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Old December 4th 05, 01:31 AM posted to rec.radio.broadcasting
Long John-KE6VGA + TUBBY TUNES Radio Show ala KFAT
 
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Default Help Defeat Ill-Conceived FLA Radio Law

Florida passed a law making it a third degree felony to transmit any
signal without a license.

If it's truely "ANY" signal it won't stand up to the FCC policy of
allowing TRUE EMERGENCY
traffic to be xmitted by anyone...while this does NOT appear to be a
situation that would affect the bcast bands,
but if I'm genuinely in deep doo doo and need to xmit an SOS, I'll use
a spark gap if that's all I can do...

However I do have VHF and UHF public service capability, and I used to
be with CDF, so I already know the
Freqs & pl's to program. I've never had to do this since retiring, and
I doubt I will EVER have to. There is usually an op on duty for a 2
meter ham repeater within radio range of me for me to try contacting...

Such as when heavy show collapsed my porch and I couldn't get
out...trapped in a 1959 Airstream I had just brought up to my remote
property...I *DID* have a 12 volt DC line feeding the Airstream from my
Jeep Wagoneer that was a deep cycle battery and a grill plug (all my
cars are set up this way)...I got ahold of the duty op on the repaeter,
she relayed traffic to CDF,. but the local fire dept snow cat broke
down, the chopper hade to low of a ceiling to fly...a neighbor heard
the CFD rescue dispatch via the VHF scanner, called another neighbor,
and I was rescued by local mountain neighbors within an hour.

Was I about to go to normally unauthorized radio bands and emit an
emergency call..?

Not at that point...but perhaps later if no other means of contact
worked...

While the Florida law is aimed at bcast pirates, we run the risk of not
only over-regulation, but of far reaching effects not yet anticipated.

What OTHER states have similar laws on the books..?

What would Chief Wiggams (The Simpsons) do..?

73's KE6VGA




Of Course, everything here hinges on beine a bona fide emergency for no
federal sanctions / liabilities