[W5SFA] Fwd: NEW ARRL CEO, HURRICANE LAURA WAIVER and ***POSSIBLE NEW LICENSE APPLICATION FEES***

[Joe Cucuzza]

Note:   ***POSSIBLE NEW LICENSE APPLICATION FEES***
73 Joe KA8WEP


-------- Forwarded Message --------
Subject: 	NEW ARRL CEO, HURRICANE LAURA WAIVER and POSSIBLE NEW LICENSE 
APPLICATION FEES
Date: 	Fri, 28 Aug 2020 19:29:23 -0400 (EDT)
From: 	ARRL Members Only Web site <memberlist at www.arrl.org>
To: 	Cucuzza18 at gmail.com



NEW ARRL CEO, HURRICANE LAURA WAIVER and POSSIBLE NEW LICENSE
APPLICATION FEES

We Have A CEO

The ARRL Board of Directors chose not to renew the contract of its
former CEO in January 2020. Believing to find a new executive to helm
headquarters justified the time, expense and effort to sally forth into
an open and broad search for the skills and experience necessary to
stabilize our 106-year old institution, the Board created a special
committee dedicated to soliciting, interviewing and recommending final
candidates to the Board.

The CEO Search Committee elected by the Board included President Rick
Roderick, Atlantic Division Director Tom Abernethy, Central Division
Director Kermit Carlson, Great Lakes Director Dale Williams, New England
Director Fred Hopengarten, Roanoke Division Director Bud Hippisley,
Rocky Mountain Director Jeff Ryan, First Vice President Mike Raisbeck,
ARRL Treasurer Rick Niswander and Chief Financial Officer Diane
Middleton. The voting Members were Directors Abernethy, Carlson,
Williams, Hopengarten and Ryan. The non-voting Committee advisors were
1st VP Raisbeck, Treasurer Niswander and CFO Middleton. Although a
non-voting member, the Board granted President Roderick the right to
vote in the event of any tie.

The Committee received approximately 51 applications. Following
diligent research, the Committee eventually Interviewed 12 candidates.
Each candidate was interviewed twice, resulting in 5 candidates being
recommended to the Board for consideration.

One candidate having withdrawn, the final 4 candidates were interviewed
by the Board on August 15, 2020 in Denver. Nine Directors and three
Officers were physically present for the interviews; six Directors and
two Officers attended the interviews by Zoom.

On Sunday, August 16, 2020 the Board convened in Denver in person and
by Zoom to select a candidate to whom it wished to offer the job of ARRL
CEO. Following that vote and contract negotiations, the Board convened
in a special called Zoom meeting on Wednesday, August 26, 2020 at which
it voted 10-5 to elect David A. Minster, NA2AA, as ARRL’s new Chief
Executive Officer.

Mr. Minster’s official duties will commence on September 28, 2020.
Mr. Minster’s background is detailed in the ARRL press release
announcing his election: 
http://www.arrl.org/news/board-of-directors-elects-new-arrl-ceo-david-minster-na2aa
.


Waiver of Pactor 4 Use Limitations Due To Hurricane Laura

Planning for the loss of communications expected from the arrival of
Hurricane Laura, at the request of West Gulf Division Director Stratton
and Delta Division Director Norris, the ARRL petitioned the FCC on
August 26, 2020 to grant a temporary waiver to permit amateur data
transmissions at a higher symbol rate than currently is permitted by
§97.307(f) of the Commission’s rules — in other words, a temporary
waiver to use Pactor 3 & 4 modems at symbol rates exceeding the existing
limits in §97.307(f).

The FCC granted the ARRL’s waiver request the next day on August 27,
2020, in DA 20-963, for a period of 30 days, limiting the waiver to
amateur radio operators in the continental United States using PACTOR 3
and PACTOR 4 emissions who were directly involved with HF hurricane
relief communications.


Amateur Radio License Application Fees — May No Longer Be Free

The FCC issued a Notice of Proposed Rule Making on August 26, 2020 in
MD Docket No. 20-270. The result of the NPRM, if adopted as proposed, is
that after a period of approximately 30 years with no license
application fees for obtaining an Amateur Radio license, fees would be
imposed in the future. Per the authorizing law, these fees are to be
based on the cost of providing the service and would be, as proposed,
$50 per license application.

The deadlines for commenting on the proposals — see Paragraphs 24-30
of the NPRM
(https://www.fcc.gov/document/amendment-schedule-applications-fees ) —
have not been established, so the official comment period has not yet
been opened. Any comments filed before the comment period is opened will
likely be ignored.

The ARRL Board hasn’t, due to the recency of the filing, had an
opportunity to discuss with its FCC Counsel its response. However, the
ARRL’s news item on the NPRM appears at:
http://www.arrl.org/news/fcc-proposes-to-reinstate-amateur-radio-service-fees
.

73
John Robert Stratton
N5AUS
West Gulf Division Director

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ARRL West Gulf Division
Director: John Robert Stratton, N5AUS
n5aus at arrl.org
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