[ETSList] ARLX007 FCC upholds vanity fee policy, sets new fee start date

[Ronald A. Loneker Sr. KA2BZS]

Looks like I save some money ;-)

Drew_Moore wrote:

> SB SPCL @ ARL $ARLX007
> ARLX007 FCC upholds vanity fee policy, sets new fee start date
>
> ZCZC AX07
> QST de W1AW
> Special Bulletin 7  ARLX007
> >From ARRL Headquarters
> Newington CT  July 31, 2003
> To all radio amateurs
>
> SB SPCL ARL ARLX007
> ARLX007 FCC upholds vanity fee policy, sets new fee start date
>
> The FCC has announced that the new Amateur Radio vanity call sign
> regulatory fee of $16.30 for the 10-year license term will go into
> effect September 9. Until then, applicants for amateur vanity call
> signs will continue to pay the current $14.50 fee per vanity call
> sign application. The FCC says it expects to collect close to
> $160,000 from 9800 Amateur Radio vanity call sign applicants during
> Fiscal Year 2003. That's up by almost $30,000 and 800 applications
> from FY2002.
>
> In releasing its annual Report and Order on the assessment and
> collection of regulatory fees for FY2003, the FCC responded at some
> length to comments filed from the amateur community. Some commenters
> had questioned the need for the fee, the requirement to pay it when
> renewing a vanity call sign and why refunds were not automatic.
>
> Telecommunications Act provisions governing regulatory fee
> assessment cover applications for vanity call signs, which, the FCC
> said, "are voluntarily requested by licensees" and are "a
> value-added benefit not afforded to all licensees." Assessment of a
> regulatory fee to cover the FCC's processing and enforcement costs
> to make the vanity call sign service available is reasonable, the
> FCC concluded.
>
> The FCC said its current policy of assessing "a nominal fee" at the
> time of initial application and at each renewal also allows greater
> access to vanity call signs. "A high one-time-only fee would be cost
> prohibitive for many entities wishing to obtain a vanity call sign,"
> the Commission said. The Commission also said it incurs costs to
> manage each vanity call sign throughout its existence, not just in
> the first 10 years.
>
> Regarding refunds due when the FCC denies an application, the FCC
> said its rules require a written request from applicants before it
> can process refunds of regulatory fees. "The written request serves
> as documentation when cross-referencing each unique file number that
> may be entitled to a refund," the FCC added.
>
> The FCC said the documentation was particularly important in the
> case of Amateur Radio vanity applications, "because filing trends
> indicate that some applicants file several vanity call sign
> applications per day for several days on end." Requiring a written
> request makes it easier to certify "which fees are to be refunded
> for which dismissed applications," the Commission said. In addition,
> those processing applications in FCC bureaus and offices don't have
> the authority to issue refunds without proper documentation.
>
> A copy of the Report and Order is available on the FCC Web site at,
> http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/FCC-03-184A1.doc.
> NNNN
> /EX
>
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--
Ronald A. Loneker Sr. KA2BZS
#1DXCC * 160M DXCC * A1-OP * NJDXA * 9BDXCC
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