[InHam] Fw: ARRL Legislative Update Newsletter - Issue 2

[Paul Webster]

I have an idea!
 
Why don't we hams send each of the people responsible for HR 607, amateur radio grams opposing HR607 every single day, Sunday thru Saturday, until they cry UNCLE!!! 

Yeah, Lets do that on top of & in addition to the conventional methods of contacting them.  

Lets do it for as long as it takes. 

Keep as much pressure on them as we can generate for as long as it takes to get them to give up & throw in the towel.  

Thanks. 

ka9jwx 

Legislative Update – Issue # 2 
 
March 2, 
2011 
   
ARRL -

 225 Main Street – 
 Newington ,
 CT
 06111 
Edited by Dan 
Henderson , N1ND, ARRL Regulatory Information 
Manager 
   
House Bill 
607 Threatens Amateur Radio Spectrum 
  
On February 10, 2011, Rep. Peter King (R-NY), Chairman 
of the House Homeland Security Committee, introduced H.R. 607, the “Broadband 
for First Responders Act of 2011,” which has been referred to the House Energy 
and Commerce Committee (which handles telecommunications legislation).  The bill addresses certain spectrum 
management issues including the creation and maintenance of a nationwide Public 
Safety broadband network. As part of that network, the Bill provides for the 
allocation of the so-called “D-Block” of frequencies in the 700 MHz range for 
Public Safety use.  
   
The “D-Block” consists of two, 5 megahertz-wide segments 
of spectrum (758-763 and 788-793 MHz) that became 
available when the FCC ended analog television broadcasts in June 2009 and 
reallocated the 698-806 MHz band for Public Safety and commercial broadband. It 
was initially expected the D-Block would be auctioned for commercial use. 
However, there are now several Bill s 
in Congress providing for the allocation of the D-Block for Public Safety use. 
H.R. 607 is one of those bills. However, H.R. 607 uniquely provides for the 
reallocation of other spectrum for auction to commercial users in order to 
offset the loss of revenue that would occur as the result of the allocation of 
the D-Block to Public Safety instead of commercial auction. Among the bands to 
be reallocated for commercial auction within ten years of the passage of H.R. 
607 are the paired bands 420-440 MHz and 450-470 
MHz. 
   
“Of serious concern to the ARRL is the 
inclusion of the 420-440 MHz Amateur allocation in the list of frequencies to be 
cleared for auction,” said ARRL Regulatory Information Manager
 Dan Henderson , N1ND. “The ARRL and the Amateur Radio 
community certainly support the work of public safety agencies and understand 
their desire for an interoperable network. However, the inclusion of most of the 
Amateur 70-cm spectrum as one of the replacement bands is illogical and 
unacceptable. The 420-440 MHz band is not Public Safety spectrum and should 
never have been included in any spectrum swap of Public Safety 
allocations.” 
   
“The ARRL Washington team has already begun meeting with 
key Congressional staff on Capitol Hill,”
 Henderson continued.  “We share the 70-cm band on a secondary 
basis with the governmental radiolocation services, such as the PAVE PAWS radar 
systems.  The 70-cm band is a 
critical and irreplaceable resource for Amateur Radio public service and 
emergency communications. The Amateur Satellites operating on this band would 
become unusable.  Weak-signal 
operators would be forced to migrate to the remaining 440-450 MHz spectrum 
already occupied by repeaters. The inclusion of the 420-440 MHz band in this 
legislation is ill conceived. To be sure, ARRL will vigorously oppose this 
legislation in its present form. It is, as evidenced by other legislation, 
unnecessary to the creation of a nationwide Public Safety broadband network or 
the use by Public Safety of the D-Block for that purpose.” 
   
H.R. 607 is presently cosponsored 
by the Home land Security Committee’s 
Ranking Member, Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-MS) as well as Reps. Shelley Berkley 
(D-NV), Yvette Clarke (D-NY), Keith Ellison (D-MN), James Langevin (D-RI) 
 Bill y Long (R-MO), Candice S. Miller 
(R-MI), Laura Richardson (D-CA), Mike Rogers (R-AL), and Michael Grimm (R-NY). 
ARRL President Kay Craigie, N3KN has written to Chairman King and to each 
co-sponsor to explain why the ARRL opposes H.R. 607 in its current 
form.

   
A Message from ARRL 
President Kay Craigie, N3KN 
   
“Eternal 
vigilance is the price of liberty.” 
This famous statement has been attributed to Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Paine, 
Abraham Lincoln, Patrick Henry, and various other American statesmen. No matter 
who actually coined the phrase long ago, we Amateur Radio operators can apply it 
today in a different context and say, “eternal vigilance is the price of 
spectrum.” 
   
