United States Court of Appeals
FOR THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA CIRCUIT
Argued January 18, 2000 Decided June 16, 2000
No. 99-1198
Contemporary Media, Inc., et al.,
Appellants
v.
Federal Communications Commission,
Appellee
Appeal of an Order of the
Federal Communications Commission
Howard J. Braun argued the cause for appellants. With
him on the briefs were Jerold L. Jacobs and Shelley Sadow-
sky.
Lisa A. Burns, Counsel, Federal Communications Commis-
sion, argued the cause for appellee. With her on the brief
were Christopher J. Wright, General Counsel, and Daniel M.
Armstrong, Associate General Counsel.
Before: Silberman, Henderson, and Garland, Circuit
Judges.
Opinion for the Court filed by Circuit Judge Garland.
Garland, Circuit Judge: Three radio licensees appeal the
Federal Communications Commission's (FCC's) revocation of
their licenses and construction permits, as well as its denial of
their application for a new station. The FCC took those
actions after the licensees' sole owner and president was
convicted of sexually abusing children, and after the licensees
made misrepresentations to the Commission about the own-
er's continued involvement in station affairs. In the end, the
case is no more difficult than this recitation of the facts
suggests, and we therefore affirm the FCC in all respects.
I
The appellant licensees own and operate five radio stations
in Missouri and Indiana, hold two construction permits for
radio stations in Missouri, and have an application pending
for another Missouri station. Michael Rice is the sole share-
holder, president, and treasurer of all three licensees and
serves on each licensee's board of directors. In November
1990, Rice was arrested for criminal conduct involving sexual
acts with a teenager. In April of the following year, he was
formally charged with three felony counts of sexual assault on
an individual between fourteen and sixteen years of age. The
prosecutor subsequently amended the charges to include
eight felony counts of sexual assault on individuals between
fourteen and sixteen years of age, and four felony counts of
forcible sodomy of individuals under fourteen years of age.
The sexual abuse involved five children and occurred between
December 1985 and October 1990. Two days after the
charges were filed, Rice checked himself into a St. Louis
hospital for in-patient psychiatric treatment.
In June 1991, two of the licensees filed reports notifying
the FCC of the charges against Rice. The reports were filed
pursuant to 47 C.F.R. s 165(a), which requires FCC license
applicants to maintain "the continuing accuracy and complete-
ness of information furnished" in pending applications. Each
report stated that:
Since Mr. Rice's hospitalization on April 3, 1991, he has
had absolutely no managerial, policy, or consultative role
in the affairs of the three broadcast corporations in which
he has ownership interests and officer positions. In
other words, pending a resolution of the referenced
criminal charges, Mr. Rice is being completely insulated
and excluded from any involvement in the managerial,
policy, and day-to-day decisions involving any of the four
licensed stations and three construction permits held by
the three corporations.
J.A. at 15-16, 120 (citation omitted). In October 1991, Rice
was discharged from the hospital. On May 14, 1992, one of
the licensees filed another report with the FCC, stating:
There has been no change in Mr. Rice's status with [the
reporting licensee] or in the status of the proceedings
against him.... Mr. Rice is no longer hospitalized, but
he continues to be treated by his physicians as an
outpatient, and he continues to have no managerial or
policy role in the affairs of the three broadcast corpora-
tions ... in which he has ownership interests and corpo-
rate positions.
Id. at 126-27 (citation omitted).
On August 31, 1994, Rice was convicted of all twelve felony
counts against him: four counts of forcible sodomy, six counts
of deviate sexual assault in the first degree, and two counts of
deviate sexual assault in the second degree. The court
sentenced him to a total of eighty-four years in prison.
Because the sentences were set to run concurrently, his
maximum term of confinement amounted to eight years.
Rice began his incarceration on September 30, 1994, and is
currently eligible for release.
