[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 240 (Thursday, December 13, 2012)]
[Notices]
[Pages 74185-74186]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-30105]


-----------------------------------------------------------------------

FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION

[DA 12-1912]


Notice of Debarment

AGENCY: Federal Communications Commission.

ACTION: Notice.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: The Enforcement Bureau (the ``Bureau'') debars Mr. Willard 
Ross Lanham from the schools and libraries universal service support 
mechanism (or ``E-Rate Program'') for a period of three years. The 
Bureau takes this action to protect the E-Rate Program from waste, 
fraud and abuse.

DATES: Debarment commences on the date Mr. Willard Ross Lanham receives 
the debarment letter or January 14, 2013, whichever date comes first, 
for a period of three years.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Joy M. Ragsdale, Federal 
Communications Commission, Enforcement Bureau, Investigations and 
Hearings Division, Room 4-A236, 445 12th Street SW., Washington, DC 
20554. Joy Ragsdale may be contacted by phone at (202) 418-1697 or by 
email at [email protected]. If Ms. Ragsdale is unavailable, you may 
contact Ms. Theresa Cavanaugh, Chief, Investigations and Hearings 
Division, by telephone at (202) 418-1420 and by email at 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Bureau debarred Mr. William Ross Lanham 
from the schools and libraries universal service support mechanism for 
a period of three years pursuant to 47 CFR 54.8. Attached is the 
debarment letter, DA 12-1912, which was mailed to Mr. William Ross 
Lanham and released on November 29, 2012. 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 email 
http://www.bcpiweb.com.

Federal Communications Commission.
Theresa Z. Cavanaugh,
Chief, Investigations and Hearings Division, Enforcement Bureau.
November 29, 2012

DA 12-1912

SENT VIA CERTIFIED MAIL, RETURN RECEIPT REQUESTED AND EMAIL

Mr. Willard Ross Lanham
c/o Stephen N. Preziosi
Law Office of Stephen N. Preziosi P.C.
570 Seventh Avenue, Ninth Floor
New York, NY 10018

Re: Notice of Debarment, File No. EB-12-IH-0847


[[Page 74186]]


Dear Mr. Lanham:

    The Federal Communications Commission (Commission) hereby 
notifies you that, pursuant to Section 54.8 of its rules, you are 
prohibited from participating in activities associated with or 
relating to the schools and libraries universal service support 
mechanism (E-Rate program) for three years from either the date of 
your receipt of this Notice of Debarment or of its publication in 
the Federal Register, whichever is earlier in time (Debarment 
Date).\1\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \1\ 47 CFR 54.8(g); see also 47 CFR 0.111 (delegating authority 
to the Enforcement Bureau to resolve universal service suspension 
and debarment proceedings).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    On July 27, 2012, the Commission's Enforcement Bureau (Bureau) 
sent you a Notice of Suspension and Initiation of Debarment 
Proceeding (Notice of Suspension) \2\ that was published in the 
Federal Register on August 13, 2012.\3\ The Notice of Suspension 
suspended you from participating in activities associated with or 
relating to the E-Rate program. It also described the basis for 
initiating debarment proceedings against you, the applicable 
debarment procedures, and the effect of debarment.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \2\ Letter from Theresa Z. Cavanaugh, Chief, Investigations and 
Hearings Division, Enforcement Bureau, Federal Communications 
Commission to Willard Ross Lanham, Notice of Suspension and 
Initiation of Debarment Proceeding, 27 FCC Rcd 8384 (Enf. Bur. 2012) 
(Attachment 1).
    \3\ 77 Fed. Reg. 48154 (Aug. 13, 2012).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    As discussed in the Notice of Suspension, in March 2012 you were 
convicted of one count of theft of federal funds and three counts of 
mail fraud in connection with your activities as a consultant for 
the New York City Department of Education (DOE), which included 
managing Project Connect, an E-Rate funded project.\4\ As a DOE 
consultant, you defrauded the E-Rate program by, among other things, 
inflating consultant fees and bundling those charges with eligible 
services on invoices billed to DOE for work unrelated to Project 
Connect.\5\ As a result of your scheme, DOE was fraudulently billed 
more than $3.6 million for Project Connect between 2002 and 2008, of 
which you profited approximately $1.7 million.\6\ Pursuant to 
Section 54.8(c) of the Commission's rules, your conviction of 
criminal conduct in connection with the E-Rate program is the basis 
for this debarment.\7\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \4\ Supra n. 2 at 2.
    \5\ Id. at 3.
    \6\ Id.
    \7\ 47 CFR 54.8(c).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    In accordance with the Commission's debarment rules, you were 
required to file with the Commission any opposition to your 
suspension or its scope, or to your proposed debarment or its scope, 
no later than 30 calendar days from either the date of your receipt 
of the Notice of Suspension or of its publication in the Federal 
Register, whichever date occurred first.\8\ The Commission did not 
receive any such opposition from you.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \8\ 47 CFR 54.8 (e)(3), (4). Any opposition had to be filed no 
later than August 26, 2012.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    For the foregoing reasons, you are debarred from participating 
in activities associated with or related to the E-Rate program for 
three years from the Debarment Date.\9\ During this debarment 
period, you are excluded from participating in any activities 
associated with or related to the E-Rate program, including the 
receipt of funds or discounted services through the E-Rate program, 
or consulting with, assisting, or advising applicants or service 
providers regarding the E-Rate program.\10\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \9\ Id. 54.8(e)(5), (g).
    \10\ Id. 54.8(a)(1), (5), (d).

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sincerely,

Theresa Z. Cavanaugh,
Chief, Investigations and Hearings Division Enforcement Bureau.

cc: Johnnay Schrieber, Universal Service Administrative Company (via 
email), Rashann Duvall, Universal Service Administrative Company 
(via email), Brian A. Jacobs, U. S. Attorney's Office, Southern 
District of New York (via email), Alvin L. Bragg, Jr., U. S. 
Attorney's Office, Southern District of New York (via email), Paul 
M. Krieger, U. S. Attorney's Office, Southern District of New York 
(via email)

[FR Doc. 2012-30105 Filed 12-12-12; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6712-01-P