FCC Vanity Call Sign SNAFU

No problem, I though, since the page explicitly stated that no request submissions would be process without accompanying payment.

So, I started over and submitted the form with the additional vanity call sign options, then completed the credit card payment screen. All seemed well. Silly me, I forgot that it was a Government entity.

About two weeks later I received in the mail a letter stating that my application had been rejected because it was a duplicate filing (see below).

The following day I received another letter stating that the application was rejected because payment was not received within the required timeframe (see lower image).

The nebulous explanation was useless, so I contacted the FCC. They told me that the application that I had paid for was rejected because it was received during the time the first was waiting for payment, so that made it a duplicate application. The first one expired for non-payment and was also rejected.

The FCC happily kept my $13.40 filing fee. That will help to guarantee that the average Federal employee's salary ($108,476 in 2008 inc'l benefits) is well above the average private industry employee's salary ($69,928 in 2008 inc'l benefits). Source: USA Today  3/8/2010.

Given that the information screen I received explicitly stated that the first would not be processed without accompanying payment, I confidently submitted the second form that also included payment. I exhorted them to consider how a competent bureaucracy would have considered the circumstances and acted accordingly. I requested that they process my application or refund my filing fee. It has been three weeks now, and still no word.

I am really looking forward to having my health care handled by the Fed as well.