SB QST @ ARL $ARLB010
ARLB010 FCC Universal Licensing System Applications Are Unavailable

ZCZC AG10
QST de W1AW
ARRL Bulletin 10 ARLB010
From ARRL Headquarters
Newington CT June 14, 2023
To all radio amateurs

SB QST ARL ARLB010
ARLB010 FCC Universal Licensing System Applications Are Unavailable

The FCC Universal Licensing System (ULS), which includes Electronic
Batch Filing (EBF) used by VECs for new and upgrade license
submissions and club license applications, Application Search,
License Search, License Manager system used for filing applications
directly with the FCC, Tower Construction Notification System, E-106
System, Antenna Structure Registration Online Filing and searches,
TOWAIR and all ULS Specialized Searches, are currently down.

The FCC's EBF and License Manager Filing systems have stopped
accepting and processing all amateur radio exam session files and
applications. The EBF system has not processed any VEC license
applications and examination session files since Monday afternoon.
The other systems have not been available since Friday June 9 at the
close of business.

ARRL VEC Manager Maria Somma, AB1FM, said her office contacted the
FCC staff, which said systems are down due to maintenance but did
not estimate how long the systems would be down. "As soon as the FCC
staff corrects the EBF system problem, we will immediately file the
backlog via the automated system, which would take only a few hours
or less to release," Somma estimated. When the License Manager
system is again available, amateurs will be able to file license
renewals, vanity call sign applications, and other license updates
online directly with the FCC.
NNNN
/EX
--- SBBSecho 3.20-Win32
* Origin: The Thunderbolt BBS - Little Rock, Arkansas (954:895/7)

SB QST @ ARL $ARLB011
ARLB011 Legislation to Remove Private Land Use Restrictions on
Amateur Radio Introduced in Congress

ZCZC AG11
QST de W1AW
ARRL Bulletin 11 ARLB011
From ARRL Headquarters
Newington CT June 14, 2023
To all radio amateurs

SB QST ARL ARLB011
ARLB011 Legislation to Remove Private Land Use Restrictions on
Amateur Radio Introduced in Congress

Congressmen Bill Johnson (OH-06) and Joe Courtney (CT-02)
reintroduced a bill in the US House of Representatives on June 12 -
H.R.4006 - to remove private land use restrictions that prohibit,
restrict, or impair the ability of Amateur Radio operators from
operating and installing reasonable antennas on property that they
own or control. Similar legislation, H.R. 9670, was introduced by
Congressman Johnson in 2022.

The full text of the bill can be found in PDF format at, https://billjohnson.house.gov/uploadedfiles/amateur_radio_emergency_ preparedness_act_signed_bill_text.pdf

(above URL all on one line)

"I reintroduced the Amateur Radio Emergency Preparedness Act to
remove barriers to disaster and emergency communications and
training, and to promote education in STEM subjects related to
critically needed wireless technology," Congressman Johnson said in
a release. "Passage of this bill will promote developing and
sustaining our nation's wireless future and facilitate and encourage
amateur radio operations as a public benefit."

"As their actions during recent natural disasters such as Hurricane
Sandy proved, amateur radio operators in Connecticut can be a
critical component of disaster response and emergency management. It
is in our communities' best interest that we give them the
capabilities to operate at the highest level, and with the
re-introduction of this bill, we've taken a strong step in that
direction," said Congressman Courtney.

The exponential growth of communities bound by private land use
restrictions that prohibit both the operation of Amateur Radio and
the installation of amateur station antennas has significantly
restricted the growth of the Amateur Radio Service.

The ARRL continues its multi-year efforts to eliminate private land
use restrictions that prevent Amateur Radio operations and has
pledged to strongly support Congressman Johnson and Congressman
Courtney in their efforts on behalf of Amateur Radio.

Rick Roderick, K5UR, President of ARRL, on behalf its Members and
America's Amateur Radio community extended his thanks and
appreciation for the leadership of Congressman Johnson and
Congressman Courtney in their tireless efforts to support and
protect the rights of all Amateur Radio Operators and to further
STEM education and the advancement of American expertise in wireless technology.
NNNN
/EX
--- SBBSecho 3.20-Win32
* Origin: The Thunderbolt BBS - Little Rock, Arkansas (954:895/7)

SB QST @ ARL $ARLB012
ARLB012 Updated: FCC ULS Unavailable, Filing Deadlines Extended

ZCZC AG12
QST de W1AW
ARRL Bulletin 12 ARLB012
From ARRL Headquarters
Newington CT June 15, 2023
To all radio amateurs

SB QST ARL ARLB012
ARLB012 Updated: FCC ULS Unavailable, Filing Deadlines Extended

In an email to all VECs, the FCC indicated that a Public Notice was
issued by the Commission on June 13, 2023:

FCC Public Notice DA 23-506: UNIVERSAL LICENSING, TOWER
CONSTRUCTION NOTIFICATION, E-106, AND ANTENNA STRUCTURE REGISTRATION
SYSTEMS UNAVAILABLE; FILING DEADLINES EXTENDED

The FCC Public Notice can be seen at: https://www.fcc.gov/document/uls-tcns-e-106-and-asr-unavailable-filing- deadlines-extended-0

(above URL all on one line).

