The FCC continues to send letters to property owners in various parts of the United States warning them about alleged pirate radio operations on their sites.
Randal Rogalski in Johnstown, Pa., was warned about unlicensed FM broadcasts on 99.9 MHz that the FCC detected from his property.
Pers Realty and site manager Uriah James got an FCC letter about a signal on 97.5 MHz at their property in Brooklyn, N.Y.
These join a fast-growing list that have been sent by the commission in recent months. Some of the communities where owners have received the FCC’s letter in 2022 are Philadelphia, Hazelton and Kittanning in Pennsylvania; Baltimore, Adamstown and Beltsville in Maryland; Fort Lauderdale and Kissimmee in Florida; LeGrande, Ore.; Walsenburg, Colo.; Rochester, N.Y., and several parts of New York City.
The letters inform the property owners or landlords that they could face penalties of more than $2.1 million under federal law for allowing such broadcasts. They provide recipients 10 business days to show that they are “no longer permitting pirate radio broadcasting to occur at the property.”
The commission also asked that the owners identify the individual(s) engaged in pirate radio broadcasting on the properties.
There have been no reports yet from the FCC on the outcomes of any of these letters or of any pending penalties.
[Related: “In Pirate Hunt, FCC Puts the Focus on Landlords”]