SUMMARY:
The American Radio Relay League (ARRL) is the national membership association for Amateur Radio operators. The League represents Amateur Radio interests to regulatory bodies, provides technical advice and assistance to Amateur Radio enthusiasts and supports a number of educational programs throughout the country. ARRL is a non-profit organization and has relationships with several other organizations including the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the American Red Cross, the Salvation Army, the Department of Defense, the Boy Scouts of America and several others.

HISTORY:

ARRL was founded in  Hartford, Connecticut in 1914 by inventor Hiram Percy Maxim. ARRL has remained in the Greater Hartford area since its inception and has been headquartered in Newington, Connecticut since 1938.

MEMBERSHIP:

ARRL has over 170,000 members as of January 2016.

STAFF:
100 full- and part-time staff members.

PUBLISHING:
ARRL publishes a monthly membership journal, QST, and two special interest magazines along with over 160 books and software titles and a variety of special interest newsletters.

LOCATION:
ARRL is located at 225 Main Street in Newington, Connecticut. Along with the administrative headquarters building, the seven-acre site is home to W1AW, ARRL's Amateur Radio station. Amateur Radio operators from all over the world come to ARRL to operate from W1AW.

STATISTICS

The number of Amateur Radio licensees in the United States has been rising steadily since 2008.

2015: 735,405
2014: 726,275  
2013: 717,201
2012: 706,592
2011: 702,056
2010: 696,041
2009: 682,497
2008: 663,564

There are three tiers of Amateur Radio license in the United States: Technician (~49%), General (~25%) and Extra (~22%). In addtion, numerous Amateur Radio clubs also have their own license.

There are approximately 3 million Amateur Radio operators in the world.  The numbers, while believed accurate, can vary somewhat because different countries use different systems to count licensees.