[SFDXA] Amateur Radio Parity Act Passes in the US House of Representativ

Bill bmarx at bellsouth.net
Wed Sep 14 08:01:34 EDT 2016


    Amateur Radio Parity Act Passes in the US House of Representatives!

09/14/2016

/“The bill is passed without objection.”/ With those words, Amateur 
Radio history was made on September 12, when the US House of 
Representatives *approved* 
<https://soundcloud.com/user-731126960/house-vote-on-hr-1301-sept-12-2016-from-cspan> 
the Amateur Radio Parity Act, *H.R. 1301* 
<http://www.arrl.org/amateur-radio-parity-act> on a voice vote under a 
suspension of the rules. The focus of the campaign to enact the 
legislation into law now shifts to the US Senate. The House victory 
culminated many years of effort on ARRL’s part to gain legislation that 
would enable radio amateurs living in deed-restricted communities to 
erect antennas that support Amateur Radio communication. The measure 
calls on the FCC to amend its Part 97 rules “to prohibit the application 
to amateur stations of certain private land-use restrictions, and for 
other purposes.” While similar bills in past years gained some traction 
on Capitol Hill, it was not until the overwhelming grassroots support 
from the Amateur Radio community for H.R. 1301 shepherded by ARRL that a 
bill made it this far. The legislation faces significant obstacles to 
passage in the US Senate, however.

“This is huge step in our effort to enact legislation that will allow 
radio amateurs who live in deed-restricted communities the ability to 
construct an effective outdoor antenna,” ARRL President Rick Roderick, 
K5UR, said. “Thanks to everyone for their help in this effort thus far. 
Now we must turn our full attention to getting the bill passed in the 
Senate.”

ARRL Hudson Division Director Mike Lisenco, N2YBB, who chairs the ARRL 
Board’s Legislative Advocacy Committee, has been heavily involved in 
efforts to move H.R. 1301 forward. “This has been a multiyear effort 
that is finally seeing some light,” he said. “The passage of the bill in 
the House is a major accomplishment, due to the hard work of so many — 
from the rank-and-file member to the officers and directors.”

Lisenco said it’s not a time to rest on our laurels. “We are only 
halfway there. The focus now shifts to our effort in the Senate,” he 
said. “We are beginning a massive e-mail campaign in which we need every 
member to write their two Senators using our simplified process. You 
will be hearing from President Roderick and from your Directors, asking 
you to go to our ‘*Rally Congress* 
<https://arrl.rallycongress.net/ctas/urge-senate-to-support-amateur-radio-parity-act>’ 
page. Using your ZIP code, e-mails will be generated much like our 
recent letter campaign. You’ll fill in your name and address and press 
Enter. The e-mails will be sent directly to your Senators without you 
having to search through their websites.”

Lisenco said getting these e-mails to members’ Senators is a critical 
part of the process. “Those numbers matter! Please help us help you by 
participating in this effort,” he said.

As the *amended bill* 
<http://www.arrl.org/files/file/Regulatory/ParityAct-SubstituteBill-Official-2016.pdf> 
provides, “Community associations should fairly administer private 
land-use regulations in the interest of their communities, while 
nevertheless permitting the installation and maintenance of effective 
outdoor Amateur Radio antennas. There exist antenna designs and 
installations that can be consistent with the aesthetics and physical 
characteristics of land and structures in community associations while 
accommodating communications in the Amateur Radio services.”

During this week’s limited debate, the House bill’s sponsor, Rep Adam 
Kinzinger (R-IL), thanked ARRL and the Community Associations Institute 
(CAI) for reaching an agreement to move the bill forward “in a 
bipartisan and very positive manner.” He pointed out to his colleagues 
that Amateur Radio antennas are prohibited outright in some areas.

“For some this is merely a nuisance,” Kinzinger said, “but for others — 
those that use their Amateur Radio license for life-saving emergency 
communications — a dangerous situation can be created by limiting their 
ability to establish effective communication for those in need.”

Kinzinger said that in emergencies, hams can provide “a vital and 
life-saving function” when conventional communication systems are down. 
He also praised the Military Auxiliary Radio System (MARS), a US 
Department of Defense-sponsored program, comprised largely of Amateur 
Radio volunteers, that also supports communication during emergencies 
and disasters.

Cosponsor US Rep Joe Courtney (D-CT) also urged the bill’s passage. 
“This is not just a feel-good bill,” Courtney said, recounting how 
Hurricane Sandy brought down the power grid, and “we saw all the 
advanced communications we take for granted…completely fall by the 
wayside.” Ham radio volunteers provided real-time communication in the 
storm’s wake, he said, saying the legislation was a way “to rebalance 
things” for radio amateurs who choose to live in deed-restricted 
neighborhoods by enabling them to install “non-intrusive antennas.”

Courtney noted that he spoke recently with FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler, and 
said that Wheeler “strongly supports this legislation.”

Leading up to the vote, Rep Paul Tonko (D-NY) also spoke in support of 
the legislation, calling it a commonsense approach that would build 
“fairness into the equation for Amateur Radio operators” in dealing with 
homeowners associations.

The earlier U.S. Senate version of the Amateur Radio Parity Act, S. 
1685, no longer is in play, and the Senate is expected to vote by 
unanimous consent on the version of H.R. 1301 that was adopted by the 
House on September 12.

http://www.arrl.org/news/amateur-radio-parity-act-passes-in-the-us-house-of-representatives



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