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                                   Before the

                       Federal Communications Commission

                             Washington, D.C. 20554

   In the Matter of Steckline Communications, Inc. Licensee of Station KGSO
   Wichita, Kansas ) ) ) ) ) ) ) File No.: EB-FIELDSCR-12-00005157 NAL/Acct.
   No.: 201432560001 FRN: 0009951286 Facility ID: 53150




             NOTICE OF APPARENT LIABILITY FOR FORFEITURE AND ORDER

   Adopted: October 23, 2014 Released: October 24, 2013

   By the District Director, Kansas City Office, South Central Region,
   Enforcement Bureau:

   I. INTRODUCTION

    1. In this Notice of Apparent Liability for Forfeiture and Order (NAL),
       we find that Steckline Communications, Inc. (Steckline), licensee of
       AM Station KGSO (Station), in Wichita, Kansas, apparently willfully
       and repeatedly violated Sections 73.62, 73.1560(a), 73.1745(a), and
       73.3526 of the Commission's rules (Rules)^ by failing to maintain
       required directional patterns within prescribed parameters, operating
       with more than authorized power, and failing to maintain and make
       available a complete public inspection file. We conclude that
       Steckline is apparently liable for a forfeiture in the amount of
       twenty one thousand dollars ($21,000). In addition, we direct
       Steckline 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 operating its Station as authorized.

   II. BACKGROUND

    2. Station KGSO is authorized to operate with 5400 watts during the day
       and 1081 watts at night.^ It is also required to utilize different
       directional patterns for its antenna during the day and night.^ On
       October 21 and 22, 2012, in response to an anonymous complaint of
       overpower operations, an agent from the Enforcement Bureau's Kansas
       City Office (Kansas City Office) monitored the field strength of
       Station KGSO's transmissions before and after sunset and before and
       after sunrise.^ The agent observed no noticeable change in field
       strength on either day.

    3. On October 22, 2012, an agent from the Kansas City Office, accompanied
       by Steckline's owner and the Station's manager, inspected the main
       studio and transmitter site of Station KGSO during regular business
       hours. At the beginning of the inspection, the agent observed that
       Station KGSO's transmitter was set to operate in daytime mode with
       7638 watts output power or 141 percent of authorized daytime power.
       During the inspection, the Station owner reduced Station KGSO's
       daytime transmitter output power to the authorized 5400 watts. In
       addition, when testing the Station's transmitters in day and nighttime
       modes, the agent observed that some of the phases of the directional
       antenna in daytime mode deviated by more than 3 degrees and some of
       the sample current ratios for both modes of operation deviated by more
       than five percent from authorized values. Station management stated
       that the antenna monitor was not working properly and was last known
       to be functional in May 2012. Station KGSO relied on automated
       switching and monitoring equipment for its transmitting system and did
       not have an operator on duty to make adjustments to the transmitting
       systems. However, no alarms occurred during the inspection when the
       transmitter  power and directional parameters were out of tolerance.
       After sunset on October 22, 2012, the agent monitored the field
       strength of Station KGSO's transmissions and observed a noted decrease
       in signal strength from the previous measurements.

    4. Also during that inspection, the agent from the Kansas City Office
       asked to inspect Station KGSO's public inspection file. The agent
       observed that none of the documents that the Station called "issues
       programs lists" contained any information regarding the programs aired
       to address the listed community issues and that the Station had not
       filed any "issues programs lists" at all for the 3^rd quarter of 2012.

    5. On November 8, 2012, the Kansas City Office issued a Notice of
       Violation (NOV) to Steckline, regarding, among other things, Station
       KGSO's overpower operations, its failure to take antenna monitoring
       point readings, and public inspection file violations.^ On November
       27, 2012, Steckline  responded to the NOV and did not deny the
       overpower or public inspection file violations.^ Steckline explained
       that its engineer confused Station KGSO with another Steckline-owned
       station, Station KQAM, and improperly programmed Station KGSO with
       Station KQAM's higher daytime operating power. Steckline noted that
       Station KGSO used to be assigned call sign KQAM. Steckline also stated
       that it determined after the inspection that the memory in its
       automated switching and monitoring unit had been "tampered with and
       wiped out,"^ which prevented it from automatically switching the
       transmitter from day to nighttime operation and from sending out
       alarms when the Station operated out of tolerance.^ Steckline stated
       that when this defect was discovered, it began manually changing
       between day and nighttime operation and reprogrammed the unit within
       48 hours. Finally, Steckline stated that it was unaware of the
       requirement to include lists of the programs aired, as well as the
       dates and times associated with those programs, in its issues programs
       lists and that it had added such information to its current and
       previous issues programs lists. Steckline did, however, deny that its
       antenna monitor was malfunctioning and asserted an engineer had
       checked the antenna monitor and found it working.

