SB QST @ ARL $ARLB006
ARLB006 ARRL Advocates for Radio Amateurs as FCC Proposes Changes to
60-Meter Band

ZCZC AG06
QST de W1AW
ARRL Bulletin 6 ARLB006
From ARRL Headquarters
Newington CT April 28, 2023
To all radio amateurs

SB QST ARL ARLB006
ARLB006 ARRL Advocates for Radio Amateurs as FCC Proposes Changes to
60-Meter Band

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is seeking comments
about changing the secondary allocation available to radio amateurs
on 60 meters. The FCC issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM)
on April 21, 2023, that deals with the band. In a prior petition,
ARRL, The National Association for Amateur Radio, urged protecting
the existing use of the band by amateurs when adding a new
allocation adopted internationally.

Currently, radio amateurs in the US have access to five discrete
channels on a secondary basis: 5332 kHz, 5348 kHz, 5358.5 kHz, 5373
kHz, and 5405 kHz. Users of these channels are limited to an
effective radiated power (ERP) of 100 W PEP.

The FCC proposes to allocate 15 kHz of contiguous bandwidth between
5351.5 - 5366.5 kHz on a secondary basis with a maximum power of 15
W EIRP (equivalent to 9.15 W ERP). This allocation was adopted at
the 2015 World Radiocommunication Conference (WRC-15).

The federal government is the primary user of the 5 MHz spectrum.
The government's manager of spectrum use, the National
Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA), has
expressed support for implementing the allocation as adopted at
WRC-15. Doing so would result in amateurs losing access to four of
the five discrete channels, and power limits would be reduced from
100 W ERP to 9.15 W ERP. However, it would provide access to a new
contiguous 15 kHz band that includes one of the current five
channels.

In 2017, ARRL petitioned the FCC to keep the four 60-meter channels
that fall outside the new band, as well as the current operating
rules, including the 100 W PEP ERP limit.

The ARRL petition stated, "Such implementation will allow radio
amateurs engaged in emergency and disaster relief communications,
and especially those between the United States and the Caribbean
basin, to more reliably, more flexibly, and more capably conduct
those communications."

ARRL said that years of amateur radio experience using the five
discrete channels have shown that amateurs can coexist with primary
users at 5 MHz while complying with the regulations established for
their use. The petition also stated, "Neither ARRL, nor, apparently,
NTIA, is aware of a single reported instance of interference to a
federal user by a radio amateur operating at 5 MHz to date."

In the NPRM, the FCC recognizes that Canada has already adopted
60-meter allocations and related rules that align with those
proposed by ARRL. The Commission wrote, "Finally, we note that
Canada has essentially implemented the same rules as ARRL has
requested." The NPRM can be found online at, https://www.fcc.gov/ .

The FCC proposed to allocate the 15 kHz bandwidth but stopped short
of making a proposal on whether the existing channels should remain
allocated to amateur radio and what the power limitations should be.
They requested comments on their proposal and the related channel
and power issues.

Comments will be due 60 days after the NPRM is published in the
Federal Register, which is expected within the next two weeks.
NNNN
/EX
--- SBBSecho 3.20-Win32
* Origin: The Thunderbolt BBS - Little Rock, Arkansas (954:895/7)

SB QST @ ARL $ARLB007
ARLB007 Section Manager Update: Austin Elected, Bigley Re-elected,
Gendron Appointed

ZCZC AG07
QST de W1AW
ARRL Bulletin 7 ARLB007
From ARRL Headquarters
Newington CT May 30, 2023
To all radio amateurs

SB QST ARL ARLB007
ARLB007 Section Manager Update: Austin Elected, Bigley Re-elected,
Gendron Appointed

The results of two balloted Section Manager elections held this
spring were determined when the ballots were counted at ARRL
Headquarters on Tuesday, May 23, 2023.

