[Federal Register Volume 72, Number 248 (Friday, December 28, 2007)]
[Notices]
[Pages 73821-73823]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E7-25133]


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FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION

[DA 07-4732]


Notice of Debarment; Schools and Libraries Universal Service 
Support Mechanism

AGENCY: Federal Communications Commission.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: The Enforcement Bureau (the ``Bureau'') debars Mr. Brown from 
the schools and libraries universal service support mechanism (or ``E-
Rate Program'') for a period of three years based on his conviction of 
mail fraud in connection with his participation in the program. The 
Bureau takes this action in order to protect the E-Rate Program from 
waste, fraud and abuse.

DATES: Debarment commences on the date Mr. Richard E. Brown receives 
the debarment letter or December 28, 2007, whichever date comes first, 
for a period of three years.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Diana Lee, Federal Communications 
Commission, Enforcement Bureau, Investigations and Hearings Division, 
Room 4-C330, 445 12th Street, SW., Washington, DC 20554. Diana Lee may 
be contacted by phone at (202) 418-0843 or e-mail at [email protected]. 
If Ms. Lee is unavailable, you may contact Ms. Vickie Robinson, 
Assistant Chief, Investigations and Hearings Division, by telephone at 
(202) 418-1420 and by e-mail at [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Bureau debarred Mr. Brown from the 
schools and libraries universal service support mechanism for a period 
of three years pursuant to 47 CFR 54.521 and 47 CFR 0.111(a)(14). 
Attached is the debarment letter, DA 07-4732, which was mailed to Mr. 
Brown and released on November 27, 2007. The complete text of the 
notice of debarment is available for public inspection and copying 
during regular business hours at the FCC Reference Information Center, 
Portal II, 445 12th Street, SW., Room CY-A257, Washington, DC 20554. In 
addition, the complete text is available on the FCC's Web site at 
http://www.fcc.gov. The text may also be purchased from the 
Commission's duplicating inspection and copying during regular business 
hours at the contractor, Best Copy and Printing, Inc., Portal II, 445 
12th Street, SW., Room CY-B420, Washington, DC 20554, telephone (202) 
488-5300 or (800) 378-3160, facsimile (202) 488-5563, or via e-mail at 
http://www.bcpiweb.com.

Federal Communications Commission.
Hillary S. DeNigro,
Chief, Investigations and Hearings Division, Enforcement Bureau.
    The debarment letter, which attached the suspension letter, 
follows:
November 27, 2007

DA 07-4732

VIA CERTIFIED MAIL RETURN RECEIPT REQUESTED AND E-MAIL

Mr. Richard E. Brown, c/o Douglas McNabb, Esq., McNabb Associates PC., 
JP Morgan Chase Tower, 600 Travis Street, Suite 7070, Houston, TX 
77002.


Re: Notice of Debarment, File No. EB-07-IH-5369

Dear Mr. Brown:

    Pursuant to section 54.521 of the rules of the Federal 
Communications Commission (the ``Commission''), by this Notice of 
Debarment you are debarred from the schools and libraries universal 
service support mechanism (or ``E-Rate program'') for a period of three 
years.\1\
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    \1\ See 47 CFR 0.111(a)(14), 54.521.
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    On September 25, 2007, the Enforcement Bureau (the ``Bureau'') sent 
you a Notice of Suspension and Initiation of Debarment Proceedings (the 
``Notice of Suspension'').\2\ That Notice of Suspension was published 
in the Federal Register on October 10, 2007.\3\ The Notice of 
Suspension suspended you from the schools and libraries universal 
service support mechanism and described the basis for initiation of 
debarment proceedings against you, the applicable debarment procedures, 
and the effect of debarment.\4\
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    \2\ Letter from Hillary S. DeNigro, Chief, Investigations and 
Hearings Division, Enforcement Bureau, Federal Communications 
Commission, to Mr. Scott A. Federowicz, Notice of Suspension and 
Initiation of Debarment Proceedings, 22 FCC Rcd 17341 (Inv. & 
Hearings Div., Enf. Bur. 2007) (Attachment 1).
    \3\ 72 FR 57574 (October 10, 2007).
    \4\ See Notice of Suspension, 22 FCC Rcd at 17343.
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    Pursuant to the Commission's rules, any opposition to your 
suspension or its scope or to your proposed debarment or its scope had 
to be filed with the Commission no later than thirty (30) calendar days 
from the earlier date of your receipt of the Notice of Suspension or 
publication of the Notice of Suspension in the Federal Register.\5\ The 
Commission did not receive any such opposition.
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    \5\ See 47 CFR 54.521(e)(3) and (4). That date occurred no later 
than November 9, 2007. See supra note 3.
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    As discussed in the Notice of Suspension, you pled guilty to and 
were convicted of three counts of mail fraud, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 
1341, for activities in connection with your participation in the E-
Rate program involving telecommunications upgrade projects in four 
Connecticut school districts.\6\ You admitted to participating in 
schemes to defraud the E-Rate program where fictitious bills for 
upgrades that were never performed and inflated bills for engineering 
upgrade projects totaling approximately $956,203 were ultimately 
submitted to the Universal Service Administrative Company for 
reimbursement from the E-Rate fund.\7\ Such conduct constitutes the 
basis for your debarment, and your conviction falls within the 
categories of causes for debarment under section 54.521(c) of the 
Commission's rules.\8\ For the foregoing reasons, you are hereby 
debarred for a period of three years from the debarment date, i.e., the 
earlier date of your receipt of this Notice of Debarment or its 
publication date in the Federal Register.\9\ Debarment excludes you, 
for the debarment period, from activities ``associated with or related 
to the schools and libraries support mechanism,'' including ``the 
receipt of funds or discounted services through the schools and 
libraries support mechanism, or consulting with, assisting, or advising 
applicants or service providers regarding the schools and libraries 
support mechanism.'' \10\