On October 10, 1995, the FCC ordered an evidentiary
hearing at which the licensees were directed to show cause
why their licenses and construction permits should not be
revoked and their pending application denied. The central
issues at the hearing were: (1) the effect of Rice's felony
convictions on the basic character qualifications of the licen-
sees, and (2) whether the licensees had misrepresented to the
FCC that, subsequent to his arrest, Rice had been excluded
from the management and operation of the stations. After
the hearing, the Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) concluded
that revocation of the licensees' authorizations was appropri-
ate due to the egregious nature of Rice's misconduct and to
the misrepresentations made by the licensees in their reports
to the Commission. The FCC affirmed.
II
The licensees' appeal raises a number of challenges, which
we address in turn. First, they challenge the legality of the
character policy upon which the FCC's decision was based.
We must sustain that policy unless we find it to be "arbitrary,
capricious, an abuse of discretion, or otherwise not in accor-
dance with law." Administrative Procedure Act (APA), 5
U.S.C. s 706(2)(A); see ACLU v. FCC, 823 F.2d 1554, 1574
(D.C. Cir. 1987).1
Section 308(b) of the Federal Communications Act provides
that "[a]ll applications for station licenses, or modifications or
renewals thereof, shall set forth such facts as the Commission
by regulation may prescribe as to the citizenship, character,
... and other qualifications of the applicant to operate the
station." 47 U.S.C. s 308(b). For many years, the FCC had
no express policy concerning the character qualifications of its
applicants; the Commission considered a wide range of fac-
tors in evaluating character, and as a consequence its evalua-
__________
1 The licensees rely on our decision in Bechtel v. FCC, 10 F.3d
875 (D.C. Cir. 1993), which stated that agencies must be prepared to
defend the underlying validity of policy statements because those
statements "are exempt from the Administrative Procedure Act's
notice-and-comment requirements and hence may take effect with-
out the rigors--and presumed advantages--of that process." Id. at
878 (citation omitted). Because we conclude that the FCC did
adequately justify its policies in the decision under review, Bechtel
does not affect our analysis.
tions sometimes yielded inconsistent results. See Policy Re-
garding Character Qualifications in Broadcast Licensing, 87
F.C.C.2d 836, 836-37 (1981) (notice of inquiry). The Commis-
sion responded to this problem in 1986 with the adoption of a
comprehensive character policy statement. See Policy Re-
garding Character Qualifications in Broadcast Licensing,
102 F.C.C.2d 1179 (1986) [hereinafter 1986 Character Policy
Statement]. The statement announced that the FCC's char-
acter analysis would focus on "misconduct which violates the
Communications Act or a Commission rule or policy, and ...
certain specified non-FCC misconduct which demonstrate[s]
the proclivity of an applicant to deal truthfully with the
Commission and to comply with [its] rules and policies." Id.
at 1190-91. The relevant non-FCC misconduct was limited to
adjudicated cases involving: fraudulent representations to
government agencies, criminal false statements or dishonesty,
and broadcast-related violations of antitrust laws or other
laws concerning competition. See id. at 1195-1203. The
FCC noted, however, that "there may be circumstances in
which an applicant has engaged in nonbroadcast misconduct
so egregious as to shock the conscience and evoke almost
universal disapprobation." Id. at 1205 n.60. "Such miscon-
duct," the Commission stated, "might, of its own nature,
constitute prima facie evidence that the applicant lacks the
traits of reliability and/or truthfulness necessary to be a
licensee, and might be a matter of Commission concern even
prior to adjudication by another body." Id.2 The 1986
statement also listed mitigating factors that the Commission
would consider in evaluating specific acts of misconduct. See
id. at 1227-28.
In 1990, the FCC determined that its 1986 policy had taken
"an overly narrow view of the range of misconduct that
should be relevant in licensing decisions." Policy Regarding
Character Qualifications in Broadcast Licensing, 5 F.C.C.R.
__________
2 In addition, the FCC explicitly reserved the option of expand-
ing the range of relevant misconduct "[s]hould [its] future experi-
ence indicate that [it had] erred ... in narrowing the range of non-
FCC misconduct to be considered for character purposes." 1986
Character Policy Statement, 102 F.C.C.2d at 1208 n.75.
