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1993-11-17
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The ARRL Letter
Vol. 12, No. 9
May 12, 1993
Joint resolution presented to Congress
commends amateurs, urges protections
Joint Resolution S.J. 90 was introduced in the U.S.
Senate on May 7, 1993, by Sen. Charles Robb of Virginia.
It's a bill that recognizes radio amateurs, supports
amateurs "as national policy," and urges that regulations
"facilitate" Amateur Radio operation as a "public benefit."
The resolution results not only from the diligent
efforts of the League's Washington team but -- more
importantly -- from the thousands of amateurs who give their
time and energy in public service, in technical
experimentation, in education, and in international good
will.
Sen. Robb entered the following statement into the
*Congressional Record*:
"S.J. Res. 90. A joint resolution to recognize the
achievements of radio amteurs and to establish support for
such amateurs as national policy; to the Committee on
Commerce, Science, and Transportation.
"AMATEUR RADIO SERVICE JOINT RESOLUTION
"Mr. ROBB. Mr. President, today I am pleased to be
joined by Senators AKAKA, DECONCINI, PRESSLER, and SHELBY to
introduce a joint resolution that will grant well-deserved
recognition to a valuable national resource, the Amateur
Radio Service. For the past 80 years, this group of
dedicated volunteers has been first on the scene for
virtually every communications emergency. When Mother Nature
or a human misstep causes the telephone lines to go down or
radio circuits to be overloaded, the 'ham' operators are
there with their equipment, providing communications until
the regular infrastructure is back to normal.
"Radio amateurs also demonstrate their expertise in
another way, as technical innovators. Eager to push back
technical frontiers, amateurs probe the upper limits of the
useful radio spectrum, discover much about radio
propagation, and develop practical and affordable
alternatives to complicated expensive new equipment from the
laboratories.
"Our resolution expresses the Nation's gratitude for
both the technical and disaster communications achievements
of the Amateur Radio Service. But words without deeds, it is
often said, are empty. Keeping that in mind, this resolution
goes beyond commendation to give the amateurs a tool or
persuasion to smoooth their path; it urges adoption of rules
and regulations that encourage the use of new technologies
within the Amateur Radio Service.
"Finally, without limiting the decision-making
capability of any agency -- local, State or Federal -- the
resolution urges that any regulations which are necessary at
any level of government be crafted in ways that facilitate
and encourage amateur radio operation as a public benefit.
"We urge its prompt adoption by the Senate."
Co-sponsoring the joint resolution were Senators
Akaka of Hawaii, DeConcini of Arizona, Pressler of South
Dakota, and Shelby of Alabama.
Last fall the Congress adjourned without acting on
companion Amateur Radio bills in the House and Senate and
those bills died. The House bill, H.R. 73, was co-sponsored
by more than half -- 219 -- of the 435 House members, while
just over a third, 35, of the Senate's members signed on to
the Senate versiou. S.1372, before the 102nd Congress
adjourned.
At the time, ARRL President George Wilson III,
W4OYI, said "With half the House and more than a third of
the Senate already co-sponsors, Amateur Radio has a big head
start in working with the 103rd Congress next year."
The spade work done by ARRL Washington Area
Coordinator Perry Williams, W1UED, and other League
officials, now has resulted in S.J. Res. 90.
*JOINT RESOLUTION*
To recognize the achievements of radio amateurs, and
to establish support for such amateurs as national policy.
Whereas Congress has expressed its determination in
section 1 of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 151)
to promote safety of life and property through the use of
radio communication;
Whereas Congress, in section 7 of the Communications
Act of 1934 (U.S.C. 157), established a policy to encourage
the provision of new technologies and services;
Whereas Congress, in section 3 of the Communications
Act of 1934, defined radio stations to include amateur
stations operated by persons interested in radio technique
without pecuniary interest;
Whereas the Federal Communications Commission has
created an effective regulatory framework through which the
amateur radio service has been able to achieve the goals of
the service;
Whereas these regulations, set forth in part 97 of
title 47 of the Code of Federal Regulations clarify and
extend the purposes of the amateur radio service as a --
(1) voluntary noncommercial communication service,
particularly with respect to providing emergency
communications;
(2) contributing service to the advancement of the
telecommunications infrastructure;
(3) service which encourages improvement of an
individual's technical and operating skills;
(4) service providing a national reservoir of
trained operators, technicians and electronics experts; and
(5) service enhancing international good will.