    \6\ See Notice of Suspension, 22 FCC Rcd at 17342.
    \7\ See id.
    \8\ Id. at 17343; 47 CFR 54.521(c).
    \9\ See Notice of Suspension, 22 FCC Rcd at 17343-44.
    \10\ See 47 CFR 54.521(a)(1), 54.521(a)(5), 54.521(d); Notice of 
Suspension, 22 FCC Rcd at 17344.
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 Sincerely,

Hillary S. DeNigro,
Chief, Investigations and Hearings Division, Enforcement Bureau.

cc: Calvin B. Kurimai, Esq., Assistant United States Attorney, Kristy 
Carroll, Esq., Universal Service Administrative Company (via e-mail)
September 25, 2007

DA 07-4036

VIA CERTIFIED MAIL

RETURN RECEIPT REQUESTED AND E-MAIL

Mr. Richard E. Brown, c/o Douglas McNabb, Esq., McNabb Associates PC,

[[Page 73822]]

 JP Morgan Chase Tower, 600 Travis Street, Suite 7070, Houston, TX 
77002.

Re: Notice of Suspension and Initiation of Debarment Proceedings, File 
No. EB-07-IH-5369

Dear Mr. Brown:

    The Federal Communications Commission (``FCC'' or ``Commission'') 
has received notice of your conviction for mail fraud in violation of 
18 U.S.C. 1341 in connection with your participation in the schools and 
libraries universal service support mechanism (``E-Rate program'').\11\ 
Consequently, pursuant to 47 CFR 54.521, this letter constitutes 
official notice of your suspension from the E-Rate program. In 
addition, the Enforcement Bureau (``Bureau'') hereby notifies you that 
we are commencing debarment proceedings against you.\12\
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    \11\ Any further reference in this letter to ``your conviction'' 
refers to your February 13, 2007 guilty plea and subsequent 
conviction of three counts of mail fraud. United States v. Richard 
E. Brown, Criminal Docket No. 3:07-CR-29 (RNC), Plea Agreement 
(D.Conn. filed Feb. 13, 2007 and entered Feb. 14, 2007) (``Brown 
Plea Agreement''); United States v. Richard E. Brown, 3:07-CR-29 
(RNC), Judgment (D.Conn. filed Sept. 6, 2007 and entered Sept. 7, 
2007) (``Brown Judgment'').
    \12\ 47 CFR 54.521; 47 CFR 0.111(a)(14) (delegating to the 
Enforcement Bureau authority to resolve universal service suspension 
and debarment proceedings pursuant to 47 CFR 54.521).
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I. Notice of Suspension