   III. DISCUSSION

    6. 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. Failure to Operate within the Parameters of the Licenses

    7. 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."^

   i. Operation with more than authorized power and incorrect mode

    8. Section 73.1560(a) of the Rules states that "the antenna input power
       of an AM station . . . must be maintained as near as is practicable to
       the authorized antenna input power and may not be less than 90% nor
       more than 105% of the authorized power."^ Station KGSO is authorized
       to operate with 5400 watts during the day and 1081 watts at night.
       Because Station KGSO's automated switching equipment was not
       functioning and was unable to switch from day to nighttime operations
       without manual intervention, Station KGSO operated with 7638 watts or
       707 percent of authorized nighttime power in daytime mode on the
       evening of October 21, 2012 and in the early morning hours of October
       22, 2012. The overpower operations were confirmed after the FCC
       inspection when the agent monitored Station KGSO when it was operating
       with authorized nighttime power and found the field strength
       noticeably lower than previous measurements.

    9. Steckline does not dispute that it operated Station KGSO with more
       than authorized power, explaining that it mistakenly programmed
       Station KGSO with Station KQAM's transmitter output power.  Commission
       precedent, however, has established that a violator can be held liable
       for violations resulting from employee mistakes.^ Based on the
       evidence before us, we find that Steckline  apparently willfully and
       repeatedly violated Sections 73.1560(a) and 73.1745(a) of the Rules by
       operating Station KGSO with more than authorized power and operating
       in daytime mode at night.

   ii. Failure to maintain directional parameters within prescribed limits

   10. Section 73.62 of the Rules states that "(a) each AM station operating
       a directional antenna must maintain the relative amplitudes of the
       antenna currents, as indicted by the antenna monitor, within 5% of the
       values specified on the instrument of authorization. Directional
       antenna relative phases must be maintained within 3 degrees of the
       values specified on the instrument of authorization. (b) In the event
       of a failure of system components, improper pattern switching or any
       other event that results in operation substantially at variance from
       the radiation pattern specified in the instrument of authorization for
       the pertinent time of day, operation must be terminated within three
       minutes unless power can be reduced sufficiently to eliminate any
       excess radiation."^

   11. On October 22, 2012, an agent from the Kansas City Office observed
       that some of the phase indications for Station KGSO's directional
       antenna in daytime mode deviated by more than three degrees and some
       of the sample current ratios for both day and nighttime modes of
       operation deviated by more than five percent from authorized values.
       At the time of inspection, station management claimed there was a
       problem with the antenna monitor, so the agent did not consider the
       observed readings accurate and cited Steckline for failing to take
       measurements at the monitoring points despite known problems with the
       antenna monitor. Steckline denies stating that the antenna monitor was
       not working and asserts that the Station's engineer resigned in May
       2012 and that there had not been regular maintenance on the Station's
       equipment prior to the FCC inspection. Steckline also asserts that a
       contract engineer inspected the antenna monitor before the inspection
       and said that everything was operating correctly.^

   12. Even if the antenna monitor was operating correctly, on October 21^
       and 22, 2012, Station KGSO operated in daytime mode during the day
       when the phase indication for the directional antenna deviated by more
       than five degrees and when current ratios deviated by more than three
       degrees. In other words, Station KGSO operated substantially at
       variance from the authorized directional parameters and did not check
       monitoring points, suspend operations, or reduce power to prevent
       interference. Moreover, with no working monitoring or alarm system and
       no operators monitoring the station parameters, Steckline has no
       evidence regarding when its directional antenna last operated within
       authorized parameters. Based on the evidence before us, we find that
       Steckline  apparently willfully and repeatedly violated Sections 73.62
       and 73.1745(a) of the Rules by failing to maintain the directional
       parameters of its antenna within prescribed limits.

