ARRL In Action: What Have We Been Up To Lately?

August 1, 2002

This feature is a periodic update of what the ARRL is doing on behalf of its members. This installment covers the month of July.

• ARRL Lab Supervisor Ed Hare, W1RFI, and RFI Specialist John Phillips, K2QAI, met with FCC Special Counsel for Enforcement Riley Hollingsworth at ARRL Headquarters. As a result, improvements will be made in the way ARRL and FCC cooperate on power-line cases.

• The first ARRL Certification and Continuing Education course on satellite communications began July 1 with a full class of 50 students. A second class started July 29.

• At its July 19-20 meeting, the ARRL Board of Directors voted, effective with the January 2003 issue of QST, to move "Section News" and contest line scores to ARRLWeb. The Board also named the winners of the Maxim and McGan Memorial awards, as well as a number of educational and technical awards. Minutes of the meeting can be found on ARRLWeb.

• The ARRL Emergency Communications Courses received a shot in the arm when word was received that ARRL will receive a $181,900 homeland security grant from the US government to train Amateur Radio operators in emergency communication. The grant received an impressive amount of coverage from media outlets around the country.

• The ARRL 2001 Annual Report is available online, or printed copies can be requested from Jennifer Hagy, N1TDY.

• Technical Relations Manager Paul Rinaldo, W4RI, was in Geneva for two weeks as a member of the US delegation to the International Telecommunication Union Special Committee on Regulatory and Procedural Matters related to the World Radiocommunication Conference 2003 (WRC-03).

• Several ARRL representatives officiated or participated in the 2002 World Radiosport Team Championship in Finland: Chief Executive Officer David Sumner, K1ZZ, served as co-chairman (with OH2NCS) of the judging committee; New England Division Director Tom Frenaye, K1KI, and Assistant to the CEO Dave Patton, NT1N, were competitors; and Membership Services Manager Wayne Mills, N7NG, and Sales & Marketing Manager Dennis Motschenbacher, K7BV, were referees.

• HR 4720 has gained additional congressional sponsors. The bill is aimed at providing relief to amateurs faced with private deed covenants, conditions and restrictions--CC&Rs--in erecting antennas.

• Chief Executive Officer David Sumner, K1ZZ, attended the 2nd Radio Amateurs of Canada National Convention in Vernon, British Columbia.

• ARRL/VEC Manager Bart Jahnke, W9JJ, was among the Volunteer Examiner Coordinators who met in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania July 26.

• ARRL members voted during July for the winner of the QST Cover Plaque Award for the July 2002 issue. The winner of the Cover Plaque for June was Ron Block, KB2UYT, for his article, "Lightning Protection for the Amateur Station."

• The ARRL Foundation has provided a $3000 grant that will aid a SETI League radio telescope project.

• Responding to an FCC request for comments on its spectrum policy, the ARRL has told the FCC that marketplace forces should not determine Amateur Radio spectrum allocations and that interference management is a technical, not an economic, issue.

• More than 150 Texas amateurs--most of them working through the Amateur Radio Emergency Service (ARES)--supported flood response and relief efforts in flood-ravaged areas of Texas.

• ARRL Laboratory Supervisor Ed Hare, W1RFI, spoke at the ARRL Arizona Section Convention in Flagstaff. His subjects: RFI (his specialty) and a brand new one--QRP for the Non-QRPer.

• The Contest Branch Online soapbox is proving to be extremely popular. Field Day postings are the most numerous at the moment.

• Assistant Technical Editor Brennan Price, N4QX, spoke at the ARRL Georgia State Convention in Gainesville. Brennan, who recently transferred from the Regulatory Information Branch, presented an overview of regulatory issues of current interest.

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