    The Commission has established procedures to prevent persons who 
have ``defrauded the government or engaged in similar acts through 
activities associated with or related to the schools and libraries 
support mechanism'' from receiving the benefits associated with that 
program.\13\ You pled guilty to three counts of mail fraud for 
activities in connection with your participation in the E-Rate program 
involving telecommunications upgrade projects in four Connecticut 
school districts.\14\ While employed at Southwestern Bell 
Communications (``SBC''), the prime contractor servicing these school 
districts, you recommended subcontractors to perform telecommunications 
upgrades in four Connecticut school districts. You also reviewed 
invoices submitted by the subcontractors to SBC for payment that SBC 
then submitted to the Universal Service Administrative Company 
(``USAC'') for reimbursement from the E-Rate fund.\15\ You admitted to 
participating in schemes to defraud the E-Rate program where fictitious 
bills for upgrades that were never performed were submitted to USAC for 
reimbursement from the E-Rate fund.\16\ In another fraudulent scheme in 
which you admitted to being a participant, engineering services for 
upgrade projects were billed at inflated rates and the associated 
invoices were also submitted to USAC for E-Rate reimbursement.\17\ In 
sum, these schemes generated approximately $1,564,768 in fictitious 
expenses and approximately $956,203 of these expenses ultimately were 
submitted to the USAC for reimbursement from E-Rate fund.\18\
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    \13\ See Schools and Libraries Universal Service Support 
Mechanism, Second Report and Order and Further Notice of Proposed 
Rulemaking, 18 FCC Rcd 9202, 9225, ] 66 (2003) (``Second Report and 
Order''). The Commission's debarment rules define a ``person'' as 
``[a]ny individual, group of individuals, corporation, partnership, 
association, unit of government or legal entity, however, 
organized.'' 47 CFR 54.521(a)(6).
    \14\ See generally United States v. Richard E. Brown, Criminal 
Docket No. 3:07-CR-29 (RNC), Information (D.Conn. filed and entered 
Jul. 28, 2006) (``Information''); Brown Plea Agreement at 1; Brown 
Judgment at 1.
    \15\ See Information at 2-3.
    \16\ See Information at 1-8.
    \17\ See Information at 8-10.
    \18\ See Information at 3, 5, 8; http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/ct/Press2007/20070829-3.html (Department of Justice Press Release dated 
August 29, 2007) (last accessed September 12, 2007) (``DOJ August 29 
Press Release''). See also Letter from Hillary S. DeNigro, Chief, 
Investigations and Hearings Division, Enforcement Bureau, Federal 
Communications Commission, to Scott A. Federowicz, c/o Paul H.D. 
Stoughton, Conway & Stoughton, LLP, Notice of Suspension and 
Initiation of Debarment Proceedings, File No. EB-07-IH-5171, (rel. 
June 27, 2007) (``Federowicz Suspension Letter''); 72 FR 39425 (Jul. 
18, 2007).
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    Pursuant to section 54.521(a)(4) of the Commission's rules,\19\ 
your conviction requires the Bureau to suspend you from participating 
in any activities associated with or related to the schools and 
libraries fund mechanism, including the receipt of funds or discounted 
services through the schools and libraries fund mechanism, or 
consulting with, assisting, or advising applicants or service providers 
regarding the schools and libraries support mechanism.\20\ Your 
suspension becomes effective upon the earlier of your receipt of this 
letter or publication of notice in the Federal Register.\21\
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    \19\ 47 CFR 54.521(a)(4). See Second Report and Order, 18 FCC 
Rcd at 9225-9227, ]] 67-74 (2003).
    \20\ Second Report and Order, 18 FCC Rcd at 9225, ] 67; 47 
U.S.C. 254; 47 CFR 54.502-54.503; 47 CFR 54.521(a)(4).
    \21\ Second Report and Order, 18 FCC Rcd at 9226, ] 69; 47 CFR 
54.521(e)(1).
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    Suspension is immediate pending the Bureau's final debarment 
determination. In accordance with the Commission's debarment rules, you 
may contest this suspension or the scope of this suspension by filing 
arguments in opposition to the suspension, with any relevant 
documentation. Your request must be received within 30 days after you 
receive this letter or after notice is published in the Federal 
Register, whichever comes first.\22\ Such requests, however, will not 
ordinarily be granted.\23\ The Bureau may reverse or limit the scope of 
suspension only upon a finding of extraordinary circumstances.\24\ 
Absent extraordinary circumstances, the Bureau will decide any request 
for reversal or modification of suspension within 90 days of its 
receipt of such request.\25\
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    \22\ Second Report and Order, 18 FCC Rcd at 9226, ] 70; 47 CFR 
54.521(e)(4).
    \23\ Second Report and Order, 18 FCC Rcd at 9226, ] 70.
    \24\ 47 CFR 54.521(e)(5).
    \25\ See Second Report and Order, 18 FCC Rcd at 9226, ] 70; 47 
CFR 54.521(e)(5), 54.521(f).
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II. Initiation of Debarment Proceedings