Thanks to the vigilance of the League’s
 Washington team, we 
spotted the provision in H.R. 607 that would deprive Amateurs of access to the 
420-440 MHz band. Work began immediately to organize opposition to the 
legislation in its present form.  
   
I have written to my own Congressman from
 Virginia . As President of 
the League, I have also written to Representative King of
 New York , who introduced 
H.R. 607, and the current co-sponsors detailing the ARRL’s objections to this 
provision in the bill. 
   
As head of the League’s
 Washington team – and it is a good team – I 
want you to understand that we cannot successfully advocate for spectrum 
protection by ourselves. The ARRL Headquarters Staff and the volunteer Board of 
Directors cannot do it by themselves, either. Your letters to your legislators 
on Capitol Hill are the essential key to success. You, as a member of the ARRL, 
must step up and respectfully tell your Representative that H.R. 607 in its 
present form is the wrong way to go. 
   
You may be thinking, “I don’t operate on 440. What does 
this have to do with me?” Here is the answer. Whether or not you operate on that 
particular band is irrelevant. The entire Amateur Radio Service relies on our 
spectrum allocations as a whole. When spectrum is on the line, we forget about 
our particular personal interests and work together as one Amateur Radio 
Service, indivisible.  
   
73, 
Kay 
Craigie N3KN 
President, ARRL 

   
   
Sample Letter Opposing H.R. 
607 Available On the ARRL Web
   
ARRL members 
can find a sample letter opposing H.R. 607 in its current form at:
   
http://www.arrl.org/sample-letters
   
On that page 
you will also find links showing contact information for your Member of the 
House of Representatives as well as information on sending your letter to the 
ARRL’s
 Washington legislative relations firm of Chwat 
& Co.
   
ARRL members 
should send their signed letters to Chwat & Co. for hand delivery to 
Congress.  This personal contact 
provides our
 Washington team an opportunity for a 
face-to-face meeting with key staff in each Congressional office when a delivery 
is made – giving our team the chance to lobby for our position.
   
   
  

Questions & Answers: 
H.R. 607 – What Are The Key Points? 
   
Q. Why is the 
ARRL opposing H.R. 607? 
A. The answer is straightforward: In its current form, 
it would remove Amateur Radio from the majority of the 70-cm band (420-440 MHz) 
and require that spectrum be auctioned for commercial use. 
   
Q. Does 
opposing H.R. 607 send the wrong message about ARRL and Amateur Radio supporting 
Public Safety communications? 
A. Simply put, no.  The ARRL and Amateur Radio have been and 
remain strong supporters of Public Safety communications.  We recognize their need for spectrum and 
do not oppose them using the so-called “D-Block” for their needs.  Our opposition to this bill in its 
current form is based solely on the inappropriate and illogical inclusion of the 
420-440 MHz band as part of a swap of Public Safety spectrum, which this band is 
not. 
   
Q. I thought 
420-440 MHz was allocated to governmental radiolocation services, like the PAVE 
PAWS radar systems. 
A. You are correct – the primary designated user is 
radiolocation services. Amateur Radio is allocated on a secondary user basis to 
the 70-cm band.  One of the reasons 
this bill seems odd is that the 420-440 MHz frequencies are not allocated for 
Public Safety communications. 
   
Q. To whom 
should I send letters opposing H.R. 607? 
A.  At this 
time we are requesting letters be sent to your member of the US House of 
Representatives.  We are not asking 
for letters to members of the US Senate at this time, as legislation requiring 
the frequency swap is not currently being considered by that 
body. 
   
Q. What 
should I tell my member of Congress when I contact 
them? 
A. First and foremost, be polite. Express your concerns 
in a professional manner.  Say that 
while you do not oppose the Public Safety services being assigned the D-Block 
allocation for their needs, you do oppose H.R. 607 in its current form because 
of the specific designation of the 420-440 MHz Amateur Radio allocation as one 
of the frequencies targeted in the “frequency swap”. 
   
Second, point out that the 420-440 MHz frequencies are 
not currently designated for Public Safety communications. Rather, they are 
assigned on a primary basis for governmental radiolocation purposes with Amateur 
Radio being allocated to the band on a secondary basis. 
   
Third, briefly (no more than one short paragraph) 
explain that the 420-440 MHz frequencies are one of the most-used pieces of 
spectrum by Amateurs in our support of Public Safety communications and 
services. Losing that portion of spectrum will severely limit the Amateur 
Service from providing efficient communications in support of our neighborhoods, 
local emergency management agencies, and public service 
agencies. 
   
