Dwayne Simon of Lancaster, CA admits that he was operating an unlicensed radio station out of his home in 2006 and 2007 when FCC field agents tracked down unidentified transmissions on 95.9 MHz. Simon also says he’s sorry for his actions. But he told the FCC he can’t afford to pay the $10,000 fine that was issued in a Notice of Apparent Liability for Forfeiture. After reviewing documentation of Simon’s financial resources, Rebecca Dorch, Regional Director for the Western Region of the Commission’s Enforcement Bureau has agreed to reduce the fine to 100 bucks.
RBR/TVBR observation: The lesson – always play it straight with the FCC when you get caught. Simon told the agents he would stop his pirate broadcasts the first time he was caught, but didn’t until he’d been caught two more times. Even so, owning up to his violations scored points with the Commission, as did being willing to produce documentation to support his hardship claim.
