NOTICE ********************************************************* NOTICE ********************************************************* This document was originally prepared in Word Perfect. If the original document contained-- * Footnotes * Boldface & Italics --this information is missing in this version The document format (spacing, margins, tabs, etc.) is changed too. If you need the complete document, download the Word Perfect version. For information about downloading documents (FTP) see file how2ftp. File how2ftp (.txt & .wp) is in directory /pub/Bureaus/Miscellaneous/Public_Notices/ ***************************************************************** ******** $//Order,Amateur VEC conflict of interest,FCC 96-74//$ $/97.509 Administering an examination/$ Before the FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION Washington, D. C. 20554 FCC 96-74 In the Matter of ) ) Amendment of Part 97 of the Commission's ) Rules to Conform the Amateur ) Service Rules to the Provisions of the ) Telecommunications Act of 1996 ) ORDER Adopted: February 28, 1996 Released: February 28, 1996 By the Commission: INTRODUCTION 1. This Order revises our rules to implement Section 4(f) of the Communications Act of 1934 (the "Communications Act") as amended by Section 403(a) of the Telecommunications Act of 1996. The 1996 Telecommunications Act was signed into law on February 8, 1996. By this Order, we are revising our rules for the Amateur Radio Service, consistent with the statutory mandate of the 1996 Telecommunications Act, to remove certain unnecessary and outdated regulations. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 2. Pursuant to the 1996 Telecommunications Act, this Order removes the conflict-of- interest provisions pertaining to administration of amateur operator license examinations. Additionally, it eliminates the requirement that volunteer examiners (VEs) and volunteer- examiner coordinators (VECs) who administer and coordinate amateur operator examinations maintain records of out-of-pocket expenses and annually certify those expenses to the Commission. DISCUSSION 3. Prior to the enactment of the 1996 Telecommunications Act, Section 4(f)(4)(B) of the Communications Act precluded any person who owns a significant interest in, or who is an employee of, any entity engaged in the manufacture or distribution of amateur radio equipment, or who prepares or distributes any publication used to obtain an amateur operator license, from administering amateur license examinations. The underlying purpose of the conflict-of-interest requirement was to prevent an employee from favoring examinees who purchased manuals or equipment produced or distributed by the VE or the VE's employer. Our rules contain analogous conflict-of-interest requirements. 4. Section 403(a)(2) of the 1996 Telecommunications Act, however, removed the statutorily-imposed conflict-of-interest requirement. As a result, we conclude that Sections 97.509(b)(5) and 97.521(e) of our rules, which are patterned after the previous statutory requirement, should be eliminated. We further conclude that other provisions of our rules, combined with current amateur radio license examination procedures, will sufficiently protect against the potential for abuse initially contemplated by the Communications Act. In this connection, Section 97.523 of the Commission's Rules requires the VECs to cooperate in maintaining one question pool for each written examination element. As a result, all examination materials and manuals must draw from these standard pools of questions, which are widely available to the public through numerous publications and computer disks. Additionally, each examination is administered by three VEs and is coordinated by a VEC. It is highly unlikely, therefore, that any examinee could be favored by a VE or a VEC in the manner contemplated by the Communications Act. Twelve years of experience with the VEC system has shown that any breach of trust by the VECs and VEs can be dealt with swiftly and immediately by disaccrediting the offending VEs or rescinding the VEC agreement. Thus, we believe that the conflict-of-interest requirement in our rules is no longer necessary. 5. In addition, the Communications Act, prior to the enactment of the 1996 Telecommunications Act, required that VEs and VECs keep records pertaining to expenses incurred in the administration and coordination of amateur operator examinations, and also mandated that they annually certify that the expenses incurred were necessary and prudent. Similarly, Section 97.527 of our rules requires retention of certain records and certifications concerning reimbursement of expenses associated with amateur radio license examinations. Section 403(a) of the 1996 Telecommunications Act eliminates the record retention and certification requirements, although it preserves the ability of VEs and VECs to recover from examinees reimbursement for actual out-of-pocket costs. Also, the maximum allowable examination reimbursement fee permitted by the Communications Act ($6.07 for 1996) is de minimis. We conclude that the record retention and reporting requirements regarding reimbursement also should be eliminated from the Commission's rules because they were an outgrowth of the previous statutory requirements. 6. We believe that these rule changes will make our rules consistent with the requirements of the 1996 Telecommunications Act. We also believe that they will further the public interest because they eliminate unnecessary regulatory burdens. We find there is good cause for noncompliance with the general notice and comment provisions of the Administrative Procedure Act. The rule changes we adopt today merely implement the intent of Congress in enacting Section 403(a)(2) of the Telecommunications Act of 1996, are non- controversial in nature and, therefore, are unlikely to generate public comment. Accordingly, we find that notice and comment is unnecessary. 7. Accordingly, pursuant to Sections 154(i) and 303(r) of the Communications Act of 1934, as amended, 47 U.S.C.  154(i) and 303(r), IT IS ORDERED that Part 97 of the Commission's Rules, 47 C.F.R. Part 97, IS AMENDED as set forth in the Appendix below, effective thirty days after publication in the Federal Register. FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION William F. Caton Acting Secretary APPENDIX Part 97 of Chapter I of Title 47 of the Code of Federal Regulations is amended as follows: Part 97 - Amateur Radio Service 1. The authority citation for Part 97 continues to read as follows: Authority citation: 48 Stat. 1066, 1082, as amended; 47 U.S.C.  154, 303. Interpret or apply 48 Stat. 1064-1068, 1081-1105, as amended; 47 U.S.C.  151-155, 301-609, unless otherwise noted. 2. Section 97.509 is amended by removing paragraph (b)(5). 3. Section 97.521 is amended by removing paragraph (e). 4. Section 97.527 is amended by removing paragraphs (c), (d), (e), and (f).