WCF SECTION PRESS RELEASE #61
THE AMATEUR RADIO PARITY ACT PASSED BY THE SENATE COMMITTEE ON 11/18/15
On Wednesday November 18th, Senate Bill 1685 (the Amateur Radio Parity Act in the Senate) was passed by the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation. Both Florida Senators are on the committee. Senator Marco Rubio was not present for the vote and Senator Bill Nelson voted AGAINST the bill. The only other no vote on the committee against the bill was from the Senator from Hawaii on the committee. Listed below are Senator Nelson’s comments as taken from a transcript provided by an ARRL member from the Southern Florida Section:
“While I have great respect for Senators Blumenthal and Wicker, I must
oppose this bill today. Amateur radio plays an important role in enhancing public safety communication, and I encourage communities to work with amateur radio
operators to find ways to further these services. This bill before us, though, would effectively repeal parts of millions of private contracts and agreements relied upon by homeowners around the country. This committee would be overriding guidelines that were established – and agreed to – by residents of a community when they voluntarily choose to live in that community. This is a step too far.”
Doug Rehman K4AC, ARRL Southeastern Division Director, when sharing the above listed information on the ARRL Members Only email list concluded with the following:
“If you live in Florida, you might want to POLITELY advise Senator
Nelson of your disappointment with both his vote and his statement and
urge him to reconsider his position. We still have a long battle in both the House and Senate. If you haven’t already contacted your Representative and Senators to ask for their support of the Amateur Radio Parity Act, please do so immediately.”
Thanks to Doug Rehman K4AC, ARRL Southeastern Division Director for the information used in this WCF SECTION PRESS RELEASE.
For more information on how to contact our two Florida Senators, please see WCF SECTION PRESS RELEASE #57 at http://arrlwcf.org/news/2015/11/16/wcf-section-press-release-57/