John Bigley, N7UR, incumbent Section Manager of the ARRL Nevada
Section, was re-elected when he received 277 votes, and Jim
Shepherd, W6US, of Sparks, received 177 votes. Bigley, of Las Vegas,
has been serving as Section Manager since 2015 and has held other
ARRL Field Organization and club leadership positions for more than
20 years. Bigley's new 2-year term of office starts July 1.

Nancy Austin, KC1NEK, was elected as ARRL Rhode Island Section
Manager when she received 129 votes, and incumbent Section Manager
Bob Beaudet, W1YRC, received 127 votes.

Austin, of Middletown, is the President of the Newport County Radio
Club, and she will begin a 2-year term of office on July 1.

Beaudet, of Cumberland, has served as ARRL Rhode Island Section
Manager for 21 years.

The following incumbent Section Managers were the only nominees in
their respective Sections when the nomination period closed on March
10, and were declared re-elected. Their new 2-year terms of office
begin July 1: Chris Van Winkle, AB3WG (Maryland-DC); Peter Stohrer,
W1FEA (New Hampshire); Bob Buus, W2OD (Northern New Jersey); John
Litz, NZ6Q (San Joaquin Valley); Pat Malan, N7PAT (Utah), and Dale
Durham, W5WI (West Texas).

ARRL has named John Gendron, NJ4Z, as the South Carolina Section
Manager. He will complete the term of Marc Tarplee, N4UFP, who
passed away after a brief illness.

Gendron, an Amateur Extra-class operator, is President of the York
County Amateur Radio Society (YCARS) and a member of the Swamp Fox
Contest Group. In addition to being an avid contester and DX chaser,
Gendron enjoys participating in Parks on the Air. He has earned
numerous ARRL awards, including the Worked All States and Triple
Play Worked All States awards, and is closing in on 5-Band DXCC.

Gendron also hosts a YouTube channel, called "From the Hamshack." In
2022, he became the 55th recipient of the Vic Clark Roanoke Division
ARRL Service Award, the Division's highest honor.
NNNN
/EX
--- SBBSecho 3.20-Win32
* Origin: The Thunderbolt BBS - Little Rock, Arkansas (954:895/7)

SB QST @ ARL $ARLB008
ARLB008 ARRL Elected to Serve on SAFECOM

ZCZC AG08
QST de W1AW
ARRL Bulletin 8 ARLB008
From ARRL Headquarters
Newington CT June 2, 2023
To all radio amateurs

SB QST ARL ARLB008
ARLB008 ARRL Elected to Serve on SAFECOM

ARRL, The National Association for Amateur Radio has been elected to
serve on SAFECOM. SAFECOM is a group of national thought leaders and
officials within the emergency communications and response space
that works to set standards used at every level. The program is
managed by the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency
(CISA), an agency of the US Department of Homeland Security.

SAFECOM sets the standards of interoperability procedures, and ARRL
being a part of the group solidifies the Amateur Radio Service as a
robust resource before and during times of crisis.

In a letter from SAFECOM Chair, Chief Gerald R Reardon said "On
behalf of the SAFECOM Executive Board, it is with great pleasure
that I inform you of our offer to join SAFECOM as a member
association. SAFECOM aims to improve multi-jurisdictional and
intergovernmental communications interoperability through
collaboration with emergency responders and policymakers across
federal, state, local, tribal, territorial, and international
partners. SAFECOM recognizes the organization's dedication to
emergency communications and interoperability, and therefore is
pleased to extend a membership offer."

ARRL Director of Emergency Management Josh Johnston, KE5MHV, said
"Gaining a seat at the table is a major step in strengthening the
role and capability of Amateur Radio with emergency communication
agencies. This will give us the sounding board and resources we need
to set standards and create training for our Amateur Radio Emergency
Service (ARES) volunteers that will better suit AHJ's (Agencies
Having Jurisdiction) and partner organizations." The opportunity
for ARRL to provide a more comprehensive Emergency Communications
program is part of the goal the Board and ARRL leadership has begun
to emphasize over the past few years, and this is one more example
of the commitment to do so. ARRL will provide premier resources for
the served agencies to support them in all phases of Emergency
Management.

