WASHINGTON: The FCC cancelled a $10,000 fine issued in 2008 to Peak Communications, former licensee of KQBE--FM, Selah, Wash., because of financial hardship. Educational Media Foundation is now the licensee and the current call sign is KYKV.
Peak itself pointed out to the commission in a 2005 license renewal that it was missing issues/programs lists from its public file for 1994 to 2004, the first six years it owned the station. It told the agency it tried to get all the records but wasn’t able to recreate the all of the documentation. Peak also told the FCC it wasn’t able to prepare and insert all the documentation for its 2003 biennial ownership report. The fine ensued.
Peak asked for the $10,000 fine to be either cancelled or reduced and submitted copies of its 2005, 2006 and 2007 federal income tax returns, specifying gross revenues that averaged $42,781. The proposed $10,000 forfeiture represents 23.4 percent of Peak’s average gross revenue for 2005 through 2007.
In considering claims of financial hardship, the Media Bureau stated in its decision, the agency normally considers a fine of 5 percent of average gross revenue reasonable, while the Enforcement Bureau has found that a forfeiture as high as 7.9 percent of average gross revenue was not excessive.
From 2005 to 2007, Peak experienced cumulative net losses exceeding $218,600, meaning its losses exceeded its revenue by nearly 70 percent from 2005 through 2007. That is an extraordinary circumstance, the bureau decided; it cancelled the fine and admonished Peak instead. -- from Radio World
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