Sleep Is For The Weak

Dear Congressman:

As a voter in your district and as one of the nearly 700,000 licensees across the nation, I ask for your support of H.R. 2160, the “Amateur Radio Emergency Communications Enhancement Act of 2009.”

H.R. 2160 instructs the Secretary of Homeland Security to undertake a study, and report its findings to Congress within 180 days, on the uses and capabilities of Amateur Radio communications in emergencies and disaster relief. This study should:

• Include recommendations for enhancements in the voluntary deployment of Amateur Radio licensees in disaster and emergency communications and disaster relief efforts;

• Include recommendations for improved integration of Amateur Radio operators in planning and in furtherance of the Department of Homeland Security initiatives;

• Identify unreasonable or unnecessary impediments to enhanced Amateur Radio communications, such as the effects of private land use regulations on residential antenna installations, and make recommendations regarding such impediments;

• Include an evaluation of section 207 of the Telecommunications Act of 1996 (Public Law 104-104, 110 Stat. 56 (1996); and recommend whether section 207 should be modified to prevent unreasonable private land use restrictions that impair the ability of amateurs to conduct, or prepare to conduct, emergency communications.

Amateur Radio operators across the US repeatedly demonstrate our commitment to public service and emergency communications. Through our work with Homeland Security activities, state and local Emergency Management offices, and with numerous private agencies, Amateur Radio operators make a difference. We need your support to help address the challenges facing us as we seek to improve our capabilities to serve.

Please consider becoming a cosponsor for H.R. 2160 and please support the bill as it works its way through committee and the House of Representatives.

Sincerely,