| American Radio Relay League |
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Information AboutAmerican Radio Relay League |
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| 1914 establishments | |
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The American Radio Relay League ('''ARRL'''), the national association for Amateur Radio in the United States Of America , was founded in May, 1914 by Hiram Percy Maxim . The ARRL serves as the primary representative of Amateur Radio Operator s to the US government. It performs this function by lobbying the US Congress and Federal Communications Commission or FCC. The ARRL is also the international secretariat of the IARU . At the end of 2005, ARRL had 148,877 members, which is approximately 22% of amateur radio licensees in the United States. However, some of ARRL's members are foreign amateurs which means that the percentage is somewhat lower. As of May 2007, there are 151,306 members of which 7,363 are foreign amateurs. ARRL is run by an elected board of directors who are responsible for setting League Policy. Each director serves a 3-year term and represents the members within their particular region of the US. There is a CEO , currently David Sumner (K1ZZ), who is responsible to the ARRL Board of Directors for managing the affairs of the League including its headquarters staff and official journal, QST . There is also a field organization of volunteers which are supported by professional League staff. LEAGUE FIELD ORGANIZATION The Field Organization of the ARRL is organized into 71 "sections" with each section having a " Section Manager ."
:: Affiliated Club Coordinator , Bulletin Manager , Official Observer Coordinator , Public Information Coordinator , Section Emergency Coordinator , Section Traffic Manager , and Technical Coordinator . A Section Manager may optionally appoint one or more Assistant Section Manager s, with or without portfolio to serve at the cabinet level.
LEAGUE SERVICES The ARRL provides several services to its members including the publishing of '' QST '', the official journal of the ARRL, incoming and out-going QSL bureaus, publishing of technical and training books, sponsoring various contests, and support of the field organization. Other league publications include QEX and '''NCJ''' magazines, as well as various technical books and online courses. Members also have access to a special ''Members Only'' section of the ARRL website that includes technical documents, expanded contesting information, and a searchable database of all league publications. In addition the ARRL operates station W1AW , the Hiram Percy Maxim Memorial Station, as a living memorial to the "Father of Organized Amateur Radio". W1AW is located at the ARRL headquarters in Newington , Connecticut . Licensed Amateurs are welcome to operate the station while visiting ARRL HQ. Among its many services, W1AW transmits Morse Code for those wishing to learn. The ARRL/VEC (Volunteer Examiner Coordinator) sponsors Amateur Radio Licensing examinations for the three classes of amateur license. License classes and examinations are held in various locations throughout the year. The ARRL's symbol consists of a vertical Parallelogram with the initials ARRL arranged around the symbols for Antenna , inductor (coil) and Ground to earth, the schematic diagram of the fundamental radio circuit. SPONSORED CONTESTS The ARRL sponsors numerous Amateur Radio Contests through-out the year with the biggest of these being Field Day . Other contests include Straight Key Night, VHF Sweepstakes, International DX Contest, UHF Contest, and 10 GHz and Up Contest. The ARRL also participates as a Headquarters station for the IARU World HF Championship . OTHER ORGANIZATION ACTIVITIES Recently, the ARRL has opposed BPL , or Broadband over Power Lines, making the case that the power lines will radiate interfering radio energy, impeding amateur radio activities. The League has filed several interference reports with the FCC . In 2005 , the ARRL, along with amateur radio operators, provided key communications assistance to officials coordinating Hurricane Katrina Disaster Relief . CRITICISM The ARRL is often criticized for acting in its own interests rather than in the interest of the amateur radio community. Common criticisms include ARRL's support for less strict licensing requirements in recent years, which are felt to be ".http://www.cq-amateur-radio.com/ZB%20Nov%202004.html ''CQ Amateur Radio Magazine'' Editorial November 2004 EXTERNAL LINKS REFERENCES |
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