$20,000 Forfeiture Proposed for Broadcaster, Separate Appeal Rejected

The FCC Media Bureau proposed a $20,000 forfeiture over false certifications in an application for Olympia, Washington, translator owner Northwest Rock N Roll Preservation Society (NWR), and the full FCC separately rejected a related application for review from the same broadcaster, said a notice of apparent liability and an order in Monday’s Daily Digest. Both matters appear to involve a conflict between NWR and Bicoastal Media Licenses, with Monday’s orders referencing numerous objections and challenges the two broadcasters have filed against each other. The Media Bureau said NWR made “certifications with an intent to deceive” in a license to cover application after Bicoastal filed a series of objections, the NAL said. NWR falsely certified that new facilities had been constructed to prevent a 2017 permit from expiring, and Bicoastal’s objections presented evidence the station wasn’t operating. Meanwhile, NWR’s rejected application for review challenged a Media Bureau decision denying its appeal of the MB’s grant of a construction permit to Bicoastal. The FCC didn’t agree with NWR arguments that the Media Bureau dismissed NWR’s challenge improperly and didn’t act in a timely fashion, the order said. Despite NWR’s false certifications, the NAL stops short of taking the broadcaster’s license, noting NWR admitted the violations. “We believe NWR can reasonably be expected to deal truthfully with the Commission in the future,” said the NAL.