The FCC is back in Boston, which is known as a hotbed of Pirate Radio stations. The Commission has warned a property owner in Jamaica Plain, who may face fines of up to $2.4 million due to an unlicensed signal emanating from her building.
The station operates on 107.5 from a Walk Hill Street address in the Jamaica Plain part of the city. According to the complaint, Judith Piquant owns the property. Piquant has been ordered to provide the FCC with proof that the broadcast has ceased.
The filing states in part, “Accordingly, you are hereby notified and warned that the FCC may issue a fine of up to $2,453,218 if, following the response period set forth below, we determine that you have continued to permit any individual or entity to engage in pirate radio broadcasting from the property that you own or manage.”
“If you do not respond to this notice, the FCC may nonetheless determine that, as a legal matter, you have sufficient knowledge of the above-referenced pirate radio activity to support enforcement action against you.”
The fine for operating a Pirate station is $122,611 a day.
The Pirate Act requires the FCC to conduct periodic sweeps and allows for Commission enforcement. The commission can take enforcement action against landlords and property owners who deliberately allow pirate radio broadcasting to occur on their properties.
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