Click here for Adobe Acrobat version
Click here for Microsoft Word version
********************************************************
NOTICE
********************************************************
This document was converted from Microsoft Word.
Content from the original version of the document such as
headers, footers, footnotes, endnotes, graphics, and page numbers
will not show up in this text version.
All text attributes such as bold, italic, underlining, etc. from the
original document will not show up in this text version.
Features of the original document layout such as
columns, tables, line and letter spacing, pagination, and margins
will not be preserved in the text version.
If you need the complete document, download the
Microsoft Word or Adobe Acrobat version.
*****************************************************************
Before the
Federal Communications Commission
Washington, D.C. 20554
)
)
In the Matter of File No.: EB-08-NY-053
)
Alexander Kissi NAL/Acct. No: 200832380010
)
Bronx, New York FRN: 0017 5841 29
)
)
Memorandum opinion and order
Adopted: April 20, 2012 Released: April 20, 2012
By the Chief, Enforcement Bureau:
I. Introduction
1. In this Memorandum Opinion and Order, issued pursuant to Section 405
of the Communications Act of 1934, as amended (Act), and Section 1.106
of the Commission's rules (Rules), we deny the Petition for
Reconsideration (Petition) filed by Alexander Kissi. Mr. Kissi seeks
reconsideration of a Forfeiture Order imposing a $10,000 forfeiture
for his willful and repeated operation of an unlicensed radio
broadcast station on the frequency 96.5 MHz in Bronx, New York. For
the reasons set forth below, the Petition is denied.
II. Background
2. On February 28, 2008, and March 1, 2008, agents in the Enforcement
Bureau's New York Office (New York Office) used direction-finding
techniques to identify the source of radio frequency transmissions on
the frequency 96.5 MHz from a two-story building at 3944 White Plains
Road in Bronx, New York. On both days, the agents determined that the
signals exceeded the limits for operation under Part 15 of the Rules,
and therefore required a license. According to Commission records, no
authorization was issued to Mr. Kissi or to anyone for operation of an
FM broadcast station at or near this address on this frequency.
3. After completing the field strength measurements on March 1, 2008, the
agents returned to 3944 White Plains Road to conduct a station
inspection. The agents spoke to a man who worked there and a woman who
was doing a live radio broadcast from a small broadcast studio. In
response to agents' questions about the radio station, both the man
and the woman stated that Alexander Kissi was in charge of the
station, but that he was not there at the time. The agents reached Mr.
Kissi by phone on March 6, 2008, at which time Mr. Kissi took full
responsibility for operation of the station.
4. On June 18, 2008, the New York Office issued Mr. Kissi a Notice of
Apparent Liability for Forfeiture (NAL), finding that Mr. Kissi
apparently willfully and repeatedly violated Section 301 of the Act by
operating an unlicensed radio transmitter on the frequency 96.5 MHz in
Bronx, New York and proposing a forfeiture in the amount of $10,000.
Mr. Kissi did not file a response to the NAL, and on September 11,
2008, the Enforcement Bureau's Northeast Region issued a Forfeiture
Order affirming the findings in the NAL and assessing a $10,000
forfeiture.
5. In the Petition, Mr. Kissi provides no explanation for his failure to
respond to the NAL. Mr. Kissi concedes that the unlicensed
transmissions came from his radio transmitting equipment, but claims
now, for the first time, that he was out of town at the time of the
unlicensed transmissions. More specifically, he alleges that a
construction worker stole his radio transmission equipment for the
purpose of selling it and that when the construction worker was doing
equipment tests, he mistakenly left the equipment running for several
days.
III. Discussion
6. A petition for reconsideration that relies on facts not previously
presented to the designated authority will be entertained only if: (1)
the designated authority (the Bureau in this instance) determines that
consideration of the new facts is required to serve the public
interest; (2) the petition relies on facts that relate to events that
occurred or circumstances that have changed since the last opportunity
to present such matters; or (3) the petition relies on facts unknown
to the petitioner until after his last opportunity to present such
matters. For the reasons discussed below, we find that
reconsidera-tion is not warranted and the Petition is denied.
7. We conclude that Mr. Kissi does not meet any of the three criteria
that would allow the Bureau to consider his Petition. While Mr. Kissi
accepted responsibility for the unauthorized operation just five days
after the violation, he now asserts for the first time that a
construction worker stole his radio transmission equipment and left
the equipment running on the days in question. Because Mr. Kissi's new
claim regarding the theft of his radio transmission equipment directly
contradicts his March 6, 2008, admission to an FCC agent that he was
fully responsible for the operation of the station on February 28,
2008, and March 1, 2008, we are not persuaded to reconsider our
previous finding. We find no basis for disregarding Mr. Kissi's March
6, 2008, statement, which is memorialized in the agent's
contempo-raneous handwritten notes. Given that we find this
newly-presented information unsubstantiated and unreliable, we do not
believe that further consideration of the Petition would serve the
public interest. Nor do we find it likely that circumstances have
changed or that relevant facts were unknown to Mr. Kissi at the time
of his earlier statement such that reconsideration of the Forfeiture
Order is warranted. For these reasons, we find no basis for
reconsideration and therefore affirm the finding in the Forfeiture
Order that Mr. Kissi willfully and repeatedly violated Section 301 of
the Act.