Although emergency and public service communications are 
the 70-cm activities most easily understood by members of Congress and the 
general public, the ARRL is keenly aware that other important amateur operations 
take place in the 420-440 MHz segment.  
Don’t hesitate to tell your Representative – keeping it brief and in 
layman’s language – about those other activities.  For example, if you operate via the 
Amateur Radio Satellites on 70-cm, point out that these expensive spacecraft 
created by and for Amateurs cannot be retuned to other frequencies.  If you are a weak signal operator, note 
the scientific importance of what we learn about radio propagation at UHF 
through access to this frequency spectrum. 
   
Finally, thank your Representative  for considering what you have to say and 
directly ask them to oppose H.R. 607 in its current form or any other 
legislation that would reduce the limited amount of spectrum allocated to use by 
the Amateur Radio Service.

   
A Message from ARRL Regulatory Information Manager Dan 
Henderson, N1ND 
   
Within the first week of the initial request for ARRL 
members to contact their Representative to oppose H.R. 607 in its current form, 
almost 1,000 letters were received at Chwat & Co, our
 Washington legislative 
relations firm.  That is a great 
start and many thanks to the diligent members who have risen to the 
challenge.  However, it cannot stop 
there. As long as H.R. 607 is in its current form, we must continue this 
campaign. 
   
One of the most frequently asked 
questions I receive is “Why does the ARRL 
ask us to funnel our letters to Congress through Chwat & Co.?  Why can’t I send my letter 
directly to my Representative? Trust me when I say I 
understand your concern and firmly believe the more input members of Congress 
receive either for or against an issue from their constituents, the better the 
public interest is served.  However, 
using the services of Chwat & Co. has many advantages that help the ARRL 
further its legislative agenda. The most important part of our system 
is that hand-delivery of constituent letters to a Congressional office 
provides the opportunity for us to have a face-to-face meeting with key 
staff of your Member of Congress -- an opportunity to make our point 
directly.” 
   
 I have been 
asked to share a few reminders with those sending letters. These are important 
points to remember.  Unfortunately, 
several dozen letters received by Chwat & Co. are not usable for a variety 
of reasons.  A few have been 
received supporting bills that the ARRL supported in previous sessions but have 
no bearing on H.R. 607. Bill numbers 
change in subsequent Congresses, as do the issues being addressed. Reminder number one: Please make sure your 
letter is addressing the correct issue. (Do not “dust off” one that you 
previously sent – it will not help with the current 
problem.) 
   
While we all look for “easy” ways to express ourselves 
to our Representatives, a letter sent without a signature carries little weight 
when Congressional staffs begin assessing support or opposition to a bill.  Though many members of Congress have 
websites where constituents can simply fill out a web page form to share their 
thoughts with their representative, such web forms have only limited usefulness 
in lobbying on a specific issue.  
The fact that a constituent makes the effort to sign a letter personally 
- then sends it in via fax, regular US Mail, or by scanning the signed letter 
into a PDF then emailing it - has a far greater impact than an unsigned email or 
web-based form. Reminder number two: Please make sure your 
letter carries your signature.  It does make a 
difference! 
   
Several letters received at Chwat & Co. were 
addressed to the wrong person.  For 
example there were several letters addressed to Senator Boxer, but began with 
“Dear Representative Boxer” – an incorrect title. Also, at this time we are not 
asking letters be sent to members of the Senate – only to your representative in 
the US House. In our eagerness to help, we sometimes overlook some of the 
basics, like grammar, proper form of address, and the like. Reminder number three: Please proof read 
your letter several times to ensure it is accurate. This should include 
all names, addresses, and salutations as well as any comments / edits you may 
add to our form letter. Read the final letter out loud to yourself several times 
before sending to Chwat & Co.  
   
Defeating H.R. 607 in its present form is a fight 
Amateur Radio can win – but only with thoughtful participation by us all. Thanks 
to all of you for your efforts – and let us keep this moving forward.  Protecting our spectrum is important to 
all of us! 
   
73 
   
Dan 
Henderson, 
N1ND 
ARRL Regulatory Information 
Manager 
n1nd at arrl.org 
(860) 594-0236
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73/75 de ka9jwx, Paul Lewis Webster

SKCC #5322

John 3:16

Long:-87.334L (-87*20'3"W)

Lat:41.4967N (41*29'48"N)

EN61HL

Merrillville, Indiana, 46410-3503, USA 

;-)

--- On Wed, 3/2/11, ARRL Web site <memberlist at www.arrl.org> wrote:

From: ARRL Web site <memberlist at www.arrl.org>
Subject: ARRL Legislative Update Newsletter - Issue 2
To: ka9jwx at yahoo.com
Date: Wednesday, March 2, 2011, 2:02 PM