IN-Newsletter Vol. 41, No. 11 March 23, 2016 - Covers the period March 13-19. Upcoming In-Person Meetings and Events Administration & Finance Committee May 4 @ 8:30am in Newington, CT CEO Office Just a quick note reminding all of you that ARRL HQ will be closed Friday, March 25. Regulatory Information Reported by Dan Henderson, N1ND In the past several weeks the work of the Regulatory Information office has centered on the usual topics. As the travel season approaches, there are numerous requests for information about operating temporarily off-shore, primarily in CEPT countries. In addition, several inquiries have been received about qualifying for a full license. For those coming into the US, while there are many reciprocal operating opportunities, the only way for an individual to obtain a US license grant and callsign is to pass the US license exam/s. We were recently contacted by 1st Lt. Drew Dutcher, Public Information Office at the Cape Cod Air Force Station PAVE PAWS site. The radar is in the process of the long-anticipated upgrade to the same level of operation already in place at Beale AFB. Dutcher was asking our assistance in reaching out to the Amateur community in southeast New England, informing them of the project and to assure the Amateurs that could potentially be affected by the upgrade of the Air Force's commitment to continue to work with them if issues arise. This request highlights the previous excellent cooperation of the Amateurs in the affected area and the good working relationship between the Air Force and the ARRL on this project, now entering its ninth year. Working with a press statement from the radar site, New England Director Tom Frenaye, K1KI, and ARRL news editor Rick Lindquist WW1ME, a story was posted on the ARRL web and distributed to ARRL leadership and clubs in Eastern Massachusetts and Rhode Island. Also related to PAVE PAWS, we worked with a small group of local Amateurs in eastern Rhode Island who are interested in doing some 70cm EME work in early April. The group wants to ensure it does not cause interference to the radar operation. The Regulatory Office text for the upcoming annual report was written and sent to the handling editor. In addition, we worked with the Dayton planning team on fleshing out two forums for 2016 Dayton Hamvention. We will be a presenter in the annual "Amateur Radio and the Law" forum as well as the moderator and a presenter for a forum on ARRL Field Day. A presentation for use at the April 2 Raleigh Hamfest / NC Section Convention is also being prepared. At the request of Advertising Manager Deb Jahnke, K1DAJ, we researched and reported on FCC rules and parameters on SDR. This was to assist her in identifying potential new advertisers. We reviewed some items at the request of Steve Ewald, WV1X, Supervisor of the HQ Field Organization Team, centering on basic rules of contact for ARES members proposed by the newly elected Section Manager in Louisiana. An item related to interference allegedly being caused by a CenturyLink DSL modem was referred to the ARRL Lab as well as having a follow-up conversation with the Amateur requesting the assistance. We researched and responded to a member's request for information about the legality of operating an ionosonde for a personal propagation research project in the Amateur bands. Part of his request was "could he use it outside of the Amateur bands to give him a broader set of data collection points?" Of course his Amateur license does not permit him to operate outside of the Amateur bands. We also noted that operating it as a beacon would require that the rules for beacon stations would need to be followed. We did offer that if he was doing a significant propagation research project, that perhaps he might want to apply for an experimental license with the FCC for that purpose. We also shared that even with an experimental license, he would have to be cognizant of interference to other licensed services. There are numerous questions about the status of the Amateur Radio Parity Act coming in from members anxious to put up their antennas. We continue to explain to them that it will be a while after the Act was passed and signed before they would be in a position to really erect antennas. Once the Act were to become law, the FCC would still have to draft and order the Part 97 rules to implement it. In addition, we continue to support the new Contest Manager, Bart Jahnke, W9JJ, as he continues to learn the scope of his responsibilities. Finally, we have seen an increase in the number of questions on the 2016 Field Day event, as the Regulatory Manager has again assumed responsibilities for managing the event for this year. Sales and Marketing Reported by Bob Inderbitzen, NQ1R The Member Services team is beginning to receive orders for the new editions of The ARRL Repeater Directory. The 2016-2017 edition, in pocket-size<http://www.arrl.org/shop/The-ARRL-Repeater-Directory-Pocket-size/> and desktop versions, will begin shipping in early April. The books are being promoted for the new, improved listings, now organized by state/province, city, and mode. Jackie Ferreira completed a handful of activities for promoting our publication and product offerings throughout