Johnston will serve as the Representative for ARRL on SAFECOM and
will be meeting with that leadership over the coming days to begin
the process of better understanding all the roles and
responsibilities that come with being a member association. "I look
forward to working with the SAFECOM leadership as we move forward
and with the ARRL Leadership to better serve the Ham community and
our Served Agencies and Partners." Johnston said.

For more information about ARES and other ARRL Emergency Programs
and training visit our web page at: http://arrl.org/public-service .

For more information about SAFECOM go to:
https://www.cisa.gov/safecom .
NNNN
/EX
--- SBBSecho 3.20-Win32
* Origin: The Thunderbolt BBS - Little Rock, Arkansas (954:895/7)

SB QST @ ARL $ARLB009
ARLB009 ARRL Hudson Division has New Vice Director

ZCZC AG09
QST de W1AW
ARRL Bulletin 9 ARLB009
From ARRL Headquarters
Newington CT June 5, 2023
To all radio amateurs

SB QST ARL ARLB009
ARLB009 ARRL Hudson Division has New Vice Director

Ed Wilson, N2XDD, of Shirley, New York has been appointed Vice
Director of the ARRL Hudson Division by ARRL President Rick
Roderick, K5UR.

Wilson succeeds Nomar Vizcarrondo, NP4H, who was appointed Director
of the ARRL Hudson Division in March. Wilson will serve in the
position for the remainder of the 3-year term that ends December 31,
2024.

Having developed an interest in radio as a child, Wilson has been
active in projects that developed new digital protocols for amateur
radio.

Wilson has served as an Emergency Coordinator and Public Information
Officer and is accredited as a Volunteer Examiner.

The ARRL Hudson Division is comprised of the ARRL Sections of
Eastern New York, New York City - Long Island, and Northern New
Jersey.
NNNN
/EX
--- SBBSecho 3.20-Win32
* Origin: The Thunderbolt BBS - Little Rock, Arkansas (954:895/7)

SB QST @ ARL $ARLB010
ARLB010 FCC Universal Licensing System Applications Are Unavailable

ZCZC AG10
QST de W1AW
ARRL Bulletin 10 ARLB010
From ARRL Headquarters
Newington CT June 14, 2023
To all radio amateurs

SB QST ARL ARLB010
ARLB010 FCC Universal Licensing System Applications Are Unavailable

The FCC Universal Licensing System (ULS), which includes Electronic
Batch Filing (EBF) used by VECs for new and upgrade license
submissions and club license applications, Application Search,
License Search, License Manager system used for filing applications
directly with the FCC, Tower Construction Notification System, E-106
System, Antenna Structure Registration Online Filing and searches,
TOWAIR and all ULS Specialized Searches, are currently down.

The FCC's EBF and License Manager Filing systems have stopped
accepting and processing all amateur radio exam session files and
applications. The EBF system has not processed any VEC license
applications and examination session files since Monday afternoon.
The other systems have not been available since Friday June 9 at the
close of business.

ARRL VEC Manager Maria Somma, AB1FM, said her office contacted the
FCC staff, which said systems are down due to maintenance but did
not estimate how long the systems would be down. "As soon as the FCC
staff corrects the EBF system problem, we will immediately file the
backlog via the automated system, which would take only a few hours
or less to release," Somma estimated. When the License Manager
system is again available, amateurs will be able to file license
renewals, vanity call sign applications, and other license updates
online directly with the FCC.
NNNN
/EX
--- SBBSecho 3.20-Win32
* Origin: The Thunderbolt BBS - Little Rock, Arkansas (954:895/7)

SB QST @ ARL $ARLB011
ARLB011 Legislation to Remove Private Land Use Restrictions on
Amateur Radio Introduced in Congress