3252, 3252 (1990) [hereinafter 1990 Character Policy State-
ment]. It therefore amended that policy with a new state-
ment, which explained:
[U]pon further reflection, we believe a propensity to
comply with the law generally is relevant to the Commis-
sion's public interest analysis, and that an applicant's or
licensee's willingness to violate other laws, and, in partic-
ular, to commit felonies, also bears on our confidence that
an applicant or licensee will conform to FCC rules and
policies.... Thus, evidence of any conviction for mis-
conduct constituting a felony will be relevant to our
analysis of an applicant's or licensee's character.
Id. The FCC further stated that although "not all convic-
tions for serious crimes are equally probative" of propensity
to obey the law, it would not "establish a 'hierarchy' of
felonies that may arise in individual cases." Id. Rather, the
Commission would analyze misconduct on a case-by-case basis
through the examination of mitigating factors. As in 1986,
the Commission stated that for non-FCC conduct it generally
would consider only adjudicated cases. However, it "contin-
ue[d] to believe that, where an applicant has allegedly en-
gaged in nonbroadcast misconduct 'so egregious as to shock
the conscience and evoke almost universal disapprobation,'
such conduct 'might be a matter of Commission concern even
prior to adjudication by another body.' " Id. at 3252 n.5
(quoting 1986 Character Policy Statement, 102 F.C.C.2d at
1205 n.60).
The licensees' challenge to the legitimacy of the current
character policy is threefold. First, they contend that there
is "no justification for license revocation based on non-FCC-
related criminal misconduct of a licensee's principal, even if
such misconduct was 'egregious.' " Br. of Appellants at 17.
According to the licensees, such revocation is particularly
inappropriate in this case because "there was no nexus
between Mr. Rice's sexual misconduct and the Licensees'
broadcast activities." Id. at 16 (emphasis in original).
We disagree, both as a general matter and with regard to
the specifics of this case. As to the former, it should be noted
that the FCC's policy is not automatically to disqualify a
license holder or applicant who commits a felony, but rather
to consider the felony as a relevant factor in evaluating
propensity to obey the law. See 1990 Character Policy
Statement, 5 F.C.C.R. at 3252. We see nothing irrational in
the conclusion that a violation of the criminal laws is relevant
to that evaluation and to the issue of character in general.
See generally DiCola v. FDA, 77 F.3d 504, 507-08 (D.C. Cir.
1996). The FCC relies heavily on the honesty and probity of
its licensees in a regulatory system that is largely self-
policing. See Leflore Broad. Co. v. FCC, 636 F.2d 454, 461
(D.C. Cir. 1980) ("[E]ffective regulation is premised upon the
agency's ability to depend upon the representations made to
it by its licensees...."). Under such a regime, a felony
conviction--any felony conviction--is certainly a factor to be
considered. It may not necessarily be a dispositive factor,
and all such convictions may not be equally probative--as the
FCC recognizes. See 1990 Character Policy Statement, 5
F.C.C.R. at 3252. But it is hard to see the argument that a
felony conviction is not relevant at all.
In this case, moreover, the argument is particularly weak.
It is hardly irrational to conclude that if an individual is
unwilling to obey the law with respect to such patently
criminal behavior as sexual assault on children, he will be
equally unwilling to obey FCC rules that require openness
and honesty with the Commission. Indeed, as discussed
below, that connection was borne out in this case. Because
the policy of considering felonious misconduct was clearly
permissible as applied to the licensees, they cannot succeed in
their attempt to challenge it on its face. Cf. Romer v. Evans,
517 U.S. 620, 643 (1996); Steffan v. Perry, 41 F.3d 677, 693
(D.C. Cir. 1994) (en banc).
