In re: Delete, Delete, Delete FCC looks to eliminate rules and regulations

[kc2asb]

The ARRL filed comments on amateur radio topics in response to this FCC request for input: ARRL Files Comments on FCC

Full text of ARRL comments here: ECFS

There have been over 900 comments filed in response to the FCC request: ECFS

Thanks for the update. Interesting. (read the summary). The proposal about modernizing Technician class HF privileges is great and if accepted, would (hopefully) bring more interest and activity to the HF bands. It's been mentioned before that other powerful interests are eyeing this spectrum for high speed trading.

Removing the limit on HF amplifier gain is also interesting. Would this lead to stations running 5kw or more? If so, imagine what the HF bands will sound like during the major contests when stations are averaging 2kc separation.

 

[AK9R]

Removing the limit on HF amplifier gain is also interesting. Would this lead to stations running 5kw or more?

I don't think that's what the ARRL has proposed.

Current FCC rules (47 CFR 97.317(a)(2)) state that in order for an HF amplifier to receive an FCC certification, the amplifier must "Not be capable of amplifying the input RF power (driving signal) by more than 15 dB gain." There have been some European amps that people want to import and sell in the US that amplify by more than 15 dB. The ARRL is proposing to delete that rule.

 

[kc2asb]

I don't think that's what the ARRL has proposed.

Current FCC rules (47 CFR 97.317(a)(2)) state that in order for an HF amplifier to receive an FCC certification, the amplifier must "Not be capable of amplifying the input RF power (driving signal) by more than 15 dB gain." There have been some European amps that people want to import and sell in the US that amplify by more than 15 dB. The ARRL is proposing to delete that rule.

Makes more sense. Thanks!

 

[EAFrizzle]

I'm going to make a suggestion, that, while unrealistic, would make  our lives much more comfortable.

1. EO declaring that  ALL radio programming software be as intuitive and easy to use as ProScan.

2. Declare Bob Aune to be Radio Programming Czar, with commensurate enforcement power.

(just kidding, Bob, I wouldn't wish that on a nice guy like you!)

 

[a727469]

Wondering, out loud, if anyone submitted a request to force all amateurs to get their Morse Code test done. After all, "no-code" brought about the "End of the hobby!!!!!!!".

I am late to respond but please, please tell me what Morse code has to do with being a good or bad ham?

 

[mmckenna]

I am late to respond but please, please tell me what Morse code has to do with being a good or bad ham?

Absolutely, 100%, not a damn thing in my opinion.

But if you wander over to some of the other sites, you'll get an ear full. Back when they removed the code requirement there were a lot of old timers that got their panties in a wad. It was one of the hundred or so "end of the hobby" events. Just like every other time the amateur radio hobby ended because of some change.

 

[KF0NYL]

I am late to respond but please, please tell me what Morse code has to do with being a good or bad ham?

It has nothing to do with how good or bad an operator is.

But if you wander over to some of the other sites, you'll get an ear full. Back when they removed the code requirement there were a lot of old timers that got their panties in a wad. It was one of the hundred or so "end of the hobby" events. Just like every other time the amateur radio hobby ended because of some change.

You aren't kidding on that. Some think that the code requirement needs to come back and all of us that were licensed after the requirement was removed are dumb,

Then there are the elitist that think they know it all and are perfect operators just because they hold an Extra license.ANd they want to say how bad those with tech or general have ruined things. I've seen/heard just as many bad operators that hold Extra as with those that hold Tech or General.

I made to comment to them that just because our parents/grand parents had to walk to school uphill both ways in 2 feet of snow doesn't make them any better than younger people that didn't age to do that. Same can be applied to CW, it doesn't make one a better operator.

There is a 54 page thread about changing the license scheme from 3 to 2 with a lot of nonsense posted about how "I had to do it this way decades ago so everyone should still have to do it the same way"

What I am more concerned about is losing portions of the bands we currently have. We can take the 1.25m/220 band as an example along with companies trying to take a portion the 900 MHZ away.

