‰ Now 18 WPM transition file follows ‰

In a wide ranging Report and Order released June 9 that takes
various proceedings into consideration, the FCC has revised the
Amateur Service Part 97 rules to grant credit for written
examination elements 3, General, and 4, Amateur Extra, to holders of
expired licenses that required passage of those elements. The FCC
will require former licensees, those falling outside the 2 year
grace period, to pass Element 2, Technician, in order to be
relicensed, however. The Commission declined to give examination
credit to the holder of an expired Certificate of Successful
Completion of Examination, CSCE, or to extend its validity to the
holders lifetime.  The Report and Order may be found on the web in
PDF format at, //transition.fcc.gov/ .  Our decision to grant credit
for written examination Elements 3 and 4 for expired licenses that
required passage of those elements will provide some relief for
former General, Advanced, and Amateur Extra class licensees, the FCC
said, and is consistent with how we treat expired pre 1987
Technician class licensees who want to reenter the Amateur Service.
Pre 1987 Techs can get Element 3 credit, since the Technician and
General class written examinations in that era were identical. The
Commission said current rules and procedures that apply to expired
pre 1987 Technician licenses are sufficient to verify that an
individual is a former licensee under our new rules.  The Commission
said that requiring applicants holding expired licenses to pass
Element 2 in order to relicense will address commenters concerns
about lost proficiency and knowledge, because a former licensee will
have to demonstrate that he or she has retained knowledge of
technical and regulatory matters. The FCC said the Element 2
requirement also would deter any attempts by someone with the same
name as a former licensee to obtain a ham ticket without
examination.  In 1997 the FCC, in the face of opposition, dropped a
proposal that would have generally allowed examination element
credit for expired amateur operator licenses. In the past, the FCC
has maintained that its procedures provide ample notification and
opportunity for license renewal and that retesting did not impose an
unreasonable burden. The issue arose again in 2011, with a request
from the Anchorage Volunteer Examiner Coordinator.  The new rules
become effective 30 days after their publication in The Federal
Register, which is expected to happen this week.

‰ End of 18 WPM transition file ‰