http://www.arrl.org/news/arrl-seeks-waiver-of-proposed-fcc-amateur-application-fees From the ARRL site: “Amateur radio applications were not listed when the Congress adopted its 1985 fee schedule for applications, and therefore amateur license applications were excluded from the collection of fees,” ARRL said on November 16 in its formal comments on the proposal. “Similarly, a decade later when regulatory fees were authorized, the Amateur Service was excluded, except for the costs associated with issuing vanity call signs.” The new statutory provisions are similar. Amateur radio license applications are not addressed in the application fees section and explicitly excluded from regulatory fees,” ARRL said, and there is “no evidence of any intent by Congress to change the exempt status of amateur applications and instead subject them to new fees.”
"... If the FCC cannot see its way clear to waive fees for all amateur radio license applications, the fees should be waived for applicants age 26 years and younger. Such individuals, ARRL contended, have the most to contribute to the future of radio technology and other STEM-related activities and are the most likely to find the proposed application fees burdensome." Literally unbelievable on/at every level. COMPLY OBEY SUBMIT
Just another way the ARRL tries to look busy while completely dropping the ball on a Child Protection Plan. Where as what volunteers must agree to before working with youth. Leadership issues ... plus the Board memebers, several of them, are just not willing to change anything. People are afraid of change so here we are with another pointless rah rah attempt by the ARRL to get the FCC to do something. Something during a major change in DC politics, the same scenerio with bringing down covanents, doomed to fail. Timing is so important- but these people are not watching the clock. Who ever times these things needs to find something else to do My opinion. - 73 de N0AH
there is nothing we can do once they make up their mind its fruitless..in a nutshell we are at the mercy of the FCC and if you REALLY think the ARRL is looking out for your best interest. Your disillusioned. All the whining and crying is not going to make a bit of difference...they say they need to do this to cover cost of applications, applications for what everything is automated.........they got rid of bodies a few years back because of the automated system. now they want more money to cover cost......... Take your damn rose colored glasses off and see the reality of this for whats its worth.....we are voiceless in this decision. they said they received 3200 complaints regarding this......are you freaking kidding, 3200 ham ops out 850k complained about this.....thank you to all the other hams out there who didn't have enough balls or brains to even compose a complete sentence to complain about this. I got in this hobby to be surrounded by smart intelligent people but from what ive seen is a bunch of fat a** people doing nothing but complaining......how in gods name can we change anything when most of them are doing nothing to support this recommendation for appealing it. its no wonder the main stream does not take us seriously, oh big deal we help with emergencies...its not all the time......stop thinking that we are needed in emergencies....when in fact our need has dropped a lot. this hobby has never ever been marketed the right way.......this hobby is still your grandfathers hobby!! for all that complained and actually took time to write a paragraph...i say thank you...for all those who do not have enough brains to complete a full sentence..you should be ashamed. this hobby is being taken down by the lack of input from ham ops who only want to complain and do nothing.... im sorry but when i see injustice it is my moral obligation to speak up and seek the justice that we deserve........ how can we change anything, when 3/4 of you out there cant even pick up a pen and paper and compose a paragraph. a lot of lip service from people out there, who only want to complain ,but do NOTHING to make that change or stand up for what we believe in. STOP YOUR WHINING AND ACTUALLY DO SOMETHING!!!!
Less than 1% of ham ops took time to actually voice their concerns.................LESS THAN 1% OMG ARE YOU KIDDING ME!!!!! CHANGE TAKES PLACE WHEN MAY PEOPLE GATHER AND HAVE THE SAME BELIEFS, THERE IS POWER IN NUMBERS THIS IS A LAUGHING STOCK!!!! SO THAT MEANS 99% PERCENT OF YOU ARE OK WITH THE PROPOSALS...AM I HEARING THIS RIGHT? IM A MOTIVATOR, I MAKE THINGS HAPPENS INSTEAD OF WAITING FOR THEM TO HAPPEN............ HOW CAN WE EVER HAVE CHANGE IN THIS HOBBY WHEN MOST HAVE THEIR HEADS STUCK IN THE SAND THIS HOBBY NEEDS AN INTERVENTION!!!
The ARRL worked overtime to make hams complacent in the past decades. We were warned by the likes of Wayne Green 30-40 years ago. Don't expect the ARRL to accept responsibility for their failings. They are just like any politician in that regard. I just wait for the day the majority of hams decide Off with their heads.
Who cares about kids under age 26? What about senior citizens over 65 that are living on social security alone? Another reason I hate the League!
Why does the FCC need extra money? Fees are just Taxes but fees are easier to raise and don't need majority approval from our Goverment.
