The FCC Enforcement Bureau has proposed fining William F. Crowell, W6WBJ (ex-N6AYJ), of Diamond Springs, California, $25,000 for intentionally interfering with other Amateur Radio operators and transmitting prohibited communications, including music. FCC San Francisco District Director David K. Hartshorn released a Notice of Apparent Liability for Forfeiture (NAL) on December 18, detailing the allegations. An Advanced class licensee, Crowell is no stranger to the Enforcement Bureau, which had warned him as far back as 2000 about intentional interference. In 2008 the FCC designated his current license renewal application for hearing, alleging that he had caused intentional interference, interrupted others’ communications, transmitted music, and made one-way transmissions, including some containing “indecent language,” the FCC said. His license, which expired in 2007, has not been renewed, but Crowell may continue to operate while his application is pending. Prompting the December 18 NAL were complaints earlier this year by members of the Western Amateur Radio Friendship Association (WARFA), which conducts nets three times a week on 75 meters.
“Deliberate interference undermines the utility of the Amateur Radio Service by preventing communications among licensed users that comply with the Commission’s rules,” the FCC said in its NAL. “Mr Crowell’s deliberate interference to other users, using voice, noises, and music, directly contravenes the Amateur Radio service’s fundamental purpose as a voluntary noncommercial communications service…”