COMMUNIQUE FROM RAQI.			May 10, 1998

We have just been informed through a communique from the ARRL (Amarican Radio Relay League) that an urgent request has been made to the American FCC (Federal Communications Commission) by the Land Mobile Communication Council (LMCC)(a group of companies in the land mobile communications field) to immediately re-allocate the 420 to 430 MHz and the 440 to 450 MHz to the Private Mobile Radio Service.

As you know, the 70 cm amateur band extends from 430 to 450 MHz. We are actually secondary users after the radiolocation service. The co-existance between radioamateurs and this service is actually quite good.

If this request is granted to the LMCC, we, as secondary users, will be seriously affected because a primary user has the complete rights, without interference, to the spectrum which is allocated to them. In addition Canada is a neighbour of the U.S.A and we can forsee that the same request will be made to Industry Canada immediately after.

The 70 cm band is the second frequency band in importance used by amateurs after 2 