[ARRL-OK] $50 Licensing fee

[jema at poncacity.net]

HI - Eddie Manley here - K5EMS

I'm your Oklahoma Government Liaison and i have rec'd several calls about
how to 'Comment' on "FCC 20-270" - the Amateur Radio licensing fee.

 

Here is some information on how this got started:

The FCC proposal is contained in a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (
<https://docs.fcc.gov/public/attachments/FCC-20-116A1.pdf> NPRM) in MD
Docket 20-270, which was adopted to implement portions of the "Repack
Airwaves Yielding Better Access for Users of Modern Services Act" of 2018 -
the so-called "
<https://www.congress.gov/115/plaws/publ141/PLAW-115publ141.pdf> Ray Baum's
Act." The Act requires that the FCC switch from a Congressionally-mandated
fee structure to a cost-based system of assessment. In its NPRM, the FCC
proposed application fees for a broad range of services that use the FCC's
Universal Licensing System (ULS), including the Amateur Radio Service. The
2018 statute excludes the Amateur Service from annual regulatory fees, but
not from application fees. The FCC proposal affects all FCC services and
does not single out amateur radio.

As the FCC explained in its NPRM, Congress, through the Ray Baum's Act, is
compelling regulatory agencies such as the FCC to recover from applicants
the costs involved in filing and handling applications.

 

In visiting with our Section Manager, Kevin O'Dell, we discussed how this
would affect our licensees in Oklahoma.  Elderly on fixed income, diminish
new licensees from getting started with Amateur Radio and several other
reasons we do not want to pay $50.00 for our extremely volunteer work with
served agencies.  This also would be in effect not only for a new license, a
renewal of your license, 'each upgrade' and 'vanity calls' (any application
that you file with the FCC).

 

Use the PDF file on the ARRL site [ARRL Guide to Filing FCC Comments]  to
give the your comment to this vital issue- DUE BY NOVEMBER 16TH!

 

Thanks for your consideration

K5EMS