   B. Failure to Maintain and Make Available a Complete Public Inspection
   File

   13. Section 73.3526(a)(2) of the Rules states that "[e]very permittee or
       licensee of an AM, FM, TV or a Class A station in the commercial
       broadcast services shall maintain a public inspection file containing
       the material" set forth in that section.^   Section 73.3526(e)(12) of
       the Rules states that commercial AM and FM broadcast stations must
       retain in the file  "every three months a list of programs that have
       provided the station's most significant treatment of community issues
       during the preceding three month period . . . . The lists described in
       this paragraph shall be retained in the public inspection file until
       final action has been taken on the station's next license renewal
       application."^ The public inspection file must be maintained at the
       main studio of the station,^ and must be available for public
       inspection at any time during regular business hours.^

   14.  On October 22, 2012, an agent from the Kansas City Office asked to
       inspect Station KGSO's public inspection file during regular business
       hours. The public inspection file provided contained documents that
       the Station called "issues programs lists"--except for the third
       quarter of 2012-- but these documents did not contain any lists or
       information regarding the programs aired to address community issues.
       The "issues programs lists" only contained lists of community issues,
       as opposed to lists of the programming the Station had aired on those
       issues. In response to the NOV, Steckline stated that it did not
       realize that its issues programs lists should contain such information
       and that it has since supplemented those lists. Based on the evidence
       before us, we find that Steckline  apparently willfully and repeatedly
       violated Section 73.3526 of the Rules by failing to maintain  a
       complete public inspection file for Station KGSO and apparently
       willfully violated Section 73.3526 by failing to make available a
       complete public inspection file for Station KGSO.

   C. Proposed Forfeiture and Reporting Requirement

   15. Pursuant to the Commission's Forfeiture Policy Statement and Section
       1.80 of the Rules, the base forfeiture amount for exceeding power
       limits is $4,000, for failure to maintain directional pattern within
       prescribed parameters is $7,000, and for violation of public file
       rules is $10,000.^ 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
       Steckline  is apparently liable for a total forfeiture in the amount
       of $21,000, consisting of the following: $4,000 for the overpower
       operation, $7,000 for failure to maintain the directional pattern
       within prescribed limits, and $10,000 for failure to maintain and make
       available a complete public inspection file.

   16. We further order Steckline to submit a written statement, pursuant to
       Section 1.16 of the Rules,^ signed under penalty of perjury by an
       officer or director of Steckline, stating that it is operating its
       Station within authorized power levels and directional parameters.
       This statement must be provided to the Kansas City Office at the
       address listed in paragraph 19 within thirty (30) calendar days of the
       release date of this NAL.

   IV. ORDERING CLAUSES

   17. Accordingly, IT IS ORDERED that, pursuant to Section 503(b) of the
       Communications Act of 1934, as amended, and Sections 0.111, 0.311,
       0.314 and 1.80 of the Commission's rules, Steckline Communications,
       Inc. is hereby NOTIFIED of this APPARENT LIABILITY FOR A FORFEITURE in
       the amount of twenty one thousand  dollars ($21,000) for violations of
       Sections 73.62, 73.1560(a), 73.1745(a), and 73.3526 of the Rules.^

   18. 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,
       Steckline Communications, Inc.  SHALL PAY the full amount of the
       proposed forfeiture or SHALL FILE a written statement seeking
       reduction or cancellation of the proposed forfeiture.

   19. IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that Steckline Communications, Inc. SHALL SUBMIT
       a written statement, as described in paragraph 16, 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,
       Kansas City Office, 520 N.E. Colbern Rd., 2nd Floor, Lees Summit, MO
       64086-4711. Steckline Communications, Inc. shall also e-mail the
       written statement to SCR-Response@fcc.gov.

   20. Payment of the forfeiture must be made by check or similar instrument,
       wire transfer, or credit card, and must include the NAL/Account Number
       and FRN referenced above. Steckline Communications, Inc. shall also
       send electronic notification on the date said payment is made to
       SCR-Response@fcc.gov. Regardless of the form of payment, a completed
       FCC Form 159 (Remittance Advice) must be submitted.^ When completing
       the FCC Form 159, enter the Account Number in block number 23A (call
       sign/other ID) and enter the letters "FORF" in block number 24A
       (payment type code).  Below are additional instructions you should
       follow based on the form of payment you select:

     * Payment by check or money order must be made payable to the order of
       the Federal Communications Commission.  Such payments (along with the
       completed Form 159) must be mailed to Federal Communications
       Commission, P.O. Box 979088, St. Louis, MO 63197-9000, or sent
       via overnight mail to U.S. Bank - Government Lockbox #979088,
       SL-MO-C2-GL, 1005 Convention Plaza, St. Louis, MO 63101.