ZCZC AG11
QST de W1AW
ARRL Bulletin 11 ARLB011
From ARRL Headquarters
Newington CT June 14, 2023
To all radio amateurs

SB QST ARL ARLB011
ARLB011 Legislation to Remove Private Land Use Restrictions on
Amateur Radio Introduced in Congress

Congressmen Bill Johnson (OH-06) and Joe Courtney (CT-02)
reintroduced a bill in the US House of Representatives on June 12 -
H.R.4006 - to remove private land use restrictions that prohibit,
restrict, or impair the ability of Amateur Radio operators from
operating and installing reasonable antennas on property that they
own or control. Similar legislation, H.R. 9670, was introduced by
Congressman Johnson in 2022.

The full text of the bill can be found in PDF format at, https://billjohnson.house.gov/uploadedfiles/amateur_radio_emergency_ preparedness_act_signed_bill_text.pdf

(above URL all on one line)

"I reintroduced the Amateur Radio Emergency Preparedness Act to
remove barriers to disaster and emergency communications and
training, and to promote education in STEM subjects related to
critically needed wireless technology," Congressman Johnson said in
a release. "Passage of this bill will promote developing and
sustaining our nation's wireless future and facilitate and encourage
amateur radio operations as a public benefit."

"As their actions during recent natural disasters such as Hurricane
Sandy proved, amateur radio operators in Connecticut can be a
critical component of disaster response and emergency management. It
is in our communities' best interest that we give them the
capabilities to operate at the highest level, and with the
re-introduction of this bill, we've taken a strong step in that
direction," said Congressman Courtney.

The exponential growth of communities bound by private land use
restrictions that prohibit both the operation of Amateur Radio and
the installation of amateur station antennas has significantly
restricted the growth of the Amateur Radio Service.

The ARRL continues its multi-year efforts to eliminate private land
use restrictions that prevent Amateur Radio operations and has
pledged to strongly support Congressman Johnson and Congressman
Courtney in their efforts on behalf of Amateur Radio.

Rick Roderick, K5UR, President of ARRL, on behalf its Members and
America's Amateur Radio community extended his thanks and
appreciation for the leadership of Congressman Johnson and
Congressman Courtney in their tireless efforts to support and
protect the rights of all Amateur Radio Operators and to further
STEM education and the advancement of American expertise in wireless technology.
NNNN
/EX
--- SBBSecho 3.20-Win32
* Origin: The Thunderbolt BBS - Little Rock, Arkansas (954:895/7)

SB QST @ ARL $ARLB012
ARLB012 Updated: FCC ULS Unavailable, Filing Deadlines Extended

ZCZC AG12
QST de W1AW
ARRL Bulletin 12 ARLB012
From ARRL Headquarters
Newington CT June 15, 2023
To all radio amateurs

SB QST ARL ARLB012
ARLB012 Updated: FCC ULS Unavailable, Filing Deadlines Extended

In an email to all VECs, the FCC indicated that a Public Notice was
issued by the Commission on June 13, 2023:

FCC Public Notice DA 23-506: UNIVERSAL LICENSING, TOWER
CONSTRUCTION NOTIFICATION, E-106, AND ANTENNA STRUCTURE REGISTRATION
SYSTEMS UNAVAILABLE; FILING DEADLINES EXTENDED

The FCC Public Notice can be seen at: https://www.fcc.gov/document/uls-tcns-e-106-and-asr-unavailable-filing- deadlines-extended-0

(above URL all on one line).

The notice states that the FCC's Universal Licensing System (ULS),
Tower Construction Notification System (TCNS), E-106 System, and
Antenna Structure Registration System (ASR) have been unavailable
since approximately 6:30 p.m. EDT on Friday, June 9, due to
technical issues that the agency anticipates resolving in the near
term.

