From The ARRL Letter, July 02, 2015
The Amateur Radio Parity Act of 2015 Introduced in the US Senate
A companion Amateur Radio Parity Act of 2015 bill has been introduced in the US Senate. Mississippi Republican Sen Roger Wicker introduced S. 1685 on June 25, with Connecticut Democratic Sen Richard Blumenthal as the initial cosponsor. The Senate bill joins an identical measure in the US House, H.R. 1301, which was introduced in March by Illinois Republican Rep Adam Kinzinger. Both measures would direct the FCC to extend its rules relating to reasonable accommodation of Amateur Service communications to private land-use restrictions.
“Introduction of the Senate bill is a huge step toward achieving fairness for amateurs affected by private land-use regulation,” said ARRL President Kay Craigie, N3KN. “For them and for the future of Amateur Radio, I thank everyone who contributed to making this progress. Now let’s finish the job!”
Wicker said the bill he introduced with Blumenthal’s cosponsorship would allow for transparency and equality in the regulatory process. He said in a June 29 media release that the legislation would ensure that Amateur Radio operators are able to continue to provide “critical communications support at no cost to taxpayers.”
“This would be particularly beneficial in Mississippi and other rural states,” Wicker said. “During Hurricane Katrina, Mississippians learned firsthand the value of Amateur Radio, and its ability to provide information that could save lives in times of natural disasters.”
According to Wicker, the measure “ensures increased access to, and availability of, critical resources and communication tools” to first responders. Added Blumenthal, “We have seen the effectiveness of these systems, and the need to provide these emergency response systems to Americans, regardless of where you live, is evident.”
Wicker pointed out that private land-use restrictions prevent many hams from installing functional outdoor antennas. “This bill would call on FCC to apply the reasonable accommodation policy evenly to all types of residential land-use regulations and offer Amateur Radio operators the ability to negotiate with subdivisions that now have restrictions that preclude Amateur Radio antennas completely,” he said. “This could be accomplished without taking any jurisdiction away from homeowners associations and would protect neighborhood aesthetics.”
S. 1685 has been referred to the US Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, chaired by Sen John Thune (R-SD).
The House version of The Amateur Radio Parity Act of 2015 had attracted support from 83 cosponsors, as of July 1.
Now that there is Amateur Radio Parity Act of 2015 legislation in both chambers of the US Congress, the League has a combined web page to accommodate activities on behalf of both bills. The Amateur Radio Parity Act of 2015 is H.R. 1301 in the US House of Representatives and S. 1685 in the US Senate. The Amateur Radio Parity Act of 2015 page provides a clearinghouse for all information on these identical pieces of legislation.
From Bob Vallio, W6RGG – ARRL Pacific Division Director July 3, 2015
“Please take the time to visit this URL: http://www.arrl.org/amateur-radio-parity-act
When you get to that page on our website, you will be able to find the
text of both bills; read the text (both are exactly identical); see
some advice on what to include in your letters, including a sample
letter you may choose to use; find the names of your Representative and
Senators; and the address at ARRL HQ to which you should mail your
letters.
All mail sent to ARRL will be hand-carried to each Representative’s and
Senator’s office, assuring their receipt. Direct mail sent to
legislative offices is very often delayed for some time, by the
necessity that each piece must be inspected for safety reasons. Our
hand-carried mail will not be delayed. Please take the time to visit
the website, and get your letters in the mail as soon as you can.”
