSES
7. Accordingly, IT IS ORDERED that, pursuant to Section 503(b) of the
Communications Act of 1934, as amended, and Sections 0.111, 0.204,
0.311, 0.314, and 1.80 of the Commission's rules, JHT Ventures, Inc.
is hereby NOTIFIED of this APPARENT LIABILITY FOR A FORFEITURE in the
amount of four thousand dollars ($4,000) for violations of Section
73.1745(a) of the Rules.
8. IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that, pursuant to Section 1.80 of the
Commission's rules, within thirty (30) calendar days of the release
date of this Notice of Apparent Liability for Forfeiture and Order,
JHT Ventures, Inc. SHALL PAY the full amount of the proposed
forfeiture or SHALL FILE a written statement seeking reduction or
cancellation of the proposed forfeiture.
9. IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that JHT Ventures, Inc. SHALL SUBMIT a written
statement, as described in paragraph 6, above, within thirty (30)
calendar days of the release date of this Notice of Apparent Liability
for Forfeiture and Order. The statement must be mailed to Federal
Communications Commission, Enforcement Bureau, South Central Region,
Houston Office, 9597 Jones Road, #362, Houston, Texas, 77065. JHT
Ventures shall also e-mail the written statement to
SCR-Response@fcc.gov.
10. Payment of the forfeiture must be made by credit card, check, or
similar instrument, payable to the order of the Federal Communications
Commission. The payment must include the Account number and FRN
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 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. If you have questions regarding payment
procedures, please contact the Financial Operations Group Help Desk at
1-877-480-3201 or E-mail: ARINQUIRIES@fcc.gov. JHT Ventures will also
send electronic notification on the date said payment is made to
SCR-Response@fcc.gov.
11. The written statement seeking reduction or cancellation of the
proposed forfeiture, if any, must include a detailed factual statement
supported by appropriate documentation and affidavits pursuant to
Sections 1.16 and 1.80(f)(3) of the Rules. Mail the written statement
to Federal Communications Commission, Enforcement Bureau, South
Central Region, Houston Office, 9597 Jones Road, #362, Houston, Texas,
77065, and include the NAL/Acct. No. referenced in the caption. JHT
Ventures also shall email the written response to
SCR-Response@fcc.gov.
12. 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.
13. IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that a copy of this Notice of Apparent Liability
for Forfeiture and Order shall be sent by both Certified Mail, Return
Receipt Requested, and regular mail to JHT Ventures, Inc. at 10614
Rockley Road, Houston, Texas, 77099-3514.
FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION
Stephen P. Lee
Resident Agent,
Houston Office
South Central Region
Enforcement Bureau
47 C.F.R. S: 73.1745(a).
See License File No. BL-20101019ABD.
47 U.S.C. S: 503(b).
47 U.S.C. S: 312(f)(1).
H.R. Rep. No. 97-765, 97th Cong. 2d Sess. 51 (1982) ("This provision
[inserted in Section 312] defines the terms `willful' and `repeated' for
purposes of section 312, and for any other relevant section of the act
(e.g., Section 503) . . . . As defined[,] . . . `willful' means that the
licensee knew that he was doing the act in question, regardless of whether
there was an intent to violate the law. `Repeated' means more than once,
or where the act is continuous, for more than one day. Whether an act is
considered to be `continuous' would depend upon the circumstances in each
case. The definitions are intended primarily to clarify the language in
Sections 312 and 503, and are consistent with the Commission's application
of those terms . . . .").
See, e.g., Application for Review of Southern California Broadcasting Co.,
Memorandum Opinion and Order, 6 FCC Rcd 4387, 4388 (1991), recons. denied,
7 FCC Rcd 3454 (1992).
See, e.g., Callais Cablevision, Inc., Notice of Apparent Liability for
Monetary Forfeiture, 16 FCC Rcd 1359, 1362, para. 10 (2001) (Callais
Cablevision, Inc.) (proposing a forfeiture for, inter alia, a cable
television operator's repeated signal leakage).
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." See Callais Cablevision, Inc., 16 FCC Rcd at
1362.
47 C.F.R. S: 73.1745(a).
The Commission's Forfeiture Policy Statement and Amendment of Section 1.80
of the Rules to Incorporate the Forfeiture Guidelines, Report and Order,
12 FCC Rcd 17087 (1997) (Forfeiture Policy Statement), recons. denied, 15
FCC Rcd 303 (1999); 47 C.F.R. S: 1.80.
47 U.S.C. S: 503(b)(2)(E).
47 C.F.R. S: 1.16.
47 U.S.C. S: 503(b); 47 C.F.R. S:S: 0.111, 0.204, 0.311, 0.314, 1.80,
73.1745(a).
See 47 C.F.R. S: 1.1914.
47 C.F.R. S:S: 1.16, 1.80(f)(3).
(...continued from previous page)
(continued....)
Federal Communications Commission DA 12-276
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Federal Communications Commission DA 12-276