Further the FCC is extending deadlines for regulatory filings in ULS
and ASR because parties have not and will not be able to make
electronic filings or view the contents of the affected systems
while they are unavailable. Therefore the FCC is extending the
filing deadlines for all regulatory filings that needed to be or
will need to be made in these systems starting June 9, 2023 and
until the Commission announces ULS operations, for at least three
business days after access to the systems resumes.

The FCC's Commission Registration (CORES) System used to pay fees is
unaffected and will remain operational and available to pay any
regulatory fee or application fee payments during this period.

The FCC ULS systems affected that are used by amateurs are the
Electronic Batch Filing (EBF) used by VECs for new and upgrade
license submissions and club license applications, Application
Search, License Search, and the License Manager system used for
filing applications directly with the FCC.

At this time, the FCC has stated they do not have a target for the
ULS systems to be back online.
NNNN
/EX
--- SBBSecho 3.20-Win32
* Origin: The Thunderbolt BBS - Little Rock, Arkansas (954:895/7)

SB QST @ ARL $ARLB013
ARLB013 FCC ULS Reopened, Except Electronic Batch Filing System

ZCZC AG13
QST de W1AW
ARRL Bulletin 13 ARLB013
From ARRL Headquarters
Newington CT June 22, 2023
To all radio amateurs

SB QST ARL ARLB013
ARLB013 FCC ULS Reopened, Except Electronic Batch Filing System

On Wednesday morning, June 21, 2023, the FCC had reopened the
Universal Licensing System (ULS) and supporting systems, according
to an email distributed to VEC organizations. However, as of 4:00 PM
on Wednesday, the Electronic Batch Filing (EBF) system, used by VEC organizations for filing exam sessions, individual applications, and
club license applications, was still not available as promised.
Unfortunately, this means applications for new and upgraded
licenses, and individual and club license filings still cannot be
uploaded in the system for issuance.

When the EBF system becomes available, the Commission is requesting
VECs to limit submissions into the filing system. In an email sent
by the FCC, all EBF filers were asked to adhere to a restricted
upload schedule in order to keep the EBF system stable and to avoid
any potential technical problems. The FCC will be monitoring to
ensure the EBF system is stable during this reopening period. If
they assess that the upload volume is too high, they will send out
another notice with directions to reduce the amount of uploads per
hour.

ARRL VEC will comply with the FCC directive, limiting our
transmissions but sending as many backlogged sessions as possible
without overloading their system. The files will be submitted to the
FCC in the order in which they were received, starting with the
files from Monday, June 12, and moving forward from there. ARRL VEC
will begin submitting the backlogged applications as soon as the EBF
system becomes available, and assuming all FCC systems remain
stable.

In an FCC notice published on June 21, 2023 (please see, https://www.fcc.gov/document/uls-tcns-e-106-and-asr-available), the
Commission provided a deadline extension for filings in the ULS and
the Antenna Structure Registration (ASR) system, explaining,
"Because parties could not make electronic filings or view the
contents of the affected systems while they were unavailable, we are
extending the deadlines for all regulatory filings that were due in
the affected systems between June 9, 2023, and June 29, 2023, until
Friday, June 30, 2023.

"We note that we have provided for a longer extension for these
filings than initially contemplated in the June 13 Public Notice in anticipation of high traffic volumes on these systems in the coming
days. In that regard, we encourage filers to consider deferring
discretionary filings this week, and we encourage filers preparing
large submissions to coordinate in advance with [the] staff of the
Bureaus."
NNNN
/EX
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SB QST @ ARL $ARLB014
ARLB014 FCC ULS System Restored

ZCZC AG14
QST de W1AW
ARRL Bulletin 14 ARLB014
From ARRL Headquarters
Newington CT June 27, 2023
To all radio amateurs

SB QST ARL ARLB014
ARLB014 FCC ULS System Restored

The FCC Universal Licensing System (ULS) has resumed operations,
including the Electronic Batch Filing system (EBF).

As of June 27, 2023, all systems have been reported to be working.
However, visitors to the website will see a message referring them
to Public Notice DA 23-529 for additional information and guidance
on filing deadline extensions.