Whereas Congress finds that members of the amateur
radio service community have provided invaluable emergency
communications services following such disasters as
Hurricanes Hugo, Andrew, and Iniki, the Mt. St. Helens
eruption, the Loma Prieta earthquake, tornadoes, floods,
wild fires, and industrial accidents in great number and
variety across the Nation; and
Whereas Congress finds that the amateur radio
service has made a contribution to our Nation's
communications by its crafting, in 1961, of the first Earth
satellite licensed by the Federal Communications Commission,
by its proof-of-concept for search and rescue satellites, by
its continued exploration of the low Earth orbit in
particular pointing the way to commercial use thereof in the
1990s, by its pioneering of communications using reflections
from meteor trails, a technique now used for certain
government and commercial communications, and by its leading
role in development of low-cost, practical data transmission
by radio which increasingly is being put to extensive use
in, for instance, the land mobile service:
Now, therefore, be it
Resolved by the Senate and House of Representatives
of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. FINDINGS AND DECLARATIONS OF CONGRESS.
Congress finds and declares that --
(1) radio amateurs are hereby commended for their
contributions to technical progress in electronics, and for
their emergency radio communications in times of disaster;
(2) the Federal Communications Commission is urged
to continue and enhance the development of the amateur radio
service as a public benefit by adopting rules and
regulations which encourage the use of new technologies
within the amateur radio service; and
(3) reasonable accommodation should be made for the
effective operation of amateur radio from residences,
private vehicles and public areas, and that regulation at
all levels of government should facilitate and encourage
amateur radio operation as a public benefit.
Science teachers get taste of Amateur Radio
ARRL Educational Activities staffer Bob Inderbitzen,
NQ1R, attended the International Technology Education
Association (ITEA) 55th Annual Conference April 18 to 21 in
Charlotte, North Carolina. Here's his report:
Educators who attended this year's ITEA Conference
were exposed to "leading edge" technology for use in their
schools. Hundreds of exhibitors showed off their robots,
computers, modular curricula, and gadgets. In a large corner
of the convention hall, however, NASA and the ARRL displayed
how such technology was being used in everyday life on board
the Space Shuttle and in the homes and classrooms of
thousands of Amateur Radio operators.
Most of the educators at the conference were
technology teachers. You needed only to begin a sentence
with "communication" to have their undivided attention. Over
two days our ARRL booth drew hundreds of teachers. We brought
back more than 100 names and addresses.
On Monday afternoon, I visited Discovery Place, a
hands-on science museum in uptown Charlotte. The museum
sports an impressive Amateur Radio station, W4BFB. The
purpose of the station is easily summed up by a sign leading
to it: "Radio Education."
I was given a tour of the facility by the control
operator that day, David Lewis, KB4YSX. The station is fully
equipped with HF, VHF/UHF, packet, and ATV. There is a
station for students to use, in order to pick up shortwave
signals.
The station also has an array of ARRL educational
materials and wall paper and is staffed by volunteers from
the Mecklenburg ARS. The current trustee, Bob Southworth,
KI4YV, also provided assistance and expertise at the ARRL
convention exhibit.
On Tuesday afternoon, I made a presentation to 30
teachers on the Shuttle Amateur Radio EXperiment and on
using ham radio in the classroom. Twenty nine of them were
technology teachers, and one was a science teacher. The
group was also introduced to *Now You're Talking* and
*Understanding Basic Electronics* as possible classroom
textbooks.
During Wednesday's exhibit, I was ably assisted by
Patricia Hensley, N4ROS. Patricia is an elementary school
principal from Richburg, S.C. and an ARRL Educational
Advisor. As someone who has participated with her students
in a SAREX contact, Patricia shared much of her excitement
and enthusiasm about Amateur Radio with hundreds of
educators.
Finally, the ITEA Conference provided a captive
audience filled with prospective hams. I'm looking forward
to our follow-up with each of these educators and their
students.
NOVICE CLASS TESTING
SLATED FOR VEC PROGRAM
The FCC has decided to place Novice class
examinations under the Volunteer Examiner Coordinator
program. As with other class amateur license exams,
responsibility for both preparation and administration of
Novice exams will lie with the VEC system, "in the interest
of integrity, simplification and efficiency," the FCC said
today.
The Commission also will allow recovery of out-of-
pocket costs for coordinating and administering the exams.
The examination elements required for the Novice
license are already being administered in the VEC system
because they are also requirements for other classes of
amateur operator licenses.
The FCC said that placing Novice examinations under
the VEC system would avoid confusion caused by having two
different systems; result in fewer errors in exam
administration and in paperwork (including allowing
simplification of the FCC Form 610); and improve the
availability of overall data on examinations.
In making the announcement the FCC noted how Novice
exams are currently administered (unchanged since the 1950s)
and said that since the advent of the code-free Technician
class license in 1991 the number of new Novice licensees had
declined.