    Your guilty plea to criminal conduct in connection with the E-Rate 
program, in addition to serving as a basis for immediate suspension 
from the program, also serves as a basis for the initiation of 
debarment proceedings against you. Your conviction falls within the 
categories of causes for debarment defined in section 54.521(c) of the 
Commission's rules.\26\ Therefore, pursuant to section 54.521(a)(4) of 
the Commission's rules, your conviction requires the Bureau to commence 
debarment proceedings against you.
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    \26\ ``Causes for suspension and debarment are the conviction of 
or civil judgment for attempt or commission of criminal fraud, 
theft, embezzlement, forgery, bribery, falsification or destruction 
of records, making false statements, receiving stolen property, 
making false claims, obstruction of justice and other fraud or 
criminal offense arising out of activities associated with or 
related to the schools and libraries support mechanism.'' 47 CFR 
54.521(c). Such activities ``include the receipt of funds or 
discounted services through the schools and libraries support 
mechanism, or consulting with, assisting, or advising applicants or 
service providers regarding schools and libraries support mechanism 
described in this section ([47 CFR] 54.500 et seq.).'' 47 CFR 
54.521(a)(1).
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    As with your suspension, you may contest debarment or the scope of 
the proposed debarment by filing arguments and any relevant 
documentation within 30 calendar days of the earlier of the receipt of 
this letter or of publication in the Federal Register.\27\ Absent 
extraordinary circumstances, the Bureau will debar you.\28\ Within 90 
days of receipt of any opposition to your suspension and proposed 
debarment, the Bureau, in the absence of extraordinary circumstances, 
will provide you with notice of its decision to debar.\29\ If the 
Bureau decides to debar you, its decision will become effective upon 
the earlier of your receipt

[[Page 73823]]

of a debarment notice or publication of the decision in the Federal 
Register.\30\
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    \27\ See Second Report and Order, 18 FCC Rcd at 9226, ] 70; 47 
CFR 54.521(e)(2)(i), 54.521(e)(3).
    \28\ Second Report and Order, 18 FCC Rcd at 9227, ] 74.
    \29\ See id., 18 FCC Rcd at 9226, ] 70; 47 CFR 54.521(e)(5).
    \30\ Id. The Commission may reverse a debarment, or may limit 
the scope or period of debarment upon a finding of extraordinary 
circumstances, following the filing of a petition by you or an 
interested party or upon motion by the Commission. 47 CFR 54.521(f).
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    If and when your debarment becomes effective, you will be 
prohibited from participating in activities associated with or related 
to the schools and libraries support mechanism for three years from the 
date of debarment.\31\ The Bureau may, if necessary to protect the 
public interest, extend the debarment period.\32\
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    \31\ Second Report and Order, 18 FCC Rcd at 9225, ] 67; 47 CFR 
Sec. Sec.  54.521(d), 54.521(g).
    \32\ Id.
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    Please direct any response, if by messenger or hand delivery, to 
Marlene H. Dortch, Secretary, Federal Communications Commission, 236 
Massachusetts Avenue, NE., Suite 110, Washington, DC 20002, to the 
attention of Diana Lee, Attorney Advisor, Investigations and Hearings 
Division, Enforcement Bureau, Room 4-C330, with a copy to Vickie 
Robinson, Assistant Chief, Investigations and Hearings Division, 
Enforcement Bureau, Room 4-C330, Federal Communications Commission. If 
sent by commercial overnight mail (other than U.S. Postal Service 
Express Mail and Priority Mail), the response should be sent to the 
Federal Communications Commission, 9300 East Hampton Drive, Capitol 
Heights, Maryland 20743. If sent by first-class, Express, or Priority 
mail, the response should be sent to Diana Lee, Attorney Advisor, 
Investigations and Hearings Division, Enforcement Bureau, Federal 
Communications Commission, 445 12th Street, SW., Room 4-C330, 
Washington, DC 20554, with a copy to Vickie Robinson, Assistant Chief, 
Investigations and Hearings Division, Enforcement Bureau, Federal 
Communications Commission, 445 12th Street, SW., Room 4-C330, 
Washington, DC 20554. You shall also transmit a copy of the response 
via e-mail to [email protected] and to [email protected].
    If you have any questions, please contact Ms. Lee via mail, by 
telephone at (202) 418-1420 or by e-mail at [email protected]. If Ms. 
Lee is unavailable, you may contact Ms. Vickie Robinson, Assistant 
Chief, Investigations and Hearings Division, by telephone at (202) 418-
1420 and by e-mail at [email protected].

 Sincerely yours,

Hillary S. DeNigro,
Chief, Investigations and Hearings Division, Enforcement Bureau.

cc: Calvin B. Kurimai, Esq., Assistant United States Attorney Kristy 
Carroll, Esq., Universal Service Administrative Company (via e-mail)

[FR Doc. E7-25133 Filed 12-27-07; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6712-01-P