Parity Act of 2017 Introduced - HR 555

According to ARRL, the Amateur Radio Parity Act has been reintroduced in the US House as of January 13, 2017, as HR 555.

http://www.arrl.org/amateur-radio-parity-act

The article confirms that this is a continuation of efforts from late last year, "The wording of HR 555 is identical to the language of HR 1301, which passed the US House of Representatives by a unanimous consent vote in September 2016 during the 114th Congress, which adjourned in December."

 

And how many years have they been working on this???

 

I'd have to do some research to find a specific date, but probably sometime in the 90's. Multiple bills have been introduced in the House, only to die with inaction. The ARRL has continuously lobbied the FCC to enact a rule on its own.

It was in 2011, though, that the FCC finally told the ARRL they would not extend PRB-1/OTARD type protection to HOA residents and apartment dwellers without congressional direction. Congress directed the FCC to conduct a study. The FCC did, and ignored most of the comments they received by declaring that hams had no real problem with HOA restrictions.

In 2015, another in a series of bills was introduced in the House (HR-1301, the Amateur Radio Parity Act).

For the first time the bill got a companion Senate bill. For the first time, the bill was negotiated with representatives of the HOA 'industry' (the Community Associations Institute) and compromise language was introduced. For the first time it was passed by the entire House without objection. Then it was killed at the last minute by a single Senator (Bill Nelson, D-FL).

The process begins again. And while technically it starts from scratch, in reality it builds on the momentum of the past. No, it doesn't start right where it left off. But the lobbying and persuasion to members of Congress have a much stronger foundation, and another two years to achieve a better result.

And now, let the Deal With It fest begin....

 

I am so excited! The Parody Act returns!

 

Indeed. It pretends to be a bill that helps amateurs.

 

If the language remains unchanged, that is going to produce some interesting stories indeed.

 

They need to GIT 'R DONE! -KG5JAW

 

SO it has to go through the whole process again, Go through the House of Representatives again?

 

The language is identical. The only reason this didn't get done last year was Senator Nelson's (D-FL) refusing to sign on to unanimous consent to the House-passed bill that would have negated the need for a floor vote.

 

From ARRL's article: "The bill has been designated as HR 555, and was assigned to the House Committee on Energy and Commerce, which is chaired by Congressman Walden."

Looks like it has to go through committee in the House again, but the committee is chaired by one of the co-sponsors.

 

And for once, I find that to be a good thing. It saved us from being stuck with a bill that has serious issues. Hopefully those issues will get fixed before it goes to conference this time around.

 

Not exactly; essentially the FCC considered all arguments, and they were the same arguments seen here, and on other websites discussing the ARRL's perennial failure, currently known as ARPA:

Federal Communications Commission DA 12-1342

In the Matter of Uses and Capabilities of Amateur Radio Service Communications in Emergencies and Disaster Relief:
Report to Congress Pursuant to Section 6414 of the Middle Class Tax Relief and Job Creation Act of 2012

GN Docket No. 12-91 REPORT
Adopted: August 16, 2012 Released: August 20, 2012
By the Chief, Wireless Telecommunications Bureau and Chief, Public Safety and Homeland Security Bureau

The FCC considered all 180+ comments and determined there were conflicting arguments, and that there were a number of ways amateurs could communicate without antennas which would violate previously signed private covenants, and after full consideration, the FCC remained unconvinced that changes were needed:

https://www.fcc.gov/document/report-congress-amateur-radio-emergencies-and-disaster-relief


"Commenters disagree regarding the extent to which private land use regulations affect the amateur radio community’s ability to provide emergency communications. The ARRL states, “The single most challenging aspect of Amateur Radio emergency communications efforts is the complete preclusion of their [amateur radio operators’] ability to install and maintain at their residences an effective, reliable antenna system for Amateur Radio communications.” Some commenters agree that private land use regulations that have the effect of prohibiting outdoor antenna structures prevent amateurs from operating on frequency bands that are important for emergency communications."

"Other commenters argue that such restrictions have little effect on amateur emergency communications because antenna structures in areas affected by severe weather or another disaster are unlikely to survive or will not be usable in the event of an electrical outage because most operators do not own generators to power their stations. In addition, commenters point out that mobile communications are more useful than home-based stations in times of disaster or emergency because they are available at the site of the public safety operations. Commenters also argue that the effect of private land use regulations can be minimized by well-engineered indoor antenna systems or the use of temporary antenna installations. One commenter suggests that organizations oriented toward disaster relief be encouraged to sponsor amateur radio clubs that utilize a shared station at a useful location, which can be controlled directly or by remote control."

"Some commenters recommend that CC&Rs be preempted if they prohibit antennas that are within certain limits. Others suggest that private land use restrictions on amateur antennas should be permitted only for safety considerations, and not for aesthetic reasons. As noted above, however, other commenters believe that it is not necessary to preempt private land use restrictions in order to promote amateur emergency communications, given the ways that even amateurs subject to CC&Rs can communicate effectively and the nature of amateur emergency communications. Moreover, while commenters suggest that private land use restrictions have become more common, our review of the record does not indicate that amateur operators are unable to find homes that are not subject to such restrictions. Therefore, at this time, we do not see a compelling reason for the Commission to revisit its previous determinations that preemption should not be expanded to CC&Rs."

"Consequently, we do not believe that Congressional action is necessary to address any of these issues."

 

Please don't confuse the issue with facts !

 

Missouri's version of the Amateur Radio Parity Act, MARPA, aka House Bill 136, has been referred to the Special Committee on Government Oversight. This committee is Chaired by Rep. Rick Brattin, a co-sponsor of our legislation last year, HB1951, which was passed by the House. The hearing is scheduled for Tuesday, January 24th at noon in Hearing Room 7 of the State Capitol Bldg in Jefferson City. We have already lined up a number of hams to testify at the hearing including, Jay Underdown, WØPS, Ward Silver, NØAX, Randy Schulze, KDØHKD, Brian Reynolds, WØBDR, Doug Allen, KØDRA and others. Also, we have named three of five Regional Coordinators from key areas in the state to help in promoting this legislation and mobilizing the hams in their areas. These volunteers include James Adkins, KBØNHX, President of the Nixa Amateur Radio Club, Randy Schulze, KDØHKD, President of the Raytown Amateur Radio Club and Matt Griffin, KDØGOL, member of the Mid-MO Amateur Radio Club.

We are actively soliticing a Missouri Senator to sponsor a companion bill. In lieu of this, however, Senator Dr. Bob Onder, District 2, has agreed to be the Bill's "handler" once it has passed the House and is referred to the Senate. This is a positive as Sen. Onder is well respected and will be pro-active in moving it through the Senate legislative process.

Please check out our newly launched website at www.marpa.us for all the latest information and contact directories for both House and Senate members.

 

Sorry about that.

(KEK)