This action, in PR Docket 92-154, was taken May 3.
No effective date for implementation has yet been announced.
THREE MEN FINED $2,000
FOR UNLICENSED OPERATION
Three Washington state men have been fined $2,000
each by the FCC for unlicensed operation on 2 meters.
The FCC received a complaint from an amateur on
November 17, 1992, alleging that people aboard fishing
vessels were operating on 144.170 MHz. The FCC agent was
unable to receive adequate signals from the operations and
instead relied on a tape recording from the complainant.
The FCC conducted its investigation using telephone,
marina, and U.S. Coast Guard records to identify the sources
of the transmissions.
The FCC said that since all three accused men were
individuals (rather than commercial operations) and because
of the nature of the violations and the fact they were first
offenses, it would set the fines at $2,000 instead of the
$8,000 "base forfeiture" set by its rules.
Receiving Novices of Apparent Liability for $2,000
were Randy Baxter, Kevin Marilley, and Mark Karuza, all of
Bellingham, Washington.
ONE-YEAR TIMETABLE SET
FOR BAN ON PHONE SCANNERS
Changes in FCC rules regarding radio scanners
capable of receiving cellular telephone transmissions will
be implemented over the next year. This was not clear in the
story in the last issue of *The ARRL Letter*.
Effective with the adoption of the new FCC Part 15
rules on April 26, 1993, the Commission will not grant
equipment authorization for receivers that do not comply
with the new provisions of Part 15.121. These new provisions
do not prohibit the sale or use of authorized receivers
manufactured in the U.S., or imported into the U.S., prior
to April 26, 1994.
In addition, the manufacture or importation of
scanning receivers, and frequency converters designed or
marketed for use with scanning receivers, that do not comply
with the new provisions in Part 15.121, must cease by April
26, 1994.
More information will appear in June QST.
FCC CLARIFIES POSITION
IN 902-MHZ PROPOSAL
The FCC has clarified its recent proposal to adopt
rules for automatic vehicle monitoring (AVM) systems, with a
word change of interest to amateurs. In a Notice of Proposed
Rule Making in PR Docket 93-61 last month the FCC proposed
creation of a new location and monitoring service (LMS) in
the 902-928 MHz band, which is currently shared by amateurs
with several government and scientific services as well as
various non-licensed, low-power "Part 15" devices.
The FCC said that AVMs in the band "could lead to
rapid congestion of available spectrum," and asked for
comments on possible solutions, "such as removing Part 15
users and amateur operations from the band, restricting
where such uses could operate in the band, or placing
stricter limitations on the operation of such users in this
band."
In its May 6 erratum to the NPRM, the FCC changed
"such as removing" to "*short* of removing."
The comment date is June 29, 1993; reply comment
date is July 14, 1993.
Lenore Jensen, W6NAZ, SK
Lenore Jensen, W6NAZ, died May 5, 1993, in Sherman
Oaks, Calif. She was 79 years old, the widow of Robert
Jensen, W6VGQ, and one of Amateur Radio's premier
ambassadors.
She was first licensed as W9CHD in 1939, in Chicago,
where she was a contract actress for NBC. She became W2NAZ
upon moving to New York City in 1940, and then W6NAZ after
the Second World War, when she and her husband, Joe, W2MSC,
moved to Hollywood.
Most of her operating involved message handling and
phone patching. She ran 68,000 Army MARS phone patches
during the Vietnam War, according to a profile in *QST* in
December, 1987.
Lenore Jensen was a founder of the Young Ladies
Radio League, and the 1983 Dayton HamVention Special
Achievement Award winner. She was especially important to
Amateur Radio public relations, interviewing stars and
celebrities for radio "spots."
Survivors include two stepchildren, Cindy Wall,
KA7ITT; and Stephen Jensen, W6RHM.
Funeral arrangements are pending. In lieu of flowers
memorial donations may be made to the ARRL Foundation, the
Los Angeles Recordings for the Blind Assn., or the American
Cancer Society.
BRIEFS
* A new book, *Ham Radio Horizons: The Book*,
debuted at Dayton. This is a joint publication venture for
*CQ* publications and the ARRL, intended to introduce
Amateur Radio to nonhams. Associate Technical Editor Joel
Kleinman, N1BKE, and *QST* Features Editor Brian Battles,
WS1O, edited the book, which was written by Peter O'Dell,
WB2D. A portion of the proceeds from sales of the book will
go to a fund to be jointly administered by CQ and the ARRL
for ham radio recruiting projects.