The notice states that the FCC's Universal Licensing System (ULS),
Tower Construction Notification System (TCNS), E-106 System, and
Antenna Structure Registration System (ASR) have been unavailable
since approximately 6:30 p.m. EDT on Friday, June 9, due to
technical issues that the agency anticipates resolving in the near
term.

Further the FCC is extending deadlines for regulatory filings in ULS
and ASR because parties have not and will not be able to make
electronic filings or view the contents of the affected systems
while they are unavailable. Therefore the FCC is extending the
filing deadlines for all regulatory filings that needed to be or
will need to be made in these systems starting June 9, 2023 and
until the Commission announces ULS operations, for at least three
business days after access to the systems resumes.

The FCC's Commission Registration (CORES) System used to pay fees is
unaffected and will remain operational and available to pay any
regulatory fee or application fee payments during this period.

The FCC ULS systems affected that are used by amateurs are the
Electronic Batch Filing (EBF) used by VECs for new and upgrade
license submissions and club license applications, Application
Search, License Search, and the License Manager system used for
filing applications directly with the FCC.

At this time, the FCC has stated they do not have a target for the
ULS systems to be back online.
NNNN
/EX
--- SBBSecho 3.20-Win32
* Origin: The Thunderbolt BBS - Little Rock, Arkansas (954:895/7)

SB QST @ ARL $ARLB013
ARLB013 FCC ULS Reopened, Except Electronic Batch Filing System

ZCZC AG13
QST de W1AW
ARRL Bulletin 13 ARLB013
From ARRL Headquarters
Newington CT June 22, 2023
To all radio amateurs

SB QST ARL ARLB013
ARLB013 FCC ULS Reopened, Except Electronic Batch Filing System

On Wednesday morning, June 21, 2023, the FCC had reopened the
Universal Licensing System (ULS) and supporting systems, according
to an email distributed to VEC organizations. However, as of 4:00 PM
on Wednesday, the Electronic Batch Filing (EBF) system, used by VEC organizations for filing exam sessions, individual applications, and
club license applications, was still not available as promised.
Unfortunately, this means applications for new and upgraded
licenses, and individual and club license filings still cannot be
uploaded in the system for issuance.

When the EBF system becomes available, the Commission is requesting
VECs to limit submissions into the filing system. In an email sent
by the FCC, all EBF filers were asked to adhere to a restricted
upload schedule in order to keep the EBF system stable and to avoid
any potential technical problems. The FCC will be monitoring to
ensure the EBF system is stable during this reopening period. If
they assess that the upload volume is too high, they will send out
another notice with directions to reduce the amount of uploads per
hour.

ARRL VEC will comply with the FCC directive, limiting our
transmissions but sending as many backlogged sessions as possible
without overloading their system. The files will be submitted to the
FCC in the order in which they were received, starting with the
files from Monday, June 12, and moving forward from there. ARRL VEC
will begin submitting the backlogged applications as soon as the EBF
system becomes available, and assuming all FCC systems remain
stable.

In an FCC notice published on June 21, 2023 (please see, https://www.fcc.gov/document/uls-tcns-e-106-and-asr-available), the
Commission provided a deadline extension for filings in the ULS and
the Antenna Structure Registration (ASR) system, explaining,
"Because parties could not make electronic filings or view the
contents of the affected systems while they were unavailable, we are
extending the deadlines for all regulatory filings that were due in
the affected systems between June 9, 2023, and June 29, 2023, until
Friday, June 30, 2023.