the spring months. A St. Patrick's Day emailing helped drive additional traffic to the e-store before the end of the week. Yvette Vinci prepared a reminder emailing to members with a summary of "What's trending" in April QST, taking advantage of some early analytics shared by Alli Barbieri. The notification was sent to 122,936 members on Monday, March 21. Yvette is attending the National Postal Forum in Tennessee, March 20-23. The event is the mailing industry's premier educational venue, trade show and networking event, and supports our interest in pursuing effective and efficient use of the mail communications system. Bob Inderbitzen circulated a questionnaire to Section Youth Coordinators and other youth leaders, exploring the idea of an ARRL-sponsored all-day youth track for Dayton. Diane Petrilli attended a conference sponsored by the American Society of Association Executives covering topics involving member engagement and membership analytics. The information supports our effort to improve strategies that elicit and track members' interests. Our news outlets and social media carried a press release<http://www.arrl.org/news/rfinder-now-includes-coverage-maps> for RFinder, announcing their new strategic alliance with CloudRF.com to include coverage maps for all repeaters, worldwide. Summary of Sales and Marketing Department telephone group, reported by Yvette Vinci: Week Ending Calls Answered Calls Per Hour Total Talking Duration Average Speed of Answer 3/18/2016 932 20.7 27:30:19 10 seconds 3/11/2016 849 18.9 25:13:34 9 seconds 3/4/2016 1,049 23.3 31:48:04 11 seconds 2/26/2016 1,101 24.4 34:31:47 11 seconds Summary of warehouse fulfillment activity, reported by Steve Capodicasa: Week Ending Packages fulfilled Member Premiums 3/18/2016 853 479 3/11/2016 631 510 3/4/2016 1,464 525 2/26/2016 1,051 738 Field Services & Radiosport Reported by Dave Patton, NN1N DXCC Paper/Fieldcheck Processing Time 2-3 Weeks Logbook Processing Time 2 Days Number of Centennial applications processed: Centennial Challenge QSO 2840 W1AW/WAS 2019 W1AW Joe Carcia updated the web code practice files and their archives. He updated both the weekly code practice web page source and the Qualifying Run web schedules. Joe also spent some time monitoring the International Space Station Packet system (RS0ISS) given there were spotty reports the digipeater was non-functional. After a few days of hearing no activity, the RS0ISS system appears to be back online. Scott Gee worked on slow and fast code practice files for the week. He also processed some VUCC applications. Field Organization/Public Service Team Radio amateurs from North Dakota and Wyoming successfully completed requirements to become Official Observers this past week. More information was provided to ARRL regarding a previously reported bootlegger in Oregon, and those details were forwarded to the FCC. The 75 meter Texas Traffic Net is again reporting interference, and follow-up continues. A repeater in Dallas without identification and a wideband noise signal in south Texas is being checked out. Chuck Skolaut also had handled two inquiries regarding the 219 MHz portion of the 220 band. Leona Adams reports that the Alabama Section Manager election ballots and candidates statements arrived from our local printer. Thanks to the Mailroom staff for handling this mailing to Alabama Section members no later than April 1. Steve Ewald completed editorial work on the Field Organization Reports column for May QST. Sincerely Compiled by, Lisa Kustosik, KA1UFZ Assistant to the CEO Hamfest/Member Contact/ARRL Representative/Meetings/Vacations All Staff 3/25 Holiday All Staff 5/30 Holiday All Staff 7/4 Holiday Bob Allison 7/22-7/23 Oklahoma Section Convention, Oklahoma City, OK Ken Bailey 4/22-4/24 Nebraska State Convention, Lincoln, NE Alli Barbieri 4/25-4/29 PTO `` 5/18-5/22 Dayton Hamvention, Dayton, OH Zoe Belliveau 5/18-5/22 Dayton Hamvention, Dayton, OH Stephanie Borden 5/18-5/22 Dayton Hamvention, Dayton, OH Margie Bourgoin 5/18-5/22 Dayton Hamvention, Dayton, OH Lauren Clarke 3/21-3/24 PTO Mike Corey 4/9-4/10 Communications Academy, Seattle, WA Steve Ewald 3/28-4/5 PTO Steve Ford 3/28 PTO Norm Fusaro 4/15-4/17 Delaware State Convention, Georgetown, DE `` 6/3-6/5 Northwestern Division Convention, Seaside, OR Tom Gallagher 4/12 Luncheon, Washington, DC Jen Glifort 5/18-5/22 Dayton Hamvention, Dayton, OH Ed Hare 4/22-4/24 Idaho State Convention, Boise, ID Dan Henderson 3/28-4/4 North Carolina Section Convention, Raleigh, NC `` 5/19-5/22 Dayton Hamvention, Dayton, OH `` 5/27-6/3 PTO Bob Inderbitzen 3/24 PTO `` 3/31-4/3 Wisconsin Section Convention, Milwaukee, WI `` 4/11-4/13 PTO `` 5/18-5/22 Dayton Hamvention, Dayton, OH `` 6/21-6/27 International Exhibition, Friedrichshafen, Germany `` 6/28-6/29 PTO `` 7/5-7/8 PTO Debra Johnson 4/8-4/11 PTO `` 4/15-4/17 Science & Engineering Festival, Washington DC Kim McNeill 5/18-5/22 Dayton Hamvention, Dayton, OH Diane Petrilli 3/28 PTO `` 4/15-4/19 PTO Michael Scharr 5/18-5/22 Dayton Hamvention, Dayton, OH Chuck Skolaut 4/7-4/14 Oklahoma State Convention, Claremore, OK/PTO Dave Sumner 4/12 Luncheon, Washington, DC `` 4/15 VHF Conference, Sterling, VA Yvette Vinci 5/18-5/22 Dayton Hamvention, Dayton, OH
