FCC to reduce amateur radio vanity call sign fee

The FCC has proposed reducing the regulatory fee to obtain or retain an Amateur Radio vanity call sign by more than 40 percent starting later this year.

In a Notice of Proposed Rule Making (NPRM) released
April 18, "Assessment and Collection of Regulatory Fees for Fiscal Year 2007," in MD Docket 07-81, the Commission is proposing to cut the fee from its current $20.80 to $11.70.
If ultimately adopted, that would mark the lowest fee in the history of the current vanity call sign program. The FCC proposed to collect nearly $290.3 million in FY 2007 regulatory fees.

"These fees are mandated by Congress and are collected to recover the regulatory costs associated with the Commission's enforcement, policy and rulemaking, user information, and international activities," the FCC said.

"Consistent with our established practice, we intend to collect these regulatory fees in the August-September 2007 time frame in order to collect the required amount by the end of the fiscal year."  Comments on MD Docket 07-81 are due May 3. Reply comments are due May 11.

The vanity call sign fee has fluctuated over the 11 years of the current vanity call sign program, from a low of $12 to a high of $50. The FCC says it anticipates some 14,700 Amateur Radio vanity call sign "payment units" or applications during the next fiscal year.

The vanity call sign regulatory fee is payable not only when
applying for a new vanity call sign but upon renewing a vanity call sign for a new term. The first vanity call sign licenses issued under the current Amateur Radio vanity call sign program that began in 1996 came up for renewal last year.

Those holding vanity call signs issued prior to 1996 are exempt from having to pay the vanity call sign regulatory fee at renewal, however. That's because Congress did not authorize the FCC to collect regulatory fees until 1993. Such "heritage" vanity call sign holders do not appear as vanity licensees in the FCC Amateur Radio database.

Amateur Radio licensees may file for renewal only within 90 days of their license expiration date. All radio amateurs must have an FCC Registration Number (FRN) before filing any application with the Commission.

Applicants can obtain an FRN by going to the FCC Universal Licensing System (ULS) at, http://wireless.fcc.gov/uls/, and clicking on the "New Users Register" link. You must supply your Social Security Number to obtain an FRN.

Source: The American Radio Relay League

Latest news stories..

• Get our news headlines for your website • Submit your news story

• Visit our bookshop