Second, the licensees argue that the FCC's character policy
is arbitrary and capricious because it does not provide any
criteria for determining which non-FCC-related misconduct is
sufficiently serious to affect a licensee's propensity for relia-
bility in its dealings with the agency. Given the myriad
forms of criminal misconduct, the FCC's decision is not
unreasonable. The Commission cannot be required to fore-
see the variety of criminal behavior in which licensees or their
owners may partake. And once again, whatever the issue
with respect to crimes that might be regarded as being on the
boundary of "egregiousness," the reasonableness of the
FCC's decision in the instant case is clear. There is no
question but that the crimes at issue here are, as the FCC
found, "characterized by moral turpitude" to such an extent
that they "fall[ ] in the category of those that 'shock the
conscience' and summon almost universal disapproval," Con-
temporary Media, Inc., 13 F.C.C.R. 14,437, 14,444 (1998)--a
category that the FCC expressly warned would be the subject
of special agency concern. See 1990 Character Policy State-
ment, 5 F.C.C.R. at 3252. n.5.
The licensees' third contention is that the FCC's character
policy is inconsistent with the precedent of both this circuit
and the Commission itself. The licensees cite Wilkett v. ICC,
in which this court reversed a license revocation based on the
sole proprietor's convictions for second-degree murder and
conspiracy to distribute a controlled substance. See 710 F.2d
861 (D.C. Cir. 1983). That case, however, is readily distin-
guishable. In Wilkett, the court's analysis focused on the fact
that the Interstate Commerce Commission had "disregarded
its own standards for evaluating [licensee] fitness." Id. at
864. The court found that the Commission had failed to
"carefully scrutinize[ ] the past violations and consider[ ] miti-
gating circumstances," as it had in "numerous cases" in the
past. Id. Here, by contrast, the FCC not only gave careful
consideration to Rice's crimes, but it did so pursuant to and in
accordance with its published character policy. After scruti-
nizing the misconduct at issue, the FCC concluded that it was
"extremely serious" and involved "numerous acts." Contem-
porary Media, 13 F.C.C.R. at 14,444. Then, as discussed
below, the Commission closely evaluated the licensees' claims
of mitigation and reasonably rejected them. Moreover, the
convictions were not the sole ground for the revocation
decision as they were in Wilkett; here the licensees were also
found to have violated the Commission's candor requirements
in connection with the very matter now before us.
The licensees also cite Kravis Co., 11 F.C.C.R. 4740 (1996),
in which the FCC renewed radio licenses despite the fact that
the company's president and sole shareholder had been
charged with possession and exhibition of child pornography.
As the Commission explained in its decision below, however,
in that case neither a conviction nor a judgment of guilt had
been entered against the defendant; instead, the court had
placed him on probation pursuant to the state's deferred
judgment procedure, which permitted the expungement of the
charges after successful completion of a probation period.
See Contemporary Media, 13 F.C.C.R. at 14,442-43. As
noted above, the FCC's character policy states that the
Commission generally will consider only instances of adjudi-
cated misconduct. See 1990 Character Policy Statement, 5
F.C.C.R. at 3252. Regardless of whether it would be reason-
able to erase that line, it is not unreasonable to draw it.3
III
Having found no merit to the licensees' challenges to the
FCC's character policy itself, we now consider their chal-
lenges to the application of that policy in this case. The
licensees argue that even if the character policy is legitimate,
the Commission erred both in failing to consider numerous
mitigating factors that are relevant under the policy, and in
concluding that the licensees misrepresented Rice's continued
__________
3 The licensees seek further support from Alessandro Broad-
casting Co., in which the FCC determined that no demerit was
warranted for an applicant whose majority shareholder had been
convicted of second-degree murder. See 99 F.C.C.2d 1 (1984).