IV. ordering clauses
8. Accordingly, IT IS ORDERED that, pursuant to Section 405 of the
Communications Act of 1934, as amended, and Section 1.106 of the
Commission's rules, the Petition for Reconsideration filed by
Alexander Kissi IS DENIED.
9. IT IS ALSO ORDERED that, pursuant to Section 503(b) of the Act, and
Sections 0.111, 0.311, and 1.80(f)(4) of the Commission's rules,
Alexander Kissi IS LIABLE FOR A MONETARY FORFEITURE in the amount of
ten thousand dollars ($10,000) for violations of Section 301 of the
Act.
10. Payment of the forfeiture shall be made in the manner provided for in
Section 1.80 of the rules within thirty (30) calendar days of the
release of this Memorandum Opinion and Order. If the forfeiture is not
paid within the period specified, the case may be referred to the
Department of Justice for enforcement pursuant to Section 504(a) of
the Act. 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 NAL/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. Please contact the
Financial Operations Group Help Desk at 1-877-480-3201 or Email:
ARINQUIRIES@fcc.gov with any questions regarding payment procedures.
Alexander Kissi shall also send electronic notification to
NER-Response@fcc.gov on the date said payment is made.
11. IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that this Memorandum Opinion and Order shall be
sent by both regular mail and by certified mail, return receipt
requested, to Alexander Kissi at his address of record.
FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION
P. Michele Ellison
Chief, Enforcement Bureau
47 U.S.C. S: 405.
47 C.F.R. S: 1.106.
Bishop Alexander Kissi, Universal African Brotherhood Ministries, Request
for Pardon (Nov. 14, 2008) (on file in EB-08-NY-053). Although the
document is styled as a "Request for Pardon," Mr. Kissi's request for
pardon seeks cancellation or reduction of the forfeiture, and thus we are
treating it as a petition for reconsideration.
Alexander Kissi, Forfeiture Order, 23 FCC Rcd 13338 (Enf. Bur. 2008)
(Forfeiture Order).
Part 15 of the Rules sets out the conditions and technical requirements
under which certain radio transmission devices may be used without a
license. 47 C.R.F. S: 15.1 et seq. In relevant part, Section 15.239 of the
Rules provides that non-licensed broadcasting in the 88-108 MHz band is
permitted only if the field strength of the transmission does not exceed
250 mV/m at three meters. 47 C.F.R. S: 15.239.
During the inspection, the agents provided the woman a handwritten Notice
of Unlicensed Operation (NOUO), which was addressed to her and Mr. Kissi,
warning both that operation of the unlicensed radio station on 96.5 MHz
violated Section 301 of the Act, and outlining the potential penalties for
operating an unlicensed station, including seizure of the equipment,
fines, and imprisonment. The NOUO also directed Mr. Kissi to cease
operation.
The New York Office issued Mr. Kissi a NOUO on March 3, 2008, warning him
that operation of the unlicensed radio station on 96.5 MHz violated
Section 301 of the Act and outlining the potential penalties for operating
an unlicensed station, including seizure of the equipment, fines, and
imprisonment. Alexander Kissi, Notice of Unlicensed Operation (Enf. Bur.,
New York Office, rel. Mar. 3, 2008). The NOUO also directed Mr. Kissi to
terminate operation of the unlicensed station immediately. We note that
Mr. Kissi previously received a NOUO on September 9, 2002, regarding
operation of an unlicensed station on 87.9 MHz, also at 3944 White Plains
Road. Alexander Kissi, Notice of Unlicensed Operation (Enf. Bur., New York
Office, rel. Sept. 9, 2002).
47 U.S.C. S: 301.
Alexander Kissi, Notice of Apparent Liability for Forfeiture, NAL/Acct.
No. 200832380010 (Enf. Bur., New York Office 2008) (NAL).
See supra note 4.
Petition at 1.
Id. Mr. Kissi also states in the Petition that the FM transmitter that the
construction worker stole was old and had not been used since 2000. Id.
Mr. Kissi reports that, since 2000, he had been using an AM transmitter
that complied with Part 15 of the Rules. Id.
47 C.F.R. S:1.106(c).
We also note that the dates Mr. Kissi claims he was out of town post-date
the dates on which the agents observed the unlicensed operation.
Specifically, Mr. Kissi claims in the Petition that "[f]our months ago I
traveled for three weeks." Petition at 1. The Petition was filed on
November 14, 2008, so four months prior to that date would be sometime in
July 2008. The violations at issue here, however, occurred in February
2008 and March 2008.
Because we do not reconsider our reliance on Mr. Kissi's March 6, 2008,
statement to the FCC agent, we need not determine when Mr. Kissi became
aware of the facts underlying his new claims.
47 U.S.C. S: 405.
47 C.F.R. S: 1.106.
47 U.S.C. S:S: 301, 503(b); 47 C.F.R. S:S: 0.111, 0.311, 1.80(f)(4).
47 U.S.C. S: 504(a).
(Continued from previous page)
(continued....)
Federal Communications Commission DA 12-570
4
Federal Communications Commission DA 12-570