SB QST @ ARL $ARLB004
ARLB004 Amateur Radio bills add cosponsors
ZCZC AG04
QST de W1AW
ARRL Bulletin 4 ARLB004
From ARRL Headquarters
Newington CT February 12, 2004
To all radio amateurs
SB QST ARL ARLB004
ARLB004 Amateur Radio bills add cosponsors
ARRL President Jim Haynie, W5JBP, says he's encouraged to see
additional members of the US House of Representatives agreeing to
cosponsor The Amateur Radio Spectrum Protection Act of 2003, HR 713,
and the Amateur Radio Emergency Communications Consistency Act of
2003, HR 1478--also known as ''the CC&R bill.'' In Washington this
week with an ARRL delegation, Haynie called it ''an optimistic
sign'' for Amateur Radio that League members are continuing to urge
their lawmakers to sign aboard the two pieces of legislation.
''House members have proven to be very responsive to entreaties from
the amateur community to get behind these bills,'' an elated Haynie
said this week. ''The campaign continues to pay off in terms of
additional cosponsors for our bills.'' As of this week, 84 House
members have gone on record as HR 713 cosponsors. An identical
companion bill in the US Senate, S 537, has attracted eight
cosponsors.
Among recent House cosponsors of HR 713 are representatives Chris
Bell (R-TX), Candice S. Miller (R-MI), Jim Turner (D-TX), Jay
Inslee, (D-WA), Ray LaHood (R-IL), Stevan Pearce, (R-NM) and Baron
Hill, (D-IN).
Sponsored in the House by Rep Michael Bilirakis (R-FL) and in the
Senate by Sen Michael Crapo (R-ID), the bill 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. HR 713 has been referred to the Subcommittee on
Telecommunications and the Internet. The Senate version, S 537, has
been referred to the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and
Transportation.
Meanwhile, the cosponsor count on the CC&R bill, HR 1478, rose to 32
this week with the addition of Rep Jim DeMint (R-SC), who was
approached by ARRL South Carolina Section Manager Jim Boehner, N2ZZ,
to consider cosponsoring both HR 1478 and HR 713. Introduced by Rep
Steve Israel (D-NY), 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.
Other recent HR 1478 cosponsors include representatives Donald
Manzullo (R-IL) and Anibal Acevedo-Vila (D-PR). HR 1478 also has
been referred to the House Subcommittee on Telecommunications and
the Internet.
Additional information on these bills is on the ARRL's ''The Amateur
Radio Spectrum Protection Act of 2003'' Web page,
www.arrl.org/govrelations/arspa.html, and on the ''HR 1478, The
Amateur Radio Emergency Communications Consistency Act of 2003'' Web
page, www.arrl.org/govrelations/hr1478/.
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