[Ccarc] FW: ARLB030 FCC to Drop Morse Testing for All AmateurLicense Classes

[ajda21 at skyenet.net]

Dave: I was feeling pretty good about the new band plan.... but, no
CODE at all !!!!! They'll let anyone in this hobby !!. Deb and I are
in Mississippi until 12-26. Then we're headed for Arizona until
spring....
73's

AJ
     
---- Original Message ----
From: kb9wsl at hotmail.com
To: ccarc at culcom.net
Subject: RE: [Ccarc] FW: ARLB030 FCC to Drop Morse Testing for All
AmateurLicense Classes
Date: Sat, 16 Dec 2006 12:55:19 -0500

>
>
>
>>From: "ARRL Web site" <memberlist at www.arrl.org>
>>To: kb9wsl at hotmail.com
>>CC: Subscribed ARRL Members:;
>>Subject: ARLB030 FCC to Drop Morse Testing for All Amateur License
>Classes
>>Date: Fri, 15 Dec 2006 22:21:30 -0500
>>
>>SB QST @ ARL $ARLB030
>>ARLB030 FCC to Drop Morse Testing for All Amateur License Classes
>>
>>ZCZC AG30
>>QST de W1AW
>>ARRL Bulletin 30  ARLB030
>>From ARRL Headquarters
>>Newington CT  December 16, 2006
>>To all radio amateurs
>>
>>SB QST ARL ARLB030
>>ARLB030 FCC to Drop Morse Testing for All Amateur License Classes
>>
>>In an historic move, the FCC has acted to drop the Morse code
>>requirement for all Amateur Radio license classes. The Commission
>>today adopted a Report and Order (R&O) in WT Docket 05-235. In a
>>break from typical practice, the FCC only issued a public notice at
>>or about the close of business and not the actual Report and Order,
>>so some details -- including the effective date of the R&O -- remain
>>uncertain.  The public notice is located at,
>>http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/DOC-269012A1.pdf.
>>
>>Also today, the FCC also adopted an Order on Reconsideration, in WT
>>Docket 04-140 -- the "omnibus" proceeding -- agreeing to modify the
>>Amateur Radio rules in response to an ARRL request to accommodate
>>automatically controlled narrowband digital stations on 80 meters in
>>the wake of rule changes that became effective today at 12:01 AM
>>Eastern Time. The Commission said it will carve out the 3585 to 3600
>>kHz frequency segment for such operations. Prior to the long-awaited
>>action on the Morse code issue, Amateur Radio applicants for General
>>and higher class licenses had to pass a 5 WPM Morse code test to
>>operate on HF. The Commission said today's R&O eliminates that
>>requirement for General and Amateur Extra applicants.
>>
>>"This change eliminates an unnecessary regulatory burden that may
>>discourage current Amateur Radio operators from advancing their
>>skills and participating more fully in the benefits of Amateur
>>Radio," the FCC said. The ARRL had asked the FCC to retain the 5 WPM
>>for Amateur Extra class applicants only. The FCC proposed earlier to
>>drop the requirement across the board, however, and it held to that
>>decision in today's R&O.
>>
>>Perhaps more important, the FCC's action in WT Docket 05-235 appears
>>to put all Technician licensees on an equal footing: Once the R&O
>>goes into effect, holders of Technician class licenses will have
>>equivalent HF privileges, whether or not they've passed the 5 WPM
>>Element 1 Morse examination. The FCC said the R&O in the Morse code
>>docket would eliminate a disparity in the operating privileges for
>>the Technician and Technician Plus class licensees. Technician
>>licensees without Element 1 credit (ie, Tech Plus licensees)
>>currently have operating privileges on all amateur frequencies above
>>30 MHz.
>>
>>"With today's elimination of the Morse code exam requirements, the
>>FCC concluded that the disparity between the operating privileges of
>>Technician Class licensees and Technician Plus Class licensees
>>should not be retained," the FCC said in its public notice.
>>"Therefore, the FCC, in today's action, afforded Technician and
>>Technician Plus licensees identical operating privileges."
>>
>>The wholesale elimination of a Morse code requirement for all
>>license classes ends a longstanding national and international
>>regulatory tradition in the requirements to gain access to Amateur
>>Radio frequencies below 30 MHz. The first no-code license in the US
>>was the Technician ticket, instituted in 1991. The question of
>>whether or not to drop the Morse requirement altogether has been the
>>subject of often-heated debate over the past several years, but the
>>handwriting has been on the wall. A number of countries, including
>>Canada, no longer require applicants for an Amateur Radio license to
>>pass a Morse code test to gain HF operating privileges. The list has
>>been increasing regularly.
>>
>>The FCC said today's R&O in WT Docket 05-235 comports with revisions
>>to the international Radio Regulations resulting from the
>>International Telecommunication Union (ITU) World Radiocommunication
>>Conference 2003 (WRC-03). At that gathering, delegates agreed to
>>authorize each country to determine whether or not to require that
>>applicants demonstrate Morse code proficiency in order to qualify
>>for an Amateur Radio license with privileges on frequencies below 30
>>MHz.
>>
>>Typically, the effective date of an FCC Order is 30 days after it
>>appears in the Federal Register. That would mean the Morse
>>requirement and the revised 80-meter segment for automatically
>>controlled digital stations would likely not go into effect until
>>late January 2007.
>>
>>The ARRL will provide any additional information on these important
>>Part 97 rule revisions as it becomes available.
>>NNNN
>>/EX
>>
>>
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