Okay KJ, I get your humor and I even hear your logic. But the question is Why charge such a fee? Sure, it’s not a lot of money for many of us, but for a lot of amateurs who are retired, or who’ve lost their job thanks to Covid-19, there’s always somebody looking for another 50 bucks or another 25. New hams face a bunch of expenses already, for new gear, etc. It’s like a lot of the permit fees a person is asked to pay. Why are you charged these fees? Mostly it’s just government at one level or another looking for another source of revenue. The FCC is already clearing billions of dollars by selling large chunks of spectrum to the wireless business. Another 50 bucks will mean nothing to Uncle Sam, but may have meaning for someone who’s just scrapin’ by.
JP From: BVARC <[email protected]> On Behalf Of KJ Anderson via BVARC Sent: Saturday, August 29, 2020 4:51 PM To: BRAZOS VALLEY AMATEUR RADIO CLUB <[email protected]>; 'john Parmalee' <[email protected]> Cc: KJ Anderson <[email protected]>; [email protected] Subject: Re: [BVARC] FCC Proposes to Reinstate Amateur Radio Service Fees Here’s how I see it: * $1000 for an HF radio * $1000 for a second/backup/whatever spare HF radio (most of us don’t have just one decent radio, be honest) * $5000 for a modest tower, concrete, etc. * $2000 in an actual antenna, feed line, rotator, etc. * $1000 for two cars fully installed with mobile VHF/UHF radios and antennas * $500 for a gas generator and battery backups (some of us) * $300 a year for field day supplies, the camping trip, food, conventions, etc. If the FCC bills us $50 every 10 years (your license is now good for 10 years due to the 2019 rule change), I’m not sure I can stay in this hobby any longer, the costs of the FCC will make this hobby too cost prohibitive for me…. A bit of tongue-in-cheek for a Saturday afternoon. 73!! KJ5EMP, KJ in Cypress ------------------------------------------------- KJ Anderson 253-380-2636 <http://www.linkedin.com/in/scrumnerd> www.linkedin.com/in/scrumnerd From: BVARC <[email protected] <mailto:[email protected]> > On Behalf Of JP Pritchard via BVARC Sent: Saturday, August 29, 2020 3:18 PM To: 'john Parmalee' <[email protected] <mailto:[email protected]> >; 'BRAZOS VALLEY AMATEUR RADIO CLUB' <[email protected] <mailto:[email protected]> > Cc: [email protected] <mailto:[email protected]> Subject: Re: [BVARC] FCC Proposes to Reinstate Amateur Radio Service Fees I’m new to this game, but as far as I am aware, the FCC does very little to support amateur radio, with the exception of allowing hams to use certain frequencies. This would appear to be nothing more than a money grab, having nothing to do with cost of administration, (since it sounds like most of the administration is automated). They certainly contribute very little to enforcing their own rules. I don’t mind paying for a toll road if I’m a user, but a toll road requires constant upkeep and upgrades. I don’t see the parallel to amateur radio. I hope the ARRL gathers its forces against this proposal (to the extent that its bylaws allow) and supports all ancillary efforts to kill this effort. That’s just my initial thought on the matter. Tell me why I’m wrong. 73, K5JPP, JP from: BVARC <[email protected] <mailto:[email protected]> > On Behalf Of john Parmalee via BVARC Sent: Saturday, August 29, 2020 2:27 PM To: [email protected] <mailto:[email protected]> ; [email protected] <mailto:[email protected]> ; [email protected] <mailto:[email protected]> Cc: john Parmalee <[email protected] <mailto:[email protected]> > Subject: [BVARC] FCC Proposes to Reinstate Amateur Radio Service Fees FCC Proposes to Reinstate Amateur Radio Service Fees 08/28/2020 Amateur radio licensees would pay a $50 fee for each amateur radio license application if the FCC adopts rules it proposed this week. Included in the FCC’s fee proposal are applications for new licenses, renewal and upgrades to existing licenses, and vanity call sign requests. Excluded are applications for administrative updates, such as changes of address, and annual regulatory fees. The FCC proposal is contained in a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking ( <https://docs.fcc.gov/public/attachments/FCC-20-116A1.pdf> NPRM) in MD Docket 20-270, which was adopted to implement portions of the “Repack Airwaves Yielding Better Access for Users of Modern Services Act” of 2018 — the so-called “ <https://www.congress.gov/115/plaws/publ141/PLAW-115publ141.pdf> Ray Baum’s Act.” The Act requires that the FCC switch from a Congressionally-mandated fee structure to a cost-based system of assessment. In its NPRM, the FCC proposed application fees for a broad range of services that use the FCC’s Universal Licensing System (ULS), including the Amateur Radio Service that had been excluded by an earlier statute. The 2018 statute excludes the Amateur Service from annual regulatory fees, but not from application fees. “[A]pplications for personal licenses are mostly automated and do not have individualized staff costs for data input or review,” the FCC said in its NPRM. “For these automated processes — new/major modifications, renewal, and minor modifications — we propose a nominal application fee of $50 due to automating the processes, routine ULS maintenance, and limited instances where staff input is required.” The same $50 fee would apply to all Amateur Service applications, including those for vanity call signs. “Although there is currently no fee for vanity call signs in the Amateur Radio Service, we find that such applications impose similar costs in aggregate on Commission resources as new applications and therefore propose a $50 fee,” the FCC said. The FCC is not proposing to charge for administrative updates, such as mailing address changes for amateur applications, and amateur radio will remain exempt from annual regulatory fees. “For administrative updates [and] modifications, which also are highly automated, we find that it is in the public interest to encourage licensees to update their [own] information without a charge,” the FCC said. The FCC also proposes to assess a $50 fee for individuals who want a printed copy of their license. “The Commission has proposed to eliminate these services — but to the extent the Commission does not do so, we propose a fee of $50 to cover the costs of these services,” the FCC said. The Ray Baum’s Act does not exempt filing fees in the Amateur Radio Service. The FCC dropped assessment of fees for vanity call signs several years ago. Deadlines for comments and reply comments will be determined once the NPRM appears in the Federal Register. File comments by using the FCC’s Electronic Comment Filing System ( <https://www.fcc.gov/ecfs/filings> ECFS), posting to MD Docket No. 20-270. This docket is already open for accepting comments even though deadlines have not yet been set.
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