That decision, however, was rendered before the Commission's 1990
character policy statement gave import to felonies unrelated to
dishonesty or broadcast-industry conduct. Moreover, in Alessan-
dro, the agency noted that "the crime was an isolated event that
occurred in the remote past and the state authorities connected
with [the] conviction ... [had] determined officially that [the share-
holder was] rehabilitated and [had] restored his civil rights." Id. at
11 n.13. None of those factors is present in this case.
involvement in station affairs. We address each argument
below. Once again, we are mindful that we must sustain the
FCC's order unless the challenged action is "arbitrary, capri-
cious, an abuse of discretion, or otherwise not in accordance
with law," 5 U.S.C. s 706(2)(A), and that we must uphold its
findings of fact if they are supported by substantial evidence,
see id. s 706(2)(E); Damsky v. FCC, 199 F.3d 527, 533 (D.C.
Cir. 2000).
A
The FCC's character policy sets forth a number of mitigat-
ing factors to be considered in evaluating misconduct: "the
willfulness of the misconduct, the frequency of the miscon-
duct, the currentness of the misconduct, the seriousness of
the misconduct, the nature of the participation (if any) of
managers or owners, efforts made to remedy the wrong,
overall record of compliance with FCC rules and policies, and
rehabilitation." 1990 Character Policy Statement, 5 F.C.C.R.
at 3252. Although the FCC credited the licensees' record of
regulatory compliance, it rejected all of the other potential
bases for mitigation. We agree with the FCC's judgment;
indeed, it is hard to regard most of the licensees' contrary
arguments as anything but insubstantial.
First, the licensees note that although Rice could have been
sentenced to eighty-four years in prison, he was instead
sentenced to concurrent terms of "only" eight years. Br. of
Appellants at 21. We do not understand the argument. We
have no idea, and the licensees have offered none, as to why
the state court showed such mercy. Indeed, we have no idea
whether it did show mercy--that is, whether the court had
sentencing discretion, or whether Rice's crimes were subject
to state sentencing laws or guidelines that dictated the sen-
tence he received. Furthermore, we do not regard a sen-
tence of "only" eight years as indicating that Rice's felonies
were somehow "less serious," or that the sentencing court
found them so. And finally, we do not understand how the
repeated sexual assault of five children could be regarded as
anything less than egregious; perhaps wisely, licensees do
not suggest what misconduct they would regard as more
serious than that described in this record.
Second, the licensees argue that they were entitled to
benefit from the "participation of management or owners"
mitigation factor. Again, we do not understand the argu-
ment. Although it is true that no other "owner" participated
in Rice's misconduct, it is only true because there is no other
owner: Rice owns all of the equity in each of the licensees.
Nor was Rice a minor player in management; he was the
president of all of the licensees and sat on the board of
directors of each. And while the other corporate managers
did not participate in the sexual assaults for which Rice was
convicted, they did--as we discuss below--participate in oth-
er serious misconduct: namely, intentional misrepresenta-
tions to the FCC regarding Rice's continued role.
Third, the licensees appeal to the "rehabilitation" factor,
observing that the record contains no evidence of criminal
activity subsequent to October 1990, and claiming that Rice's
sexual misconduct ceased on that date. The lack of further
misconduct after October, however, is hardly coincidental. In
November, Rice was arrested on the assault charges. His
forbearance from criminal activity during the period in which
he awaited trial and was subject to the conditions of pretrial
release is hardly indicative of rehabilitation.4 Moreover,
again as discussed below, the evidence shows that he partici-
pated in intentional misrepresentations to the FCC during
this supposed rehabilitation period.
Fourth, the licensees point to Rice's "reputation in the
community," noting that "four individuals who have known
Mr. Rice personally and/or professionally for many years"
submitted statements attesting to his good character and
reputation. Br. of Appellants at 22. The ALJ properly
refused to credit these statements, however, since only one
mentioned Rice's felony conviction and none expressed any
familiarity with its details. We cannot fault the FCC for
concluding that those who vouched for Rice's character while
__________
4 It goes without saying that Rice's forbearance while in prison
is not indicative of rehabilitation at all.
evidencing little if any knowledge of his egregious acts cannot
be regarded as credible on the subject.