 

[K9KLC]

What I am more concerned about is losing portions of the bands we currently have. We can take the 1.25m/220 band as an example along with companies trying to take a portion the 900 MHZ away.

This is indeed the greater concern I would think. My favorite band since 95 is the 1.25 meter band. Recently decided to play on 900 FM, and now we're having a blast there, with likely a linked 900 MHz repeater setup in the area (hopefully) before we're done. It's possible a 220 repeater may serve as the hub for this. (still working out the plan on that one)

 

[kc2asb]

This is indeed the greater concern I would think. My favorite band since 95 is the 1.25 meter band. Recently decided to play on 900 FM, and now we're having a blast there, with likely a linked 900 MHz repeater setup in the area (hopefully) before we're done. It's possible a 220 repeater may serve as the hub for this. (still working out the plan on that one)

Agreed. Even the HF bands are under threat, as has been mentioned previously. Unfortunately, 220 and 900 seem to have very little activity. I'm in a major metro area and 25+ years ago it was a struggle to have a QSO on 220. There were 4 or 5 repeaters I could hit and they were largely devoid of activity. In other threads on this forum, amateurs have commented about struggling to find active 2m repeaters. It does not bode well for the future, and we know the FCC loves to auction off chunks of spectrum.

 

[KF0NYL]

Agreed. Even the HF bands are under threat, as has been mentioned previously. Unfortunately, 220 and 900 seem to have very little activity. I'm in a major metro area and 25+ years ago it was a struggle to have a QSO on 220. There were 4 or 5 repeaters I could hit and they were largely devoid of activity. In other threads on this forum, amateurs have commented about struggling to find active 2m repeaters. It does not bode well for the future.

It seems that the popularity of the 220 MHz band is regional. It is popular in some areas while dead in others. We only have one 220 repeater that I can find in Missouri and it is linked full time to a 2m repeater.

The company wanting to take a portion of the 900 MHz band will affect more than just licensed amateur radio as it will take the portion of the 90 MHz band that is also used by all of the LORA/Meshtastic devices.

 

[kc2asb]

It seems that the popularity of the 220 MHz band is regional. It is popular in some areas while dead in others. We only have one 220 repeater that I can find in Missouri and it is linked full time to a 2m repeater.

That is often the situation with 220 machines. The two major 6m machines here are also part of linked systems with repeaters on 10m/2m/440.

The company wanting to take a portion of the 900 MHz band will affect more than just licensed amateur radio as it will take the portion of the 90 MHz band that is also used by all of the LORA/Meshtastic devices.

I've heard of this but know almost nothing about it. It might be just another example of the "right" people with deep pockets steamrolling over others.

 

[K9KLC]

Agreed. Even the HF bands are under threat, as has been mentioned previously. Unfortunately, 220 and 900 seem to have very little activity. I'm in a major metro area and 25+ years ago it was a struggle to have a QSO on 220. There were 4 or 5 repeaters I could hit and they were largely devoid of activity. In other threads on this forum, amateurs have commented about struggling to find active 2m repeaters. It does not bode well for the future, and we know the FCC loves to auction off chunks of spectrum.

We have 5 repeaters I can hit and work from here at home and another one that used to be really good but honestly it's so bad now they should just take it off the air. One still has a net on it on Sunday evenings, and gets a fair amount of check ins. One was just recently put back into service, that had been on the air for years but taken down due to needing some work on it. 2 900 repeaters have cropped up with talk of a 3rd one coming on line "at some point soon", and if we get ambitious, we'll possibly link all those to the 220 repeater we just worked on, and see what happens. There is another 900 repeater been on the air for some years here linked to a 70cm machine and that gets a fair amount of use, on both sides. Neither side has great coverage though, but at that, at least they're still on the air.

