FCC is an equal opportunity whacker when it comes to doling out fines.

Last month we posted about the FCC’s apparent effort to thin the ranks of Class A stations, presumably to free up spectrum for broadband.  The targets there were 16 Class A licensees who had not filed all their Children’s TV Reports (FCC Form 398) and who did not respond to the FCC’s letters of inquiry about that failure.  As we suggested then, it wasn’t clear how the Commission planned to deal with Class A licensees who hadn’t filed the required reports but who had responded to the FCC’s inquiries by demonstrating that they had in fact (a) aired kids’ programming and (b) followed up by filing appropriate (albeit late) reports.

Now we know.

It looks like the price tag is going to be $13,000 (per station, not per licensee).  In each of three Notices of Apparent Liability, the Media Bureau has fined the targeted licensee $3,000 for failure to file reports and $10,000 for not having the reports in the public file.  One of the licensees in question has two stations – so it got hit for a total of $26,000.  You can read the FCC’s Notices here, here and here.

The amount of the fines does not appear to vary according to the number of Children’s TV Reports that may have been missed.  One targeted licensee missed 17 reports, another 16, another eight – but they all got the same fine on a per station basis. 

Perhaps more importantly, the amount of the fines does not vary according to the size of the licensee.  An individual licensee holding only three Class A/LPTV stations is treated the same as a large corporate licensee with a score of full power stations.  While little guys can try to get their fines reduced by pleading poverty, the FCC has historically been unwilling to reduce any fine that does not exceed about 5%-7% of the station’s gross revenue, without regard to profitability.  We know of one instance where the FCC’s disinclination to consider the practical economic hardship its fines impose directly resulted in a station’s having to lay off employees to fund the payment. 

The government’s need for revenue marches forward.  And you thought that the FCC’s agenda was about job creation….