Efforts by the amateur radio communities to lift restrictions on the installation of antennas in deed-restricted home owner associations have moved one step closer to reality with the recent passage in the U.S. House of Representatives of the Amateur Radio Parity Act (H.R. 1301).
According to the ARRL, the proposed legislation would amend Part 97 rules of the U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to prohibit the application of certain private land-use restrictions to amateur stations. The amended bill notes that “there exists antenna designs and installations that can be consistent with the aesthetic and physical characteristics of land and structures in community associations,” thereby addressing the concerns that amateur radio installations would necessarily conflict with community policies regarding visual aesthetics.
The House bill now moves on to the U.S. Senate, where the ARRL says it expects to encounter “significant obstacles.” However, according to Representative Joe Courtney (D-CT), the legislation reportedly has the support of FCC Chairman Thomas Wheeler.
Read the text of the ARRL’s press release regarding the progress of the Amateur Radio Parity Act.