The FCC wants to rase fees to cover cost....humm, it is the hams that do the testing for the FCC and the hams that are monitoring the airwaves for bad operation for the FCC. It seems that hams help the FCC more than any other radio service. Perhaps that is a good enough reason for them to excluded hams from the fees. We are also a non-commerical user so we do not profit from our licenses. Just a thought.
Time to write my congressman again. Just more taxes. Cut and paste, change the names and send it into your representatives. Get involved. This took less than 10 minutes to do. If this is important to you I suggest you make time. Congressman Gaetz, I'm writing to ask for your assistance in getting the FCC to rethink their proposed fee for amateur radio licenses. The amateur radio license committee is a self-regulated body of people. The Amateur Radio Service is all volunteer and largely self-governing, with examination preparation, administration, and grading handled by volunteers, who submit licensing paperwork to the FCC. The FCC just provides the license the volunteers do the real work. The amateur radio operators also volunteer in times of emergency. I stress volunteer. Amateur radio’s role in providing emergency and disaster communication, education, and other volunteer services also justifies exempting radio amateurs from FCC application fees. For example, ARRL noted, last year more than 31,000 participated as members of the ARRL Amateur Radio Emergency Service (ARES), and local ARES teams reported taking part in more than 37,000 events, donating nearly 573,000 volunteer hours, providing a total value of more than $14.5 million. This is just another attempt at big government to get the taxpayer with more fees. In these times, we need less government intervention and more government working for "We The People". I've also included a link with some additional information where I found about this proposal. http://www.arrl.org/news/arrl-seeks-waiver-of-proposed-fcc-amateur-application-fees Thank you for looking into this matter. Darin Crowley
I get your letter but wonder if the latest incompetent disaster with the hurricane was to disprove our worth to emergency response. Think about how no one running the net or the ARRL doesn't have or didn't read the world radio handbook. I tend to think they knew that station would go live and did it anyways. People should resign but I doubt that will ever happen considering how much they CYA.
I care for both, I feel minors and those on fixed income should be exempt but took a lot of flak for suggesting it on a previous thread.
I think he's referring to the HWN disaster disaster. This, from ARRL NewsLetter: International Broadcast Station Interference Overwhelms Hurricane Watch Net As Category 4 Hurricane Iota neared landfall in Central America on November 16, the Hurricane Watch Net (HWN) was forced to suspend operations at 0300 UTC because of what HWN Manager Bobby Graves, KB5HAV, described as “deafening interference from a foreign AM broadcast station that came out of nowhere at 0200 UTC.” At the time, the net had shifted to its 40-meter frequency of 7.268 kHz, collecting real-time weather and damage reports via amateur radio. “This was heartbreaking for our team, as the eyewall of Iota was just barely offshore,” Graves said. “The storm had weakened slightly to a Category 4 hurricane with sustained winds of 155 MPH.” After activating at 1300 UTC, the net was able to collect and forward reports from various parts of Nicaragua and Honduras via WX4NHC throughout the day for relay to forecasters at the National Hurricane Center in Miami. Iota was the most powerful storm on record to make landfall this late in the hurricane season. Graves said the very strong AM signal was on 7.265 MHz. “From my location, it was S-9,” he told ARRL. “You could not hear anything but the BC station.” Graves noted that other foreign broadcast stations were heard from 7.265 to 7.300 MHz and splattering close by. The offending signal appeared to be from a 500 kW broadcaster in Turkey. Graves said the HWN has a long history on 7.268 MHz, but that the net is now considering a 40-meter frequency below 7.2 MHz. Stations handling emergency traffic during the response to Category 5 Hurricane Iota had requested clear frequencies on November 16 to avoid interfering with the HWN and with WX4NHC, as well as with a Honduran emergency net operation on 7.180 MHz and a Nicaraguan emergency net operating on 7.098 MHz. It’s not known if those nets were also affected by interference from the numerous broadcasters on 40 meters. “Thank you to all who allowed us a clear frequency,” Graves said on behalf of the HWN.
Anybody checked 60M lately? How quickly do you think hams would clear that band if needed in a national emergency...as they FT-8 away...some of it quite likely unmanned and unmonitored? Leave the fee as-is for both first-time hams and renewals. It isn't broken...so don't keep trying to fix it until it is broken. Jack the fee for vanity signs if the FCC really feels it's warranted and needs to score some political points to fluff their resumes for future lobbyist jobs. 20 hams in Tompkins County volunteer their time to drill, test radios, maintain repeaters and work with the county Director of Emergency Response to make sure that fire stations and the 911 call center are covered in the event of a tower strike or other single point failure vulnerability at our 911 dispatch center. We don't have an alternate 911 center or remote EOC...it's bare bones and hams provide backup comms. If the FCC wants to hobble the RACES-active counties all over the USA by angering and losing hams and thus losing licensed RACES volunteers...go for it.