Frankly all the repeaters in this area are hit and miss for traffic. Some morning nets, and some occasional day usage, but it's sure not what it used to be. We're just finding different ways to play around here and maybe 220 and 900 will pick up in usage. We have at least some local simplex action on both those bands but not a great deal.

 

[kc2asb]

If the sum of activity averages out this way on a national basis, it will not be enough to fend off deep-pocketed commercial interests that want chunks of spectrum. The battle for that portion of the 220 band that was lost happened in an era where the bands had much more activity than now. Maybe the ARRL will pull a rabbit out of a hat for 900mhz.

 

[KF0NYL]

If the sum of activity averages out this way on a national basis, it will not be enough to fend off deep-pocketed commercial interests that want chunks of spectrum. The battle for that portion of the 220 band that was lost happened in an era where the bands had much more activity than now. Maybe the ARRL will pull a rabbit out of a hat for 900mhz.

Will the ARRL actually care or try?

I say that since Mestastic devices do not require one to have a license to use.

 

[kc2asb]

Will the ARRL actually care or try?

I say that since Mestastic devices do not require one to have a license to use.

Good question, but one would hope the ARRL would not be so arrogant and realize there is strength in numbers. A united front with the LORA users could only help.

 

[MTS2000des]

If the sum of activity averages out this way on a national basis, it will not be enough to fend off deep-pocketed commercial interests that want chunks of spectrum. The battle for that portion of the 220 band that was lost happened in an era where the bands had much more activity than now. Maybe the ARRL will pull a rabbit out of a hat for 900mhz.

How much of the amateur spectrum is commercially valuable?
HF has some value for the day traders using high power data to make trades.
VHF and UHF spectrum isn't viable for cellular, and many bands amateur is already a secondary or tertiary allocation.

I still don't see how reducing license class will magically remove overhead from the FCC's overall plan to cut administrative costs. The three license classes make sense to me: tech is your entry level, general is for everyone, and extra is for those who want it all. Skill sets of question pools are written accordingly. As I said on another forum, this appears to be a solution in search of a problem.

 

[mmckenna]

Yeah, the ham radio community, and especially the ARRL, has used this fear tactic to drum up support and donations for years.

I wonder how many hams have donated to the ARRL "Spectrum Defense Fund" over the years….

A lot of the existing ham bands are aligned with the ITU allocations and can't easily be changed.
There's plenty of HF spectrum for the high speed trading, and most of the testings I've seen has happened outside the ham bands. I think there were a few times that a company tried to do testing on ham bands, but I think those were denied.

The VHF/UHF bands are pretty safe. While there will always be a need for VHF spectrum, traditional LMR isn't really the big push right now. LTE is where its at, and they want two chunks of several MHz of spectrum for uplink/downlink. 2 meter and 220 don't supply that.

70cm is a secondary allocation behind federal users, and the feds/military are not going to give that up.

Anterix hasn't touched the 900MHz ham band yet, and probably won't. Just too much risk for interference. Plus, the 900MHz ham band is secondary to ISM.

There's a bunch more of that going up in frequency.

 

[kc2asb]

Perhaps things are not as dire as originally thought re: loss of spectrum. That is why these discussions are great, gaining the perspective of those with extensive commercial radio experience vs. the echo chamber.

 

[kc2asb]

I still don't see how reducing license class will magically remove overhead from the FCC's overall plan to cut administrative costs. The three license classes make sense to me: tech is your entry level, general is for everyone, and extra is for those who want it all. Skill sets of question pools are written accordingly. As I said on another forum, this appears to be a solution in search of a problem.

Agreed. The FCC does not administer the exams but will continue to issue the licenses. It's unclear how this would result in any savings.

The three license classes are perfect. The ARRL's proposal to expand Tech HF privileges is also a good idea.

 

[mmckenna]

vs. the echo chamber.

Exactly.
This one has been echoing for a long time. It's fear, and fear can be an effective tool to squeeze money or reactions out of people.