开云体育

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The following are talking points for SC HR4549. Please spread this to your club members and as many hams as possible.?

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We have been informed that H.R.4549 "The Amateur Radio Antenna
Protection Act," which was pre-filed by Rep Fawn Pedalino and
co-sponsored by representatives, Guffey, Taylor, Leber, Felder, Hardee
and Burns will be read in session on Wednesday, February 21, 2024.? The
Bill will remove private land restrictions on some antennas for amateur
radio use.?
We would like to show the legislators in SC our support for this bill.
We are asking for amateur radio operators to rally for this bill and
attend the reading at the State House in Columbia.? We need as many
operators as possible to be at the state house.? We want to fill the
upper gallery with amateur radio operators to show our numbers in the
state. Please, if you can join us make plans to be at the session.? The
session begins at 10 am, please arrive by 9 am to make sure you get a
seat.
The State House Address is 1100 Gervais St, Columbia, SC 29201.? There
are parking lots and a parking deck on Assembly Street, within a block
or two of the SC State House.

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Talking points:

What is Amateur Radio? It’s a volunteer public service and a technical hobby.? Amateur Radio operators use designated radio frequencies for the non-commercial exchange of messages and information, wireless communications experimentation, self-training, preparedness, and emergency communications.? Unlike Citizen Band (CB) or family radio service (FRS), Amateur Radio operators must be licensed by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), through a testing procedure.??

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The FCC created the Amateur Radio Service to fill the need for a pool of experts who could provide auxiliary communications during emergencies.? As an all-volunteer service, Amateur Radio is the largest unfunded communications asset in the world. Countless lives have been saved and successful relief missions have been credited to Amateur Radio not only in the US but worldwide.? Many times, during natural disasters like hurricanes, earthquakes, and wildfires, primary modes of communication are rendered useless by overloading or infrastructure damage.? Amateur Radio is there to offer communications and get the message through without the need for infrastructure.??

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Amateur Radio volunteers in South Carolina regularly take part in exercises, training events, and real-world activations for emergency communications.? Amateur Radio Programs like Skywarn?assist the National Weather Service (NWS) in storm spotting, classification, and reporting.?? South Carolina Amateurs not only provide volunteer hours but also supply their equipment to support the mission.? They are prepared to be a self-sustaining asset when deployed.? In addition to the emergency communications aspect, operators around the state support Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) like the Red Cross, Salvation Army, South Carolina Baptist Convention, and other Voluntary Organizations Active in Disasters (VOAD) entities.? South Carolina’s Amateur Radio community also provides wireless communications support to local charity and community events, 5 and 10K races, community festivals, charity sporting events,?etc.?

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Over the last two years (2022-2023) the Amateur Radio community in South Carolina provided over 8,000 volunteer hours during some 300 events for emergency communications, training, and Skywarn activities as well as providing their own handheld, base station, mobile transceivers and repeaters totaling more than $370,000 in communication service to various communities and the state of South Carolina.

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During that same period, the South Carolina Amateur Radio Community provided approximately 6,000 hours of volunteer hours during the community during 90 charity and community events throughout the state.? When the value of the equipment provided by the amateurs for these events, the value of the community service is more than $340,000.

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Amateur Radio is an incubator for education, exploration, and experimentation within the Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) fields.? Educators can use amateur radio to teach students wireless technologies and in turn?STEM?disciplines.? Students can gain hands-on experience in designing, building, and programming equipment to be used within Amateur Radio.? Additionally, Amateur Radio can inspire students to explore the STEM fields and provide opportunities no other service can offer such as talking with an astronaut aboard the International Space Station (ISS) or using amateur-designed and built dedicated satellites to talk with other amateurs across the globe.???

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Aside from the STEM disciplines, Amateur Radio provides training in problem-solving, collaboration, creative thinking, effective communication, reasoning, concentration, and discipline.? It creates opportunities to learn geography and to exchange culture and ideas with other operators elsewhere on Earth.???

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During 2022 and 2023, amateur radio operators across the state volunteered to provide in-class education on wireless technologies and worked with scouting and other youth programs.? Over 50 volunteers provided approximately 1,750 hours of educational support with equipment and supplies totaling over $65,000.00 in value to youth education.? Amateur Radio operators as technical advisors helped three schools secure contact opportunities with astronauts on the ISS through the Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) program.??

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Currently, the restrictions imposed on landowners that prohibit antennas within Homeowners Associations (HOAs) across the state, create several barriers for FCC-licensed operators.? These restrictions prevent the installation of effective simple antennas that limit effective communications in short- and long-range communications for emergency communications.? It creates a barrier for amateurs entering into amateur radio.??In 1996 the Over-The-Air (OTA) reception device rules prevented HOAs from restricting receiving antennas for TV, radio, and data communications.? Most of the antennas that amateurs install would be less obtrusive than the log periodic OTA television antennas and satellite dishes.???

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