[PPRAANet] RE: PPARES: Joel Hefley Strikes Again!

[Allen, Michael M]

	That amateur radio can and does provide valuable public service is
unquestioned.  I support it wholeheartedly.  But by and large, I agree =
with
Daniel.  I hate the government ramming more and more laws down my =
throat at
my expense to satisfy some squeaky wheel willing to whine loud enough =
and
long enough.  And Rob makes some good points too.  I keep my yard neat, =
have
no junk cars in the driveway, shovel the snow from my sidewalks, and =
believe
I'm a responsible member of my neighborhood.  But I'm certainly no fan =
of
Homeowners Associations and their rules either. =20
	Something to think about that might help anyone planning a
tower/antenna installation is that a lot of covenants were written by =
the
developer (dingbat) before construction in that area began, and are =
part of
that development's CC&Rs or whatever you want to call them.  The =
developer
is also the defacto "Homeowners Association" .  Once that developer has
built all the houses allowed and he (or she ... sorry Kate) moves on, =
the HA
stewardship passes to the residents of the development.  If no resident
assumes administration of that HA, the covenants theoretically lapse =
and
pass out of existence, along with the HA.  I haven't pressed too hard =
on
that point, but antennas are supposedly prohibited in my development (I =
have
yet to actually read the covenants), yet I've had an Arrow J-pole and =
an
anemometer on the peak of my roof (two story house) and a Cushcraft R-5
vertical in my back yard for almost 2 years now, and no one has said =
boo. =20
	For what it's worth.

73
Mike N=D8MIK

-----Original Message-----
From: Wes Wilson [mailto:wlw@prodigy.net]
Sent: Tuesday, August 06, 2002 10:23 AM
To: PPARES; PPRAA
Subject: PPARES: Joel Hefley Strikes Again!


All --

Craig Turner, KA=D8CT, VP of the Mountain Amateur Radio Club, sent a =
letter
urging Representative Joel Hefley (Colorado Fifth District) to support =
H.R.
4720, the Amateur Radio Emergency Communications Consistency Act of =
2002.
This bill would apply the current PRB-1 ruling (which currently applies =
to
states, counties and municipalities) to CC&Rs (Codes, Covenants &
Restrictions) imposed by Homeowner Associations, etc.

The text of the letter, which is on official "Congress of the United =
States,
House of Representatives" stationary and dated July 31, 2002 is =
duplicated
below.  The original is a .pdf file, but I cannot send attachments via =
the
various reflectors.

73  Wes K=D8HBZ


Dear Mr. Turner:

I have received your recent comments pertaining to H.R. 4720, Mr. =
Israel's
bill, the Amateur Radio Emergency Communications Consistency Act of =
2002.

I am fully aware of and have the highest respect for the efforts of ham
radio operators in times of war and of peace.  But I also have the =
highest
respect for keeping land-use decisions at the state and local levels, =
which
is what is at issue here.

Supporters of this legislation liken H.R. 4720 to the exemption the =
1996
Telecommunications Act gave to satellite dishes.  That pre-emption of
homeowners' association covenants with respect to television satellite
dishes under the Telecommunications Act of 1996 resulted from a =
combination
of the promise of satellite television and the exasperation of many =
members
and staff members with such covenants.  Nevertheless, I opposed that
pre-emption.  Homeowners' association can be intrusive and obnoxious.  =
But
their members made a choice to live in those communities and abide by =
those
rules.  I do not believe it is the federal government's job to overrule
those decisions.

Your comments have been noted and I will keep them in mind.

Sincerely,

[Signed] Joel
Joel Hefley
Member of Congress

=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D

Contact information listed on the letterhead:

Washington Office:
2230 Rayburn House Office Building
Washington, DC  20515
(202) 225-4422

Colorado Springs Office:
104 South Cascade, Suite 106
Colorado Springs, CO  80903
(719) 520-0056

Englewood Office:
8058 South Quebec, Suite 103
Englewood, CO  80111
(303) 843-0401

_______________________________________________
PPARES mailing list
PPARES@mailman.qth.net
http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/ppares