FCC Uses & Capabilities of ARS Report to Congress Released

[W3WN]

DA 12-1342
In the Matter of Uses & Capabilities of Amateur Radio Service Communications in Emrgencies and Disaster Relief:
Report to Congress Pursuant to Section 6414 of the Middle Class Tax Relief and Job Creation Act of 2012
GN Docket No 12-91

(With a title like THAT, this had to be written by a long time bureaucrat!!)

http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/DA-12-1342A1.doc
http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/DA-12-1342A1.pdf
http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/DA-12-1342A1.txt

[NQ6U]

My reading of it is that, essentially, nothing has changed.

[KG4NEL]

15 pages? Someone could sneeze and 15 pages would come out in the government :-D

[XE1/N5AL]

Too bad they didn't make recommendations against CC&Rs which preclude any type of radio transmissions, nor permit ANY type of antenna system.

[X-Rated]

THIS LINK HERE (http://www.ilga.gov/legislation/fulltext.asp?DocName=&SessionId=84&GA=97&DocTypeId=HB&DocNum=1390&GAID=11&LegID=&SpecSess=&Session=) is what we have in Illinois. I am not sure if it overcomes CCR's or not. It was just signed into law a few months ago.


1 AN ACT concerning local government.

2 Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3 represented in the General Assembly:

4 Section 5. The Illinois Municipal Code is amended by adding
5 Section 11-13-1.5 as follows:

6 (65 ILCS 5/11-13-1.5 new)
7 Sec. 11-13-1.5. Amateur radio communications; antenna
8 regulations. Notwithstanding any provision of law to the
9 contrary, no ordinance or resolution may be adopted or enforced
10 by a municipality after the effective date of this amendatory
11 Act of the 97th General Assembly that affects the placement,
12 screening, or height of antennas or antenna support structures
13 that are used for amateur radio communications unless the
14 ordinance or resolution: (i) has a reasonable and clearly
15 defined aesthetic, public health, or safety objective and
16 represents the minimum practical regulation that is necessary
17 to accomplish the objectives; and (ii) reasonably accommodates
18 amateur radio communications.
19 A municipality may not regulate the antennas or antenna
20 support structures that are used for amateur radio
21 communications in a manner inconsistent with this Section. This
22 Section is a limitation under subsection (i) of Section 6 of
23 Article VII of the Illinois Constitution on the concurrent
1 exercise by home rule units of powers and functions exercised
2 by the State.

[kb2vxa]

It's the same law enacted by several states prohibiting municipalities from enacting what amounts to stupid YUPPIE NIMBY ordinances, "you can't put that big ugly thing HERE because ____" sort of thing. The FCC nor any legislature dares to get involved with private agreements and contracts (CC&Rs, HOA Nazis, etc.) because doing so would raise "Constitutional rights" issues and cause countless years of very expensive courtroom scenes. Simply put, trampling on private citizens' rights is messy business and we're fed up to THERE, think of the political repercussions.

[W3WN]

Well, first off, as my friend Chuck W3YNI found out... it doesn't matter what laws are on the books. If the municipality (or significant induhviduals therein) don't want your tower installed, for any or no reason... they may not be able to stop you, but they can slow you down, cost you money, and make your life miserable. It's not fair, it's not right, and most of the time it's not truly legal. But it happens.

[And I've already discussed this at length with K3AIR, so when I'm ready to put up my 30 feet -- 40 if I can find one more section of Rohn 25 -- I'll be ready.]

Second, WRT the FCC document: Is anyone really surprised? The FCC report told Congress what the FCC had already concluded, months or years before they were ordered to gather the data & research the situation. I would have been a lot more surprised if they HAD decided to pre-empt CC&R / HOA regulations to any degree. This was obvious from the start -- an exercise in futility, going through the motions to give the appearance of listening, following the letter of the law -- but not the spirit.

And it's not like it's the first time. Go back and look at the amplifier ban, the loss of 220 - 222 MHz, the elimination of the code exam, amongst many others: Whether you agree with the final decision or not, it is clear in looking over the documentation submitted, and the final conclusions drawn, that the FCC staff recommended, and the FCC Commissioners approved, what the staff had originally proposed, with at best minor or inconsequential differences.

Nothing has changed.

[KJ3N]

Nothing has changed.

And nothing will change. Hams are 0.2% of the population. That's not even a pimple on an elephant's ass.