**Before the**

## Federal Communications Commission

**Washington, D.C. 20554**

In the Matter of )

) File No. EB-03-CF-205

Jeff Amedro )

Dba Cell Page ) NAL/Acct. No. 200332340006

Morgantown, WV )

) FRN 0009-5345-61

NOTICE OF APPARENT LIABILITY FOR FORFEITURE

**Released: September 5, 2003**

By the District Director, Columbia Office, Enforcement Bureau:

# I. INTRODUCTION

1.  In this Notice of Apparent Liability for Forfeiture (\"NAL\"), we
    find that Mr. Jeff Amedro, doing business as (dba) Cell Page has
    apparently violated Section 301 of the Communications Act of 1934
    (Act)[^1], as amended by operating radio transmitting equipment on
    157.740 MHz without an instrument of authorization. We conclude that
    Cell Page is apparently liable for a forfeiture in the amount of ten
    thousand dollars (\$10,000).

## II. BACKGROUND

2.  In February 2003, the FCC Columbia Office received information from
    an FCC licensed user that Cell Page was operating an unlicensed
    paging system on the frequency 157.740 MHz in Morgantown and
    Clarksburg, WV.

3.  On March 20, 2003, an agent from the Columbia Office traveled to
    Clarksburg, WV to monitor transmissions on the frequency 157.740
    MHz. Using electronic direction finding techniques, the agent
    located paging transmissions emanating from a site northeast of
    Clarksburg, WV. The agent determined that the paging transmissions
    were from a Cell Page owned transmitter.

4.  Still on March 20, 2003, the agent visited the office of Cell Page
    in Morgantown, WV. During the visit, the owner, Mr. Jeff Amedro,
    produced a license issued to Home Security of West Virginia, Inc.,
    which had expired in December 2000. Mr Amedro admitted that Cell
    Page did not have a valid instrument of authorization for the
    operation on 157.740 MHz. The agent advised Mr. Amedro that
    operation without a valid FCC station license violated the Act.

5.  On April 11, 2003, the agent traveled to Morgantown, WV and
    monitored the frequency 157.740 MHz. Again, he observed
    transmissions by Cell Page on the frequency between 11:23 AM and
    11:25 AM. Further monitoring on August 14, 2003 revealed that Cell
    Page was still operating without authorization.

## 

## III. DISCUSSION

6.  Section 301 of the Act sets forth generally that no person shall use
    or operate any apparatus for the transmission of energy or
    communications or signals by radio within the United States except
    under and in accordance with the Act and with a license granted
    under the provisions of the Act. A review of Commission's records
    showed that there was no evidence of a Commission authorization to
    operate this transmitter on the frequency 157.740 MHz from
    Morgantown and Clarksburg, WV.

7.  Based on the evidence before us, we find that Cell Page
    willfully[^2] and repeatedly[^3] violated Section 301 of the Act.
    *The Commission's Forfeiture Policy Statement and Amendment of
    Section 1.80 of the Rules to Incorporate the Forfeiture Guidelines*,
    12 FCC Rcd 17087, 17113 (1997), *recon. denied*, 15 FCC Rcd
    303(1999) ("*Forfeiture Policy Statement*")[^4], sets the base
    forfeiture amount at \$10,000 for operation without an instrument of
    authorization. In assessing the monetary forfeiture amount, we must
    take into account the statutory factors set forth in Section
    503(b)(2)(D) of the Act,[^5] which include 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 other such matters as justice
    may require. Applying the Policy Statement and the statutory factors
    to the instant case and applying the inflation adjustments, we
    believe that a ten thousand dollar (\$10,000) monetary forfeiture is
    warranted.

##### 

##### IV. ORDERING CLAUSES

8.  Accordingly, IT IS ORDERED THAT, pursuant to Section 503(b) of the
    Act[^6] and Sections 0.111, 0.311 and 1.80 of the Commission's Rules
    ("Rules")[^7] Cell Page is hereby NOTIFIED of this APPARENT
    LIABILITY FOR A FORFEITURE in the amount of ten thousand dollars
    (\$10,000) for willfully and repeatedly violating Section 301 of the
    Act.

9.  IT IS FURTHER ORDERED THAT, pursuant to Section 1.80 of the Rules,
    within thirty days of the release date of this NOTICE OF APPARENT
    LIABILITY, Cell Page SHALL PAY the full amount of the proposed
    forfeiture or SHALL FILE a written statement seeking reduction or
    cancellation of the proposed forfeiture.

10. Payment of the forfeiture may be made by mailing a check or similar
    instrument, payable to the order of the Federal Communications
    Commission, to the Forfeiture Collection Section, Finance Branch,
    Federal Communications Commission, P.O. Box 73482, Chicago, Illinois
    60673-7482. The payment should note the NAL/Acct. No. 200332340006,
    and FRN 0009-5345-61.

11. The response, if any, must be mailed to Federal Communications
    Commission, Enforcement Bureau, Spectrum Enforcement Division, 445
    12th Street, S.W., Washington, D.C. 20554 and MUST INCLUDE THE
    NAL/Acct. No. 200332340006.

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. Requests for payment of the full amount of this Notice of Apparent
    Liability under an installment plan should be sent to: Chief,
    Revenue and Receivables Operations Group, 445 12th Street, S.W.,
    Washington, D.C. 20554.[^8]

14. Under the Small Business Paperwork Relief Act of 2002, Pub L. No.
    107-198, 116 Stat. 729 (June 28, 2002), the FCC is engaged in a
    two-year tracking process regarding the size of entities involved in
    forfeitures. If you qualify as a small entity and if you wish to be
    treated as a small entity for tracking purposes, please so certify
    to us within thirty (30) days of this NAL, either in your response
    to the NAL or in a separate filing to be sent to the Technical and
    Public Safety Division. Your certification should indicate whether
    you, including your parent entity and its subsidiaries, meet one of
    the definitions set forth in the list provided by the FCC's Office
    of Communications Business Opportunities (OCBO) set forth in
    Attachment A of this Notice of Apparent Liability. This information
    will be used for tracking purposes only. Your response or failure to
    respond to this question will have no effect on your rights and
    responsibilities pursuant to Section 503(b) of the Communications
    Act. If you have questions regarding any of the information
    contained in Attachment A, please contact OCBO at (202) 418-0990.

15. IT IS FURTHER ORDERED THAT a copy of this NOTICE OF APPARENT
    LIABILITY shall be sent by Certified Mail, Return Receipt Requested,
    to Cell Page, 440 Spruce Street, Morgantown, WV 26505.

FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION

Charles C. Magin

District Director

Columbia Office

Attachment A -- FCC List of Small Entities, October 2002

[^1]: 47 U.S.C. § 301.

[^2]: Section 312(f)(1) of the Act, 47 U.S.C. § 312(f)(1), which applies
    to Section 503(b) of the Act, provides that "\[t\]he term 'willful',
    when used with reference to the commission or omission of any act,
    means the conscious and deliberate commission or omission of such
    act, irrespective of any intent to violate any provision of this Act
    ...." *See Southern California Broadcasting Co.*, 6 FCC Rcd 4387
    (1991).

[^3]: The 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." 47 U.S.C. § 312(f)(2).

[^4]: 47 C.F.R. § 1.80.

[^5]: 47 U.S.C. § 503(b)(2)(D).

[^6]: 47 U.S.C. § 503(b).

[^7]: 47 C.F.R. §§ 0.111 and 0.311.

[^8]: See 47 C.F.R. § 1.1914.