* ARRL Laboratory Supervisor Ed Hare, KA1CV, just
attended a one-day power-line electromagnetic interference
seminar conducted by Northeast Utilities at their Newington
training facility, at the invitation of Dave Faucher,
WA1UQC, who is a technical manager at NU. The seminar
covered the regulatory and technical aspects of power-line
interference.
"It was quite refreshing to see a utility company
being so responsive to potential problems," Hare said. "We
generally only hear about the utility companies that do NOT
clean up their acts."
* Repairs to the ARRL HQ shipping room floor begin
May 14. A new concrete floor will be poured in a small area
in the "new" portion of the shipping room, which is on the
second floor of the building and was built in the winter of
1977-78. Those working on the first floor under the affected
area will be forced to bail out temporarily. We'll have
photos next issue.
* At the Dayton HamVention, DXCC Specialist Bill
Kennamer, K5FUV, checked 139 DXCC applications totaling
7,522 country credits, with the assistance of several DXCC
Field Representatives.
* On May 1 W1AW inaugurated Saturday afternoon
visitors operating hours of 1 to 4 p.m. (when the evening
code practice and bulletin schedule begins). This was in
direct response to visitor requests, says Chief Op Jeff
Bauer, WA1MBK.
Bauer also reports that visitors to the station this
year are running somewhat behind 1992, 340 compared to 402,
probably due to worse-than-usual weather.
* ARRL Public Information Manager Steve Mansfield,
N1MZA, continues to field calls from reporters inquiring
about Amateur Radio's role in the conflict in the former
Yugoslavia. No wonder, since practically every news report
these days attributes information to "ham radio operators."
* Upcoming ARRL meetings: Membership Services, May
15 in Chicago; Industry Advisory Council, May 22 in Chicago;
Long Range Planning, June 12 in Chicago; and Board of
Directors, July 16-17 in Hartford.
* A federal appeals court on May 7 blocked the FCC
from enforcing rules against indecent and unlawful
depictions on public access cable television, according to
the Associated Press. Lawyers for public access channels
argued that the rules were overly broad, saying they would
have prevented access channels from carrying some
programming that is allowed on broadcast radio and
television.
Last month, a D.C. appeals panel put a similar hold
on the rule against indecent programming on *leased* access
channels, which also are available to virtually anyone but
for which the user must pay a fee for time and can sell
commercials, the AP said.
Plaintiffs in both cases are, according to the AP,
the American Civil Liberties Union, People for the American
Way, The 90s Channel, Alliance for Community Media, and
Alliance for Communications Democracy.
* Organizers of this year's National Boy Scout
Jamboree are looking for licensed amateurs/Scouts to help
staff the Radio Merit Badge Tent. The event will be August 2
to 9, in Fredericksburg, Virginia. If you're interested,
contact Ray Moyer, WD8JKV, at 214-580-2595.
* James O. Weldon, AA5ST, died April 19, 1993, in
Williamsburg, Va. He was 88 years old. Weldon, who lived in
Dallas, founded Continental Electronics Corp. there. The
company, according to a Dallas newspaper account, built
transmitters for the Voice of America network as well as
communications equipment for broadcast facilities worldwide.
According to current Continental president Robert
McDonald, Weldon's high-power RF designs led directly to the
first "super stations," including XERA in Villa Acuma,
Mexico, which ran a half-million watts in 1938.
Weldon was a lifetime fellow of the Institute of
Radio Engineeers (now the IEEE), and received the Henry
Busignies Award of the Radio Club of America in 1982.
According to an acquaintance, Edward J. Boh, W5AUY,
Weldon passed his 20 wpm code test to upgrade to Extra Class
at the age of 86.
He leaves his wife, Nancy Chappelear Weldon, and
many other survivors. Services and burial were April 23 in
Dallas.
* The only person to die in a tornado that struck
Tulsa, Okla. on April 24 was Bill Moore, KF5DL, killed while
helping two fellow hams repair radios for a fledgling
business. The Tulsa *World* said that Moore, 70, had founded
the Tulsa Amateur Radio School, "where he taught hundreds of
people how to operate ham radios for emergencies and public
service events.
"Ham radio was his passion, friends and family
said."
With Moore at the time of his death were Jim
Brassfield, KB5CWP, and Clara Brassfield, N5UBA. Both were
briefly hospitalized with injuries from the storm.
Moore, a WW 2 veteran, leaves his wife, Dorothy. The
funeral was April 29 in Tulsa.
* ARRL Advertising Assistant Angela Beebe, KA1SER,
who received her bachelor's degree last winter, has just
finished taking the grueling exams to become a certified
public accountant. Now begins the even more grueling 3-month
wait for the results!