TO:   DISTRIBUTION LIST  "EX"

SUBJECT:    T O D A Y ’ S  A M A T E U R  R A D I O  S E R V I C E  (1990-93)
                                     --- the Adverse Effects of Federal Deregulation!

BACKGROUND

Six years after the Amateur Radio Service (ARS) was deregulated by the Reagan Administration and the U.S. Congress, Radio Amateurs realized operating conditions have become intolerable. Intentional interference by "pirate" stations, altercations over space, improper operating and the incidence of profanity, obscenity and pornography are now disrupting legitimate operations. The entire atmosphere surrounding this once great hobby/service has turned from Bad to Worse!

The American Radio Alliance believes the root cause of these problems is the absence of the Federal Communications Commission's direct surveillance of Ham Band activity.

FCC suspended surveillance of Ham frequencies in 1984 after it signed an Agreement with the Amateur Radio Relay League (ARRL). That Agreement created the Amateur Auxiliary -- a system of self-policing that has failed miserably. Today this ineffectual Auxiliary is a major obstacle in getting all parties to clarify, define and solve these worsening conditions.

Instead of helping in a subsidiary capacity -- the explicit meaning of AUXILIARY -- the FCC has treated the AA as the PRIMARY system for controlling the Bands. Therein lies the Hoax and the Deception the American Radio ALLIANCE has objected to for nearly a decade. This is the basis of our charge that FCC ABANDONED the Amateur Radio Service in 1984. Furthermore, it transferred to the ARRL certain activities that it was not authorized to perform according to the existing Communications Act, nor was the League capable of doing such a job. The League’s membership is less than 15% of the total number of licensed amateurs in the USA and, therefore, it has little justification to claim it is an appropriate body to lobby for amateurs in Washington.

          A.  Weakening amateur radio activity by lowering standards                

                and slowly converting it into a Citizen Band operation,

                populated by lesser qualified people who want to change

                it into a sport, not a service.

          B.  Eliminating, in time, the Amateur Service as a viable

               Emergency Volunteer communications resource,

               thereby creating a new market opportunity in every county.

Furthermore, ARA believes  that a group of Congressmen and FCC bureaucrats are preparing to dissemble the Amateur Service by taking frequency allotments (i.e. bands) from it on a piecemeal basis.  Auctioning of spectrum space to amass more Federal political clout and more revenue appears to be a certainty in the very near future!

COMPREHENSIVE SURVEY

Realizing that facts must replace impressions and conjecture, the ARA began to check out the new system created by the Deregulators. The Study, submitted herewith, involves:

 1. Monitoring of the 20 Meter Band 8-10 hours per day, using "signal capture"
     methods based upon Industrial Engineering principals to document congestion
     and operating troubles. Details are discussed in SIGNAL DENSITY ANALYSIS in
     Addendum "A" .

2. Recording activity focused on Slow Scan TV and DXers who were competing for
    space.

3. Review of operator practices causing inefficient use of frequencies.

4. An inquiry into the “support systems" available for today's Amateurs who seek
     help to resolve on-the-air problems (e.g. , interference, altercations, etc)

The monitoring phase focused on the Single Side Band (SSB) segment from 14.150 to 14.350 kHz. A special target area of 14.225 to 14.235 kHz was selected to analyze the DX Nets versus SSTV issue. SSTV is a multi-color, high resolution picture Mode now growing popular due to computers, new software and new lower cost scanning equipment.

The overall effort spanned thirty months and produced nearly 2000 hours of tape recorded data. Signal data is reported graphically in Addendum “A”.

FINDINGS:

1. Using only two channels, SSTV operators were found to be victims of malicious interference by “pirate” (i.e. non-identifying) stations as well as a number of identifying stations. Some were forced into the area by DXers and Social Nets. Opportunists also encroached upon SSTV simply because they can easily jam pictures. Many on-the-air arguments occur due to bad operating practices. SSTV and regular Voice SSB are not compatible in an operating environment where  operators are untrained, reckless or are troublemakers. Conflict exists because many believe Video operations should not be mingled with SSB (Voice-only) activity.

2. Whereas the International Amateur Radio Union (IARU) has designated 10 kHz in this area for world-wide Slow Scan, the U.S. through the FCC, does not recognize the designation, declaring that ALL Hams can use any frequency that is not being used. U.S. DX Nets occupy both ends of this area. The two Modes and activities are incompatible. FCC's allocation practices are responsible for interactions of this kind because operators of ALL Classes congregate in this area so they may participate in Net activity.

3. Some "pirate" stations are Hispanic-speaking operators who maintain contact with relatives in the Caribbean, Central and South America. Based upon extensive monitoring, these are considered to be "illegals”, located in New York City, Chicago and Miami. This type of "network" appears to be extensive and growing.