Finally, the licensees complain that the FCC failed to
award mitigation credit for the measures they took to prevent
Rice from engaging in future misconduct, while simultaneous-
ly allowing him to "rehabilitate" himself through gainful
employment. The licensees emphasize that they adopted
resolutions prohibiting Rice from having any "managerial,
policy, or consultative role" in their affairs, but that they also
permitted him some "limited participation" in accordance with
his physician's recommendations. Id. at 23-24. The problem
with this argument is that the FCC concluded it was factually
untrue, finding that Rice participated extensively in station
affairs even after the resolutions were passed and that the
licensees intentionally misrepresented that participation. As
discussed in Part III.B below, we find substantial evidence to
support the FCC's findings in this regard. The actions taken
by the licensees, therefore, become elements of aggravation
rather than mitigation.
In sum, we find no error in the FCC's evaluation of
possible mitigating factors. The FCC considered each of the
relevant factors set forth in its character policy, and it
reasonably rejected all save one--the licensees' "overall rec-
ord of compliance with FCC rules and policies." We agree
with the Commission's conclusion that "[t]he fact that the
Licensees have had a good overall record of FCC rule compli-
ance is not alone sufficient to mitigate the overwhelming
negative weight of all the other evidence" in this case. Con-
temporary Media, 13 F.C.C.R. at 14,445.
B
At oral argument, the licensees conceded that if we were to
sustain the FCC's finding of intentional misrepresentation,
that alone would be sufficient ground for the revocation of
their licenses. That concession was plainly correct, as "it is
well recognized that the Commission may disqualify an appli-
cant who deliberately makes misrepresentations or lacks can-
dor in dealing with the agency." Schoenbohm v. FCC, 204
F.3d 243, 247 (D.C. Cir. 2000); see also FCC v. WOKO, Inc.,
329 U.S. 223, 225-27 (1946); Swan Creek Communications,
Inc. v. FCC, 39 F.3d 1217, 1221-24 (D.C. Cir. 1994); Garden
State Broad. Ltd. v. FCC, 996 F.2d 386, 393-94 (D.C. Cir.
1993). We now turn to an examination of that issue.
The ALJ found, and the FCC affirmed, that the licensees
"misrepresented and lacked candor in reporting to the Com-
mission that, subsequent to his arrest, Rice was completely
excluded from any further involvement in the management
and operation of the Licensees' radio stations." Contempo-
rary Media, 13 F.C.C.R. at 14,454; see Contemporary Media,
Inc., 12 F.C.C.R. 14,254, 14,295 (1997) (initial decision of
ALJ). The licensees counter by claiming that they never
promised "to completely exclude Mr. Rice from having any
involvement in their stations' activities, only to exclude him
from having any involvement in the management, policy, and
day-to-day decisions involving the stations." Br. of Appel-
lants at 25 (emphasis in original). They admit that this
distinction is "subtle." Id. That is an understatement.
As previously recounted, in June 1991 the licensees report-
ed to the FCC that:
Since Mr. Rice's hospitalization on April 3, 1991, he has
had absolutely no managerial, policy, or consultative
role in the affairs of the three broadcast corporations in
which he has ownership interests and officer positions.
In other words, pending a resolution of the referenced
criminal charges, Mr. Rice is being completely insulated
and excluded from any involvement in the managerial,
policy, and day-to-day decisions involving any of the four
licensed stations and three construction permits held by
the three corporations.
J.A. at 15-16, 120 (citation omitted) (emphasis added). There
is no dispute that from April until October 1991, the period of
his hospitalization, Rice had no involvement with the stations.
The licensees concede, however, that several weeks after
Rice's release from the hospital, their vice-president permit-
ted him to undertake a number of station-related tasks, which
they describe as "occasional and isolated technical projects."
Br. of Appellants at 26. Nonetheless, the next report to the
FCC, filed on May 14, 1992, stated:
There has been no change in Mr. Rice's status with [the
reporting licensee] or in the status of the proceedings
against him.... Mr. Rice is no longer hospitalized, but
he continues to be treated by his physicians as an
outpatient, and he continues to have no managerial or
policy role in the affairs of the three broadcast corpora-
tions ... in which he has ownership interests and corpo-
rate positions.
