SB QST @ ARL $ARLB021   
   ARLB021 FCC Speedily Dismisses Petitions to Alter Amateur Service Rules   
      
   ZCZC AG21   
   QST de W1AW   
   ARRL Bulletin 21  ARLB021   
   > From ARRL Headquarters   
   Newington CT  July 2, 2015   
   To all radio amateurs   
      
   SB QST ARL ARLB021   
   ARLB021 FCC Speedily Dismisses Petitions to Alter Amateur Service Rules   
      
   Acting with near lightning speed, the FCC has dismissed two petitions for rule   
   making calling for separate amendments to the Part 97 Amateur Service rules.   
   Willison H. Gormly, WD0BCS, of Des Moines, New Mexico, filed both petitions on   
   June 16, and the FCC turned them away on July 1. Gormly had requested that the   
   FCC amend Part 97.301(e) of the rules by dividing it into separate   
   sub-paragraphs for technician and Novice class privileges. He had also asked   
   the FCC to amend Part 97.305(c) to authorize spread spectrum emissions in the   
   2 meter band.   
      
   "The rule changes you propose were previously rejected by the Commission,"   
   Scot Stone, deputy chief of the Mobility Division in the Wireless   
   Telecommunications Bureau, told Gormly in the FCC's dismissal letter. "Your   
   petitions do not demonstrate or even suggest that any relevant circumstances   
   have changed such as to merit reconsideration of these decisions."   
      
   The FCC noted that while Part 97.301(e) had been divided into two paragraphs   
   in the past, these were consolidated when the Commission streamlined the rules   
   in 1999. Gormly argued that the present   
   configuration was confusing, but the FCC pointed out that Part 97.301 "has   
   been in this arrangement for a number of years without any reported   
   difficulty."   
      
   Regarding Gormly's second petition, the Commission noted that it had sought   
   comment in 2004 as to whether it should expand the bands authorized for spread   
   spectrum to permit such emissions on the 50 MHz, 144 MHz, and 222 MHz bands.   
   Agreeing with the majority of comments, the FCC subsequently determined that   
   authorizing spread spectrum was not warranted on 6 meters and 2 meters,   
   "because of   
   concerns over the compatibility of spread spectrum emission types and other   
   Amateur radio operations in those bands," the FCC explained in its denial   
   letter.   
      
   The FCC had said it was concerned about raising the noise floor on the band,   
   with potential adverse effects on so-called "weak signal" communications or   
   "otherwise affecting experimentation." The   
   Commission also had noted that both bands are heavily used for other types of   
   communication.   
      
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   ... I am at one with my duality.   
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