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FCC Code Petitions |
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PETITIONS
FILED WITH THE FCC IN SUMMER/FALL 2003 RELATING TO
The FCC has released 14 separate petitions for rulemaking on the issue of code testing and related issue of HF operating privileges for Technician Class amateurs who have not passed a code test. These petitions were filed after the International Telecommunications Union voted to eliminate the long-standing international requirement for passing a code test in order to operate below 30 MHz, and to leave the decision on code testing up to each country. The 14 petitions listed below were released for preliminary comment by the FCC in the fall of 2003, and will use the ideas proposed in the petitions and the comments to help develop a Notice of Proposed Rule Making (NPRM), which is expected to be released in late 2004. Comment periods have now closed on these petitions, with more than 4,600 comments filed. Hams (and anyone else with an interest) will again have an opportunity to comment when the NPRM is released. We encourage you to read the 14 petitions and at least some of the comments filed in response to them (there are several thousand, although many are duplicates, having been filed separately for each petition number). To access the petitions and comments using the FCC's Electronic Comment Filing System (ECFS) web page, click on the following or type it into your web browser: <http://svartifoss2.fcc.gov/prod/ecfs/comsrch_v2.cgi>. This will bring you to an interactive form in which you fill in the petition number (RM-xxxxx) in the upper left-hand box, labeled "Proceeding," and then click on "Retrieve Document List" at the bottom of the form. This will give you a listing of the petition and all comments received. The petition itself will generally be the last one listed, since they're filed in date order, with the most recent listed first. If you want to see only the petition, then after you type in the RM- number, go to box 4, labeled "Document Type," and choose either "PU" or "PT" (most are under PU; a few under PT). In most cases, this will list only the petition itself. Here are the 14 petitions received and released by the FCC, followed by identity of petitioner, brief summary of proposal, and, in parentheses, the number of comments received:
First Group of 7 Petitions:
RM-10781 - Peter M. Beauregard, KI1I, Westfield, MA: Give limited HF privileges in all modes to Technicians on 80, 40, 15 and 10 meters; retain code test for General and Extra (320)
RM-10782 - Dr. Pete Coppola, KG4QDZ, and family, Smyrna, GA: Eliminate code test requirement for General and Extra; give Tech-with-code HF privileges to all Technicians (271)
RM-10783 - Kiernan Holliday, WA6BJH, Santa Fe, NM: Eliminate code test requirement for General and Extra (275)
RM-10784 - Dale E. Reich, K8AD, Seville, OH: Remove code test for General, retain for Extra (253)
RM-10785 - Eric Ward, N0HHS, Durham, NC: Eliminate code test requirement for General and Extra (255)
RM-10786 - No Code International: Eliminate code test requirement for General and Extra (423)
RM-10787 - National Conference of Volunteer Examiner Coordinators: Eliminate code test requirement for General and Extra; give Tech-with-code HF privileges to all Technicians (673)
Second Group of 7 Petitions:
RM-10805 - Charles L. Young, Cantonment, FL: Allow Technician access to HF without code test but retain current code test for General and Extra (231)
RM-10806 - Frank Napurano, K2OKA, Hopewell, NJ: Retain present code proficiency requirements (216)
RM-10807 - Robert Rightsell, AE4FA, Lexington, SC and Harry Kholer, N0PU, St. Louis, MO: Consolidate Novice, Tech & Tech Plus into Technician; Advanced into Extra; Give Techs current Novice HF privileges plus data; expand 10m phone portion to 28.3-28.6 MHz; Code test should be optional and provide points toward overall score on license exam; increase number of questions on written exams; one year "time in grade" for Tech upgrade to General; two year "time in grade" for General upgrade to Extra. (175)
RM-10808 - Joseph Speroni, AH0A, Honolulu, HI: Proposes that basic license exams allow phone privileges only; permission to operate other modes will require passing a test regarding those modes. (192)
RM-10809 - Puerto Rico Amateur Radio League, San Juan, PR: Eliminate code test requirement for Technician with HF privileges and General, but retain for Extra. (180)
RM-10810 - James Roux, Longwood, FL: Create two license classes by combining Novice, Tech & Advanced into General, eliminating code test; increase Extra Class code test speed to 15 wpm. (179)
RM-10811 - Nancy Kott, FISTS CW Club: Give Techs current Novice HF privileges without code test; retain 5 wpm test for General; increase Extra code test speed to 12 wpm. End instant retesting; FCC should specify written exam structure (981).
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