J.A. at 126-27 (citation omitted) (emphasis added).
According to the licensees, Rice's conceded involvement in
"technical projects" is consistent with this representation
because that involvement did not comprise managerial or
decision-making activities but rather "mere opining and mus-
ings." Br. of Appellants at 28. The key point that the
"hypertechnical" FCC overlooked, they claim, is that the May
1992 report deleted the word "consultative" from the list of
roles from which the June 1991 report had said Rice was
being excluded. Id. at 26. In their eyes, this "critical
distinction" between the two reports should have put the
Commission on notice that Rice had moved from having no
role to having an "opining and musing" role. Id. at 27.
Indeed, the licensees maintain that this distinction rendered
their representations "fully forthcoming" and candid. Id. at
26.
By this time, it should be quite clear who is being "hyper-
technical." Only a side-by-side, line-by-line comparison of the
two filings--conducted with some skepticism of the licensees'
candor--would have detected the subtle difference in lan-
guage upon which the licensees now rely. In 1992, however,
the FCC had no reason to conduct such a forensic comparison
of the two representations, particularly in light of the May
report's opening declaration that "[t]here has been no change
in Mr. Rice's status." That declaration, alone, was plainly
false.5
Moreover, even if we were to accept that the licensees
effectively advised the Commission that Rice was involved in
__________
5 At oral argument, the licensees argued that their intention
was only to indicate that there had been no change in Rice's
consultation but had no role in management, there is substan-
tial evidence in the record that Rice was involved in manage-
ment as well. Cf. WBER, Inc. v. FCC, 420 F.2d 158, 164
(D.C. Cir. 1969) (holding that questions regarding misrepre-
sentations are factual questions subject to substantial evi-
dence review). As the ALJ stated:
Apart from Rice's consultative role, the evidence estab-
lishes that, after his release from the hospital in October
1991, Rice was also involved in at least some of the
programming matters and personnel decisions of the
Licensees, rejected offers to purchase one of the Licen-
sees' construction permits, invited an offer to purchase a
station once it went on the air, suggested the trade of
specific broadcast properties, and directed the group
program director and two of the general managers of the
Licensees' stations to perform certain tasks.
Contemporary Media, 12 F.C.C.R. at 14,298.
The licensees contend that there was only "conflicting"
evidence on these matters, pointing out that their witnesses
disputed much of the testimony upon which the ALJ's conclu-
sions were based. As a consequence, they argue, "[w]itness
credibility findings played a predominant role in the ALJ's
and the FCC's adverse rulings under the misrepresentation
issue." Br. of Appellants at 30. It is true, of course, that
when witnesses present conflicting testimony an agency's
decision must be based on an evaluation of their credibility.
Under our precedents, however, we defer to credibility find-
ings affirmed by the Commission unless they are "patently
unsupportable." E.g., SL Communications, Inc. v. FCC, 168
F.3d 1354, 1357 (D.C. Cir. 1999). That is not the case here.
Finally, the licensees contend that "intent to deceive" is a
necessary element of proving misrepresentation or lack of
candor in FCC proceedings, see Swan Creek Communica-
tions, 39 F.3d at 1222; Fox River Broad., Inc., 93 F.C.C.2d
127, 129 (1983), and that there is no credible record evidence
__________
"ownership or managerial" status. The quoted words, however, do
not appear in the declaration, which was completely unqualified.
of any intent on their part to mislead or deceive the agency.
The evidence discussed above, however, is more than suffi-
cient to support the Commission's finding that there was an
intent to deceive. As we have stated before, "the fact of
misrepresentation coupled with proof that the party making it
had knowledge of its falsity [is] enough to justify a conclusion
that there was fraudulent intent." Leflore Broad. Co., 636
F.2d at 462. The licensees concede that they intentionally
deleted the word "consultative" from the 1992 filing, and we
cannot credit the claim that they did not realize the resulting
report would affirmatively mislead the agency as to Rice's
resumption of such activities. Moreover, as noted above,
there is substantial evidence that the licensees' representa-
tions concerning Rice's exclusion from non-consultative (i.e.,
managerial and policy) activities were themselves false.