"We note that we have provided for a longer extension for these
filings than initially contemplated in the June 13 Public Notice in anticipation of high traffic volumes on these systems in the coming
days. In that regard, we encourage filers to consider deferring
discretionary filings this week, and we encourage filers preparing
large submissions to coordinate in advance with [the] staff of the
Bureaus."
NNNN
/EX
--- SBBSecho 3.20-Win32
* Origin: The Thunderbolt BBS - Little Rock, Arkansas (954:895/7)

SB QST @ ARL $ARLB014
ARLB014 FCC ULS System Restored

ZCZC AG14
QST de W1AW
ARRL Bulletin 14 ARLB014
From ARRL Headquarters
Newington CT June 27, 2023
To all radio amateurs

SB QST ARL ARLB014
ARLB014 FCC ULS System Restored

The FCC Universal Licensing System (ULS) has resumed operations,
including the Electronic Batch Filing system (EBF).

As of June 27, 2023, all systems have been reported to be working.
However, visitors to the website will see a message referring them
to Public Notice DA 23-529 for additional information and guidance
on filing deadline extensions.

The systems were first reported unavailable on June 9, 2023. On
Friday afternoon, June 23, the EBF system was restored. All VEC
organizations use that system for filing exam sessions, individual applications, and club license applications. ARRL VEC staff worked
late into Friday night to ensure all backlogged sessions and
application files were transmitted to the FCC before the weekend.
Approximately 350 backlogged files were successfully submitted to
and processed by the FCC before the system's normal shutdown at 8
PM.

ARRL is still monitoring the ULS system, and any further updates
will be available at ARRL News.
NNNN
/EX
--- SBBSecho 3.20-Win32
* Origin: The Thunderbolt BBS - Little Rock, Arkansas (954:895/7)

SB QST @ ARL $ARLB015
ARLB015 Commercial Interests Petition FCC for High Power Allocation
on Shortwave Spectrum

ZCZC AG15
QST de W1AW
ARRL Bulletin 15 ARLB015
From ARRL Headquarters
Newington CT July 12, 2023
To all radio amateurs

SB QST ARL ARLB015
ARLB015 Commercial Interests Petition FCC for High Power Allocation
on Shortwave Spectrum

The ad hoc group "Shortwave Modernization Coalition" petitioned the
Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to allow data communications
on multiple bands within the HF 2 - 25 MHz range with up to 20 KW,
including in bands immediately adjacent to spectrum allocated to the
Amateur Radio Service. This group appears to represent high-speed
stock trading interests.

The FCC has assigned it RM-11953. Comments are due by July 31, 2023,
and reply comments by August 15.

While the petitioners exclude the amateur bands, high power
operations on immediately adjacent bands are proposed. The ARRL is
reviewing the petition.

A copy of the petition can be found in PDF format at: https://www.fcc.gov/ecfs/document/1042840187330/1 .
NNNN
/EX
--- SBBSecho 3.20-Win32
* Origin: The Thunderbolt BBS - Little Rock, Arkansas (954:895/7)

SB QST @ ARL $ARLB016
ARLB016 Filers Seek Extension on Shortwave Petition. ARRL to File
Comments.

ZCZC AG16
QST de W1AW
ARRL Bulletin 16 ARLB016
From ARRL Headquarters
Newington CT August 1, 2023
To all radio amateurs

SB QST ARL ARLB016
ARLB016 Filers Seek Extension on Shortwave Petition. ARRL to File
Comments.

Since May, ARRL has been reviewing the rules proposed in a petition
before the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) from the
"Shortwave Modernization Coalition" (SMC). The ARRL Laboratory has
been studying the petition out of concern for potential interference
to Amateur Radio communications.

Comments on the petition, RM-11953, were due to FCC by July 31, 2023

(see,
https://www.arrl.org/news/commercial-interests-petition-fcc-for-high- power-allocation-on-shortwave-spectrum ) .

(above URL all on one line)

However, a 30-day extension of time was requested by both Skywave
Networks LLC and FlexRadio Systems.

The timely request from Skywave automatically triggered an extension
to the filing deadline. Under FCC rules, when a request for
extension is made within the appropriate timeframe, commenters may
file comments until a date set by FCC when it rules on the extension
request, or no earlier than two business days after the FCC
decision. On Monday, July 31, the FCC denied the request for
extension. Comments therefore may continue to be filed through
Wednesday, August 2.

In its petition, SMC, a group that appears to represent high-speed
stock trading interests, has proposed amending the FCC Part 90 rules
to allow introduction of high-power digital communications to the
shortwave spectrum that in many instances is immediately adjacent to
the amateur HF bands.

ARRL's comments on the matter will be based on the analysis by its
laboratory and guided by its experienced Washington, D.C. regulatory
affairs counsel. ARRL will use the extension to best represent the
interests of its members and the Amateur Radio Service.
NNNN
/EX
--- SBBSecho 3.20-Win32
* Origin: The Thunderbolt BBS - Little Rock, Arkansas (954:895/7)