4. A large part of the malicious interference is caused by six stations who destroy SSTV pictures, day and night. Incidents occur on an average of 85 times on weekdays and 185 times on weekends and Holidays. These are pure acts of vandalism, more properly called "malicious interference".

5. Pirate stations also transmit hard pornographic material day or night. Profanity and obscenities occur regularly. Pornography is a growing problem on the Video channels as picture transmission appears to be attracting such individuals.

6. Reporting these conditions to FCC or ARRL resulted in neither dialogue nor action. FCC monitoring stations advised "we have nothing to do with Ham radio anymore -- call ARRL!" Contact with ARRL revealed that North Carolina had no active Amateur Auxiliary, primarily because of the State Section Manager who opted to not set it up. In short,  the AA system existed only in FCC’s mind and on paper!
None of the methods created to replace FCC's previous monitoring activity was available. Further probing revealed that FCC in Washington permitted District Engineers to decide "on their own" whether to cooperate with Hams who reported
problems and violations.

7. The ALLIANCE Operations Manager filed 60 letters with Congress and FCC plus 100 telephone calls and no progress was ever made. Members of Congress refused to comment on a proposal that REVIEW action be taken to discover what really happened to Amateur Radio after deregulation took place. While they welcomed ARRL lobbyists, communications by rank-and-file Hams were treated by staffers as "nuisance mail" in most cases. FCC’s usual tactic was to not reply or suggest that the inquiry be sent via the individual’s Representative in Congress. Such routing was tried and it proved to be slow and unsatisfactory because of the technical nature of the subject.

8. Our inquiry revealed that FCC and ARRL do not have the equipment to receive Slow Scan TV video signals. How can they perform surveillance if they cannot even see the pictures? The damage being done is "visual”, hence, it must be seen as well as heard. The Study group offered FCC a complete SSTV system since FCC apparently had no funds to buy one -- an offer by the way, that was never acknowledged by the cognizant division manager.

9. The ARRL, after agreeing with Richard Smith of FCC/FOB to use its Official Observer corps to monitor the bands, never reorganized its OO corps to carry out those new duties. The “volunteer” system has failed to do what was agreed to in 1984. Amateurs are the victims of this cruel Hoax. The Bands have been defenseless since that time. FCC's Smith has shown little interest in checking on whether the Agreement with the League was ever properly implemented. In a letter to us via Senator Helms office in August 1992, Chief Smith pointed out that Ham Radio has a “very low priority”.

CONCLUSIONS

1. Once FCC transferred administering the Exams (1970s) and stopped monitoring the Ham Bands (1984), it turned its back on Amateur Radio operators. It was an unprecedented display of neglect and hostility toward a Citizen group.  Regrettably, this attitude persists today. Is this the level of esteem intended by the Congress when it approved deregulating the ARS? Or is there a part of this story -- negotiated in Congress -- that has never been told?

2. The policies invoked in the name of Deregulation have left Amateur Radio Service without control or protection of its assigned frequencies

3. The Volunteer Examination (VE) system has become a system for ‘enrollment’ rather than "examination" of applicants. Licenses are being “merchandised" like Credit Cards. The tests are either too easy or the proctoring by volunteer examiners is improper, possibly even fraudulent.

4. The ARRL, representing less than 20% of the U.S. Amateurs, has failed to restructure itself to meet its new responsibilities in an era of VOLUNTEERISM. The Amateur Auxiliary, which depends on the League's Official Observer group, has failed for a number of reasons. Due to the unique nature of the frequency spectrum, which is easily violated by “pirate” operators, Hams are fundamentally unable to police and discipline themselves and such offenders. ARRL knows this and should have addressed the issue years ago, especially at the time Mr. Smith proposed the changes to ARRL in 1984 that created the bogus Amateur Auxiliary. The League should have refused to assume such a task!

5. Commercial interests supported by strong lobbying groups have undermined the Amateur Radio Service. The dominant philosophy is "by licensing more Hams, we can sell more Ham magazines and more equipment". Equipment, incidentally, 80% of which comes from Japan! Conflicts of interest among the leaders of the ARS and those operating the Volunteer Examination system are obvious but they go unchallenged. The number of unqualified operators on the bands today is appalling -- a direct result of the ill-conceived VE system.
 

RECOMMENDATIONS

1. We urge the ARRL Directors to cancel the Agreement between FCC and ARRL relative to the Amateur Auxiliary. The new FCC Chairperson (1993) should order the resumption of monitoring the Bands to identify and apprehend violators. If the Auxiliary is continued it should be outside the ARRL Observer group, centrally managed and in no way connected with the State Section Managers.

2. Adopt a new philosophy on spectrum management to meet today's conditions were there is greater diversity of technical Modes and Usage. MOVE THE SLOW SCAN TV STATIONS INTO THEIR OWN 10-16 kHz area where they will not be harassed by powerful SSB stations. SSTV should not be intermingled with SSB.

