Amateur Radio Parity Act Reintroduced

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ARRL Bulletin 14  ARLB014US_Capitol
From ARRL Headquarters
Newington CT  March 9, 2015
To all radio amateurs

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The Amateur Radio Parity Act of 2015 Introduced in Congress

“The Amateur Radio Parity Act of 2015” – H.R.1301 – has been introduced in the US House of Representatives. The measure would direct the FCC to extend its rules relating to reasonable accommodation of Amateur Service communications to private land use restrictions. US Rep Adam Kinzinger (R-IL) introduced the bill March 4 with 12 original co-sponsors from both sides of the aisle – seven Republicans and five Democrats. Kinzinger also sponsored “The Amateur Radio Parity Act of 2014, which died at the end of the 113th Congress. H.R. 1301 is an essentially identical piece of legislation. Continue reading “Amateur Radio Parity Act Reintroduced”

Antenna Raising Weather is Here!

“The best and most expensive transmitter is but a useless toy if it is connected to a poor antenna.”                                                                               

Bill Orr, W6SAI, S-9 Signals (1959)

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Green grass, mild days, and blue skies are sure signs it’s time to climb towers, string wire, and get up on rooftops in the never-satisfied quest for a few more dB of gain.

It’s also time for contest pallor and seasonal-affective disorder to give way to tanned skin and spring fever. IOTA, SOTA, and POTA (Islands, Summits, and Parks on the Air, respectively) activations seem alluring again. Two-meter radio direction finding and foxhunting offer fresh air and at least a little exercise.

It’s good weather to grab your QRP field bag and head to the local park or lake, toss a EFHW antenna up in a tree, and attract both QSOs and curious onlookers. You can boast how many hundreds of miles per watt you get from that little cigarette-pack sized rig.

Hunting for the source of that new and pesky S7 noise floor in your otherwise-quite neighborhood now takes on the grim-yet-determined character of a military campaign.

Marred only momentarily by the tax-filing deadline, Spring is always something of a happy surprise.