[IRCNews] ARRL seeking input regarding request from FCC for public comments on EmComm by Amateur Radio operators.

[Ken Bandy (KJ9B)]

QST ARL ARLB007

ARLB007 FCC Seeks Public Comments on Emergency Communications by Amateur 
Radio and Impediments to Amateur Radio Communications

In response to the Congressional directive to prepare a study to assess 
Amateur Radio's role in emergency and disaster communications and the impact 
of private land use regulations on the amateur community's ability to 
provide such communications, the FCC issued DA 12-523 soliciting comments 
from the public. The period for public comment runs until May 17, 2012.

"As part of the study contained in Public Law No. 112-96, the Commission has 
opened a 45 day period for comments to be filed on the issue," said ARRL 
Regulatory Information Manager Dan Henderson, N1ND. "Because of the short 
deadline for the study to be completed and presented to Congress -- before 
the end of August -- the ARRL
and the amateur community must quickly mobilize their response."

The FCC Public Notice focuses on two specific areas for comments.  The first 
is the role that Amateur Radio has played and continues to play to support 
emergency and disaster relief organizations, such as FEMA and local/state 
emergency management agencies. The second is to determine impediments to 
enhanced Amateur Radio communications. This would include the impact that 
private land-use regulations -- such as deed restrictions and homeowner 
association covenants -- have on the ability of licensed amateurs to fully 
participate in providing support communications to the served agencies.

"This study is not about zoning ordinances or regulations adopted by the 
local or state governments," Henderson explained. "Amateurs already have the 
limited protection of PRB-1 to assist them with those situations. The areas 
of concern here are the limitations that are placed on a property when it is 
purchased, either as part of the deed of sale or by restrictions imposed by 
the neighborhood/homeowner's association. Those restrictions --  sometimes 
referred to as CC&Rs -- are not currently covered by the FCC's PRB-1 
decision from 1985."

To allow the ARRL to quickly collect and collate relevant information from 
the amateur community to help support the filing it will make with the FCC 
on this issue, a website has been setup. The site --  
www.arrl.org/ccr-study-information -- provides details about what kind of 
information is needed by the ARRL.

Also on the site, you will find links to two online data collection forms. 
The first form allows you to provide information about specific emergency 
communications in which Amateur Radio has played a role since January 2000. 
The second form asks for specific information on the CC&Rs/deed restrictions 
that control your property. It also asks you to provide information on how 
those restrictions have impacted your ability to fully support emergency 
communications.

"Whether you are an ARRL member or not, your information and situation are 
important to helping us make the case for all amateurs," Henderson said. 
"Whether your support communications are with ARES, RACES, SKYWARN, CERT or 
other emergency and disaster groups, your voice should be heard. If you 
cannot operate effectively from home during an emergency because CC&Rs 
prohibit adequate antennas on your property, that is important to document 
and quantify. This issue affects all of Amateur Radio, not just ARRL 
members."

Henderson said that due to the short timeframe that the FCC has allotted for 
public comment, time is of the essence. In order to allow the ARRL to 
develop its comments, the ARRL asks that all information sent by the amateur 
community be received at the ARRL no later than April 25, 2012: "We realize 
this is a very short turnaround asking for your response, but this is based 
on the time provided by the Commission for the comment window."

It is important that when you provide specifics of your CC&R, you also 
provide the ARRL with a copy of its actual wording. If you have the CC&R in 
a digital format (or you can scan the document into a file), it can either 
be uploaded through the website above or it can be sent via an e-mail to 
CCRinfo at arrl.org . If you do not have an electronic format, a hard copy may 
be sent via US mail to: CCR Study Information, ARRL, 225 Main St, Newington, 
CT 06111.

"We need factual, specific details," Henderson said. "The more accurate 
information we have -- including copies of the CC&R language -- the stronger 
case we can make. Having copies of the exact CC&Rs is important. It allows 
us to demonstrate the wide variation of restrictions. Including the specific 
text is as important as any other piece of information you provide."

If you have questions about what is being requested, you may contact the 
ARRL Regulatory Information Office via e-mail at reginfo at arrl.org. "Again, 
time is of the essence in this matter," Henderson said. "This is the best 
opportunity that amateurs have had to address the impact of overly 
burdensome private land use restrictions. If Amateur Radio is to succeed in 
this effort, it is going to take all of us working together."