Coincidentally, I sent the following reply about the League's HOA activity to an Arizona member yesterday morning. As his initial message was also sent to the officers, the League officers have already seen my reply. I have also sent this to a number of other ham friends asking for their opinion and comments. So far, there are none who feel continuing this legislative effort will go anywhere. I'll summarize some of their comments later today when I have time. 73, Dick ----- Forwarded Message ----- From: Richard Norton <richardjnorton@yahoo.com>To: Rick Paquette <azpaquettes@gmail.com>; gary@k8bn.com <gary@k8bn.com>; n6aa@arrl.org <n6aa@arrl.org>; aa7a@arrl.org <aa7a@arrl.org>; K5UR@arrl.org <k5ur@arrl.org>; k1twf@arrl.org <k1twf@arrl.org>; W6RGG@arrl.org <w6rgg@arrl.org>; Ron Gerlak <rbgerlak@gmail.com>Sent: Thursday, September 24, 2020, 12:02:39 PM PDTSubject: Re: HOA restrictions Over the past 30 years or so, the ARRL has spent a 7-figure amount of League assets on lobbying efforts directed at enacting Federal legislation which would stop HOA's from prohibiting or effectively banning Amateur Radio antennas. These efforts, as well as others conducted by groups in individual states such as Arizona, have failed. It is a pretty hard sell to ask government to enact a law saying that some people need not live up to a contract which they voluntarily signed. Previous Misrepresented Effort A few years ago, the League's then legislative team claimed to have been on the edge of getting such a bill through Congress. After careful examination of the bill's text, the ARRL Board determined that the bill's language, which was actually written by the national Home Owner's Association representatives, was actually detrimental to HOA-dwelling hams. Information released by the League's then team gave a misleading view to both the Board and a number of ARRL members. Those individuals are no longer involved in ARRL legislative or leadership activities. After reviewing the 30-year history, I am not of the belief that any of these legislative approaches are likely to lead to success. Note that all Directors on the ARRL Board may not agree with me. Over the years, different Directors and others have gone to Washington, and interfaced with Congresspersons and their staffs. Moving about the halls of Congress and hobnobbing with staff can be exhilarating. When a Congressperson expresses support, satisfaction about perceived accomplishment can ensue. However, the desired end result has never looked achievable. It is even unclear that getting legal prohibition of radio-related private contracts is always in the public interest. There is a woman in my town who dedicates a substantial part of her life to railing against the danger to life and health created by smart electric meters, wi-fi signals, and cell phones. Although I find no evidence for her views, I'm not necessarily of the belief that government should make it a crime for her and some of her acolytes to build a development where residents are forbidden to use cell phones and wi-fi. I don't believe anyone will be able to get satisfactory HOA antenna legislation enacted. You may find some who will tell you that funding them will work, but I see no evidence to support that. Small Demand for ARRL Solution The Southwestern Division has the second largest number of HOA's in the country, and I have not seen much member demand for this action or particularly, expectation that it will happen. HOA-resident hams that I've talked to usually say something like - they wish they could have antennas, but have made a decision that other concerns in their lives mean that Amateur Radio antennas will be limited for a while. In recent years, at almost all ARRL Forums, conventions, hamfests, and club meetings, I've asked the audience 1) How many of you live in HOA-impacted areas? 2) How many of you are on the air somehow, either with approved antennas or hidden antennas? In every case, all or almost all those in HOA-homes are on the air, somehow. Activity Possibilities A reasonably successful approach has been to get HOA approval for some sort of antenna, and many have succeeded this way. ARRL Arizona Section Manager, Rick Paquette, W7RAP, is one, and even has a tower in an HOA-community with an airport. He is willing to share his approach and knowledge with anyone, especially an Arizona resident such as yourself. His contact information is in the front of every QST. A second approach is to use an indoor or hidden antenna. A good number of hams are active on HF, where they even enter on-the-air contests with this approach. JT-65, FT-8, and FT-4 even allow pursuit of DX with weak signals. A third ham radio approach is to develop interest in outdoor ham radio activities, such as mobiling, mountain-topping, VHF-roving, and transmitter hunting. A fourth option for an HOA-bound ham is to utilize Internet-connected remote stations. Hams have built their own remote stations, teamed with others to use stations, or even paid commercial station providers. However, if a ham's interests are only going to be satisfied with big antennas, I suggest moving to a home outside an HOA area. You may have to drive to the golf course. You may have to maintain your yard and pool yourself or hire someone to do it. It's one of life's trade-offs that we all have to make. I wish that I could do something that would eliminate HOA-imposed antenna restrictions, but do not think that I or anyone will be able to do so in today's environment. You and I may feel ham radio is important, but history says that not everyone agrees. If you have any specific suggestions of what the League can do that seem promising, please let me know. Thank you. 73, Dick Norton, N6AA On Thursday, September 17, 2020, 08:19:17 PM PDT, Ron Gerlak <rbgerlak@gmail.com> wrote: Hello, What has the ARRL accomplished (since 2013) towards relief from HOA restrictions on antennas? What is the anticipated date of relief? 73sRonald Gerlak, KG7OHKG7OH@ARRL.net480-356-3663