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 Previous: The Daily DX: 3C0V Team Was Given Just Hours to Leave |  Next: Brazil to Host Next World Radiosport Team Championship |
 ARRL President Jim Haynie, W5JBP, chats before the subcommittee hearing with HR 713 sponsor Rep Michael Bilirakis (R-FL). Looking on is Bilirakis' chief of staff, Rebecca Hyder. [Derek Riker, KB3JLF, Photo] |
NEWINGTON, CT, Oct 16, 2003--ARRL President Jim Haynie, W5JBP, says the good news is that the number of House cosponsors for the Amateur Radio Spectrum Protection Act, HR 713, has topped 50. The Senate version of the legislation, S 537, now has eight cosponsors. The downside, Haynie says, is that the Spectrum Protection Bill as well as the Amateur Radio Emergency Communications Consistency Act, HR 1478, will need many more cosponsors if either is to succeed.
"I'm frustrated," Haynie said this week. "Neither one of these bills is ever going to see the light of day unless we get more cosponsors." While thanking those who already have done so, Haynie again encouraged ARRL members to not only urge their senators and representatives to cosponsor the bills but to write and ask them to actively support them.
"It's going to take 10,000 letters, it's going to take 50,000 letters or contacts," Haynie said. "To me, this is a no-brainer. This is something that's important to the future of Amateur Radio."
Sponsored in the House by Rep Michael Bilirakis (R-FL) and in the Senate by Sen Michael Crapo (R-ID), the Spectrum Protection Act would require the FCC to provide "equivalent replacement spectrum" to Amateur Radio if the FCC reallocates primary amateur frequencies, reduces any secondary amateur allocations, or makes additional allocations within such bands that would substantially reduce their utility to amateurs.
The latest House members to sign aboard HR 713 include representatives Jo Bonner (R-AL); John Peterson (R-PA); Albert Wynn (D-MD); George Nethercutt (R-WA); Jim Ramstad (R-MN); Barney Frank (D-MA); Todd Tiahrt (R-KS); and Fortney "Pete" Stark (D-CA). The latest Senate members to sign aboard S 537 are Carl Levin (D-MI) and Christopher Dodd (D-CT).
HR 713 has been referred to the Subcommittee on Telecommunications and the Internet. In June, Haynie testified before that panel, telling lawmakers that that hams have lost more than 100 MHz of VHF and UHF spectrum over the past 15 years and that another nearly 360 MHz of VHF and UHF spectrum "has been substantially compromised." S 537 has been referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.
The Amateur Radio Emergency Communications Consistency Act, HR 1478--known informally as "the CC&R bill"--would require private land-use regulators such as homeowners' associations to "reasonably accommodate" Amateur Radio antennas consistent with the PRB-1 limited federal preemption. PRB-1 now applies only to states and municipalities. Introduced by Rep Steve Israel (D-NY), the bill has been referred to the House Commerce Subcommittee on Telecommunications and the Internet and now has 29 cosponsors.
Among the latest to get onboard HR 1478 are JD Hayworth (R-AZ); David Price (D-NC); Rep Mike McIntyre (NC); Anna G. Eshoo (CA-14); and Mark Udall (D-CO). No equivalent bill yet exists in the Senate.
Haynie says that if ARRL members value Amateur Radio and want these proposals to succeed, they'll make the time to write letters or send e-mails pushing for support of the three measures. "Peoples' own words and their own expressions are what's going to count, not some canned letter from Newington," Haynie said, while conceding that a form letter "is better than nothing." Haynie said a personally crafted letter or e-mail "adds a lot of weight."
Sample letters on the ARRL Web site for the Amateur Radio Spectrum Protection Act of 2003 and for the Amateur Radio Emergency Communications Consistency Act cite Amateur Radio's role in public safety and emergency communication.
Cosponsorship is important while a bill is in committee, and Haynie suggests that a representative or senator who gets 40 or 50 letters from on a topic is going want to sign on to that bill.
"We'll do our part to get more organizations
to support these bills," Haynie said. The League has been contacting other
organizations involved in public safety that have firsthand knowledge of the
value of ham radio to the public and advocating their support. But, Haynie
said, letters from individual voters get the most attention.
 HR 1478 sponsor Rep Steve Israel (D-NY) during a visit to the Great South Bay Amateur Radio Club's W2GSB club station. The station is in the Babylon, New York, emergency operations center. |
"I can't emphasize enough the importance of that contact to the member of Congress from the constituents out there in the district," Haynie concluded, "because that's the ticket."
For guidance on the best methods of contacting your members of Congress, see "Communicating with Congress," by Derek Riker, KB3JLF, in the April 2003 issue of QST (p 46).
Additional information--including the bills' texts and information on how to write your congressperson or senators--is on the ARRL's "The Amateur Radio Spectrum Protection Act of 2003" Web page and on the "HR 1478, The Amateur Radio Emergency Communications Consistency Act of 2003" Web page.
Those writing their lawmakers on behalf of
the Spectrum Protection Act are asked to copy their correspondence to the
League via e-mail. Those writing on
behalf of the Amateur Radio Emergency Communications Consistency Act, HR 1478,
are asked to copy their correspondence to ccr-bill@arrl.org.
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