FCC denies AM, SSB bandwidth petition

The FCC has turned down a Petition for Rule Making that sought to establish specific bandwidth standards for full-carrier AM and SSB Amateur Radio emissions.

Michael Lonneke, W0YR, and Melvin Ladisky, W6FDR, filed
the petition, designated RM-10740, on May 27, 2003.
The FCC said a majority of the approximately 160 members of the amateur community who commented on the petition opposed the concept.

"We conclude that petitioners' request for an amendment of our rules is inconsistent with the Commission's objective of encouraging the experimental aspects of the Amateur Radio service," wrote Public Safety and Critical Infrastructure Division Chief Michael J. Wilhelm, WS6BR. The FCC's Wireless Telecommunications Bureau released the Order November 24.

"The petition also fails to demonstrate that a deviation from the Commission's longstanding practice of allowing operating flexibility within the Amateur Service community is either warranted or necessary."

Lonneke and Ladisky had asked the FCC to "remove the ambiguity" in Part 97 - specifically §97.307(a) and (b) - and they referenced Enforcement Bureau letters sent to amateurs alleging overly wide SSB signals - sometimes called "Enhanced Single Sideband." Additionally, they
said, some contesters purposely adjust their transmitters to exceed what they called "the de facto SSB signal width of approximately 3 kHz" to gain "elbow room" during contests.

On HF frequencies below 28.8 MHz, the petition recommended a maximum 2.8 kHz bandwidth SSB (J3E) emissions and a maximum 5.6 kHz bandwidth for AM (A3E) emissions.

Asserting that most radio amateurs "operate in a manner consistent with the basic purpose of the Amateur Service," the FCC said its existing rules are "adequate to address any noncompliant practices by amateur operators."
Current FCC rules require that amateur transmissions not occupy "more bandwidth than necessary for the information rate and emission type being transmitted, in accordance with good amateur practice," and that emissions outside the necessary bandwidth not interfere with operations on adjacent frequencies. The FCC also said the petitioners failed to show that there is "a particular problem" with stations using AM.

The Order said the FCC's Enforcement Bureau will continue to monitor through its complaint process "nonconforming activities" of operators who fail to abide by its rules. "In instances of willful and malicious interference, the Enforcement Bureau will not hesitate to take appropriate
action," Wilhelm pledged.

Source: ARRL Letter - courtesy of The American Radio Relay League

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