There is also substantial evidence that the licensees' manage-
ment knew the representations were false, since management
was on the receiving end of Rice's directives.6 Accordingly,
we uphold the FCC's finding of intent to deceive, and with it
the Commission's determination that the licensees' misrepre-
sentations warranted revocation.
IV
Finally, we turn to the licensees' contention that the revo-
cation of their licenses and construction permits violates the
__________
6 To take just a few examples:
Rice informed [vice president] Cox that he wanted Rhea [the
general manager of two of his radio stations] fired, and Cox
told Rhea that he was being fired because of Rice's displeasure
... ; Cox told Rhea that Rice wanted [radio announcer] Steel
fired after Steel changed [his station's] reporting status in a
trade publication; after Rice asked Rhea for information about
the cost of the Satellite Music Network, Cox told Rhea that
Rice thought [one of the stations] could be programmed for less
money by bringing in Rice's own music; and Leatherman [the
general manager of another licensee station] responded to Cox
after Rice asked him about the need for sound effects CDs.
Contemporary Media, 13 F.C.C.R. at 14,458.
Excessive Fines Clause of the Eighth Amendment.7 In sup-
port of this contention, the licensees cite Austin v. United
States, which held that the Excessive Fines Clause applies to
forfeitures under 21 U.S.C. s 881(a)(4) and (a)(7) of property
used to facilitate drug transactions. See 509 U.S. 602, 604
(1993). Austin has no application here.
In Austin, the Court held that the central question under
the Excessive Fines Clause is whether the government action
at issue is "punishment for some offense." Id. at 609-10; see
United States v. Bajakajian, 524 U.S. 321, 327-28 (1998). In
concluding that the forfeitures in that case constituted pun-
ishment, the Court focused on the historical understanding of
forfeiture as a penal measure, an understanding reflected in
prior Supreme Court precedents and in the legislative history
of the forfeiture statute. See Austin, 509 U.S. at 614-20.
These considerations do not apply to the case at bar.
First, the Court's precedents do not reflect an understanding
that FCC license revocations or nonrenewals based on char-
acter considerations constitute punishment. To the contrary,
in FCC v. WOKO, the Court rejected just such a claim. See
329 U.S. at 228. There, an FCC licensee who had made
misrepresentations to the agency contended that the resulting
nonrenewal order "inflict[ed] a penalty, that the motive [was]
punishment." Id. The Court disagreed, stating: "A denial
of an application for a license because of the insufficiency or
deliberate falsity of information lawfully required to be fur-
nished is not a penal measure." Id. Nor have the licensees
cited anything in the legislative history of the Federal Com-
munications Act to suggest that Congress had a punitive
purpose.
The FCC revokes a license not to punish a licensee for its
conduct, but because that conduct indicates to the Commis-
sion that the licensee is no longer qualified to hold it. See 47
U.S.C. ss 303(l), 308, 312; Contemporary Media, 13 F.C.C.R.
at 14,459-60. Revocation comes when the Commission con-
cludes that the licensee can no longer be trusted to deal with
__________
7 See U.S. Const. amend. VIII ("Excessive bail shall not be
required, nor excessive fines imposed....").
it honestly, to follow its regulations, and to operate in the
public interest. See, e.g., Syracuse Peace Council v. FCC, 867
F.2d 654, 659 n.2 (D.C. Cir. 1989); Leflore Broad. Co., 636
F.2d at 461-62. While the revocation of FCC license privi-
leges "may hurt and ... may cause loss," WOKO, 329 U.S. at
228, it does not implicate the Excessive Fines Clause of the
Eighth Amendment.
V
For the foregoing reasons, we affirm the decision and order
of the Federal Communications Commission.