The systems were first reported unavailable on June 9, 2023. On
Friday afternoon, June 23, the EBF system was restored. All VEC
organizations use that system for filing exam sessions, individual applications, and club license applications. ARRL VEC staff worked
late into Friday night to ensure all backlogged sessions and
application files were transmitted to the FCC before the weekend.
Approximately 350 backlogged files were successfully submitted to
and processed by the FCC before the system's normal shutdown at 8
PM.

ARRL is still monitoring the ULS system, and any further updates
will be available at ARRL News.
NNNN
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--- SBBSecho 3.20-Win32
* Origin: The Thunderbolt BBS - Little Rock, Arkansas (954:895/7)

SB QST @ ARL $ARLB015
ARLB015 Commercial Interests Petition FCC for High Power Allocation
on Shortwave Spectrum

ZCZC AG15
QST de W1AW
ARRL Bulletin 15 ARLB015
From ARRL Headquarters
Newington CT July 12, 2023
To all radio amateurs

SB QST ARL ARLB015
ARLB015 Commercial Interests Petition FCC for High Power Allocation
on Shortwave Spectrum

The ad hoc group "Shortwave Modernization Coalition" petitioned the
Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to allow data communications
on multiple bands within the HF 2 - 25 MHz range with up to 20 KW,
including in bands immediately adjacent to spectrum allocated to the
Amateur Radio Service. This group appears to represent high-speed
stock trading interests.

The FCC has assigned it RM-11953. Comments are due by July 31, 2023,
and reply comments by August 15.

While the petitioners exclude the amateur bands, high power
operations on immediately adjacent bands are proposed. The ARRL is
reviewing the petition.

A copy of the petition can be found in PDF format at: https://www.fcc.gov/ecfs/document/1042840187330/1 .
NNNN
/EX
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* Origin: The Thunderbolt BBS - Little Rock, Arkansas (954:895/7)

SB QST @ ARL $ARLB016
ARLB016 Filers Seek Extension on Shortwave Petition. ARRL to File
Comments.

ZCZC AG16
QST de W1AW
ARRL Bulletin 16 ARLB016
From ARRL Headquarters
Newington CT August 1, 2023
To all radio amateurs

SB QST ARL ARLB016
ARLB016 Filers Seek Extension on Shortwave Petition. ARRL to File
Comments.

Since May, ARRL has been reviewing the rules proposed in a petition
before the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) from the
"Shortwave Modernization Coalition" (SMC). The ARRL Laboratory has
been studying the petition out of concern for potential interference
to Amateur Radio communications.

Comments on the petition, RM-11953, were due to FCC by July 31, 2023

(see,
https://www.arrl.org/news/commercial-interests-petition-fcc-for-high- power-allocation-on-shortwave-spectrum ) .

(above URL all on one line)

However, a 30-day extension of time was requested by both Skywave
Networks LLC and FlexRadio Systems.

The timely request from Skywave automatically triggered an extension
to the filing deadline. Under FCC rules, when a request for
extension is made within the appropriate timeframe, commenters may
file comments until a date set by FCC when it rules on the extension
request, or no earlier than two business days after the FCC
decision. On Monday, July 31, the FCC denied the request for
extension. Comments therefore may continue to be filed through
Wednesday, August 2.

In its petition, SMC, a group that appears to represent high-speed
stock trading interests, has proposed amending the FCC Part 90 rules
to allow introduction of high-power digital communications to the
shortwave spectrum that in many instances is immediately adjacent to
the amateur HF bands.

ARRL's comments on the matter will be based on the analysis by its
laboratory and guided by its experienced Washington, D.C. regulatory
affairs counsel. ARRL will use the extension to best represent the
interests of its members and the Amateur Radio Service.
NNNN
/EX
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* Origin: The Thunderbolt BBS - Little Rock, Arkansas (954:895/7)