     * Payment by wire transfer must be made to ABA Number 021030004,
       receiving bank TREAS/NYC, and Account Number 27000001.  To complete
       the wire transfer and ensure appropriate crediting of the wired funds,
       a completed Form 159 must be faxed to U.S. Bank at (314) 418-4232 on
       the same business day the wire transfer is initiated.

     * Payment by credit card must be made by providing the required credit
       card information on FCC Form 159 and signing and dating the Form 159
       to authorize the credit card payment. The completed Form 159 must then
       be mailed to Federal Communications Commission, P.O. Box 979088, St.
       Louis, MO 63197-9000, or sent via overnight mail to U.S. Bank -
       Government Lockbox #979088, SL-MO-C2-GL, 1005 Convention Plaza, St.
       Louis, MO 63101.

   21. Any request for making full payment over time under an installment
       plan should be sent to:  Chief Financial Officer--Financial
       Operations, Federal Communications Commission, 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 by phone, 1-877-480-3201, or by e-mail,
       ARINQUIRIES@fcc.gov.

   22. 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, Kansas City Office, 520 N.E. Colbern Rd., 2nd Floor,
       Lees Summit, MO  64086-4711, and include the NAL/Acct. No. referenced
       in the caption. Steckline Communications, Inc. also shall email the
       written response to SCR-Response@fcc.gov.

   23. 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.

   24. 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 First Class Mail to Steckline Communications,
       Inc. at 1632 South Maize Road, Wichita, KS 67209 and 1300 North 17^th
       Street, 11^th Floor, Arlington, VA 22209.

   FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION

   Ronald D. Ramage

   District Director

   Kansas City Office

   South Central Region

   Enforcement Bureau

   ^ 47 C.F.R. SS 73.62, 73.1560(a), 73.1745(a), 73.3526.

   ^ See License File No. BR-2657.

   ^ See License File Nos. BR-2657, BS-1994A.

   ^ On October 21, 2012, sunset in Wichita, Kansas was 6:43 p.m. On October
   22, 2012, sunrise in Wichita, Kansas was 7:45 a.m.

   ^ Steckline Communications, Inc., Notice of Violation, V201332560004 (Enf.
   Bur. Nov. 8, 2012).

   ^ Letter from Greg Steckline, President, Mid-America Network, to Ronald D.
   Ramage, District Director, Kansas City Office, South Central Region,
   Enforcement Bureau, at 3 (Nov. 27, 2012).

   ^ Id. at 2. Steckline did not provide any information for how long the
   unit had been in this damaged condition.

   ^ Id.

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

   ^ 47 U.S.C. S 312(f)(1).

   ^ H.R. Rep. No. 97-765, 97^th 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., Southern California Broadcasting Co., Memorandum Opinion and
   Order, 6 FCC Rcd 4387, 4388, para. 5 (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, para. 9.

   ^ 47 C.F.R. S 73.1745(a).

   ^ 47 C.F.R. S 73.1560(a).

   ^ See, e.g., Tidewater Communications, LLC, Order on Review, 25 FCC Rcd
   1675 (2010) (citing North Country Repeaters, Forfeiture Order, 19 FCC Rcd
   22139 (Enf. Bur. 2004)); PBJ Communications of Virginia, Inc., Memorandum
   Opinion and Order, 7 FCC Rcd 2088 (1988); Standard Communications Corp.,
   Memorandum Opinion and Order, 1 FCC Rcd 358 (1986).

   ^ 47 C.F.R. S 73.62.

   ^ Steckline was unable to provide written evidence that the contract
   engineer inspected the antenna monitor or confirmed that the antenna
   monitor was operating correctly.

   ^ Station KGSO was unable to switch automatically from day to nighttime
   mode. Thus, on October 21, 2012, it operated in daytime mode the entire
   day. See supra para. 9.

   ^ 47 C.F.R. S 73.3526(a)(2).

   ^ 47 C.F.R. S 73.3526(e)(12).

   ^ 47 C.F.R. S 73.3526(b).

   ^ 47 C.F.R. S 73.3526(c).

   ^ 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. SS 0.111, 0.311, 0.314, 1.80,  73.62,
   73.1560(a), 73.1745(a), and 73.3526.

   ^ An FCC Form 159 and detailed instructions for completing the form may be
   obtained at http://www.fcc.gov/Forms/Form159/159.pdf.

   ^ See 47 C.F.R. S 1.1914.

   ^ 47 C.F.R. SS 1.16, 1.80(f)(3).

   Federal Communications Commission DA 13-2046

                                       7

   Federal Communications Commission DA 13-2046