An anonymous complaint led agents from the Philadelphia field office of the FCC’s Enforcement Bureau to WGBN’s door in 2014. Several tower violations have now tripped up Pentecostal Temple Development Corporation, owner of the AM in Lincoln Borough, Pennsylvania. The FCC cited Pentecostal for failing to light and paint its tower and for not informing the FAA of the lighting outages.

“Such structures present a significant public safety risk, especially to passing aircraft,” stated the Commission in its decision. “Pentecostal has previously been warned that it must repair the required lights and repaint the antenna structures to bring them into compliance with the Commission’s rules.”

Pentecostal owns four towers at the Lincoln Borough site; when agents returned to the site in 2016, they found faded and chipped paint on two structures. Also, the top level beacon on the tower registered under ASR 1026648 was out, and one of the two side steady burning obstruction lighting globes was out on the tower registered under ASR 1026650. Under agency rules, “any observed or otherwise known extinguishment or improper functioning of any top steady burning light or any flashing obstruction light, regardless of its position on the antenna structure, not corrected within 30 minutes” must be reported to the FAA.

After the owner neglected to bring the tower into compliance after repeated warnings, the agency determined WGBN’s owner is apparently liable for a $25,000 fine.  Pentecostal has 30 days to appeal or pay.