A concept of Particular Usage for allocating Band segments is recommended. The issue of "equal access" for ALL Hams has been raised because high powered DX and Social Nets who now dominate the Band. Usurpation of space by powerful, aggressive stations must be controlled.

3. ADOPT A FEE SCHEDULE for initial licensing, renewals and upgrades that will fund the cost of FCC monitoring the Ham Bands on "a selective but scheduled basis". Serious, dedicated amateur operators are willing to pay  for such surveillance notwithstanding the ARRL’s position on this matter.

Similar to the Funding Policy of the U.S. Patent Office (circa 1983), change the law so that all users of the communications spectrum who require the services of FCC shall pay fees directly to that agency including Hams. An alternative to this approach could be a tax on all two-way radio equipment so that ALL RADIO SERVICES support the Agency. The Agency would then know who it works for.

4. Immediately, initiate a program to track down, apprehend and prosecute operators of “pirate” stations. Many appear to be "illegals"; other kinds of trafficking and intrigues appear to exist on the Ham Bands as well. Penalties should be tough and unrelenting.

5. Suspend the Volunteer Examiner (VE) system and overhaul it. The business of testing and examinations requires certain expertise and suitable "checks and balances" to guarantee system integrity. The present system has been licensing newcomers who have inadequate knowledge and skills, a policy promoted by ARRL aimed at increasing the number of Amateurs without concern for Quality.

6. To eliminate newcomers who pass tests but know nothing about the Hobby or good operating practices, yet who become VE's, establish a schedule of so many months in a License Class before moving up to Extra and VE status. A VE applicant must have no less than four years operating experience and be at least twenty-five years old.

FINAL COMMENT

 The Amateur Radio Service has been the "last resort” for communications in time of Disaster and Civil Emergency for nearly a hundred years. It has been a primary force in science and electronics Education. The adverse conditions cited in this Study are the direct result of Deregulation Policies put in place by FCC Administrative teams (apparently) eager to free themselves of Ham affairs that it and certain members of Congress have considered a “nuisance. It has become increasingly clear that those members of Congress have been instrumental in blocking a Review of the status of the ARS during the past three years. Meanwhile they pay lip service to it as the Amateur Radio Service gasps for help.

In the judgment of the ALLIANCE, the dichotomy existing between ARRL's version and the FCC's version of who should be monitoring and controlling the Bands Is NO LONGER ACCEPTABLE. The changes have altered the operating environment to such an extent that a criminal element -- licensed and unlicensed --  does "as it pleases, when it pleases" without risk of penalty. These conditions will only get worse if the Clinton Administration does not restore FCC surveillance and monitoring services now. Compliance is crucial to saving the Hobby/Service.

2. This has been the only independent Study of the operating environment conducted since Deregulation began. The Study has confirmed what many have suspected: like other institutions and businesses subjected to the whims of Deregulators who freed the marketplace and fired the auditors, AMATEUR RADIO IS, INDEED, IN A STATE OF CRISIS!  Its losses cannot be measured in dollars like the S&L fiasco. Its real assets are too abstract to be counted, yet they are important and far-reaching.

The Hobby has been a major Educational Resource for our Nation, and a Major Civil Emergency facility always at-the-ready. It is the principal channel for daily contacts between American Hams and Hams in other parts of the World -- a significant force creating and maintaining International Good Will. It remains the Nations major technology-based avocation with thousands of young people being licensed every year -- learning the thrill of Science in a practical, meaningful setting.

Ham "shacks" are located in Homes making it -- as always -- a family-oriented Hobby of considerable influence on men, women and children of all ages. It touches the lives of 34 million Citizens each day. It generates substantial business investments and profits affecting hundreds of thousands of Americans, not to mention a vast bonanza for the Japanese who produce equipment that many Hams prefer. The Good the Hobby can generate will not continue if it is not properly regulated and protected by an FCC and a Justice Department willing to get tough with spoilers and violators of the Law. The threat to the Hobby's Integrity has never been greater.

4. The American Radio ALLIANCE reiterates the urgent need to deal with the problems cited and requests swift action on the part of the Clinton Administration to achieve these ends.

Summary Prepared & Respectfully Submitted on June 10, 1993:  *

Charles Scheid (W3OHV)
Executive Director
American Radio ALLIANCE Group

*- reissued January 26, 2000 via InterNet URL
        http://www.baldeaglejournal.com/ARA.htm

Reissued February 2003 – 10th Anniversary Release & Follow-Up
Permanently Archived at www.baldeaglejournal.com/
Reissued via BaldEagleJournal.com August 31, 2008

Reissued via BaldEagleJournal.com October 10, 2010

Please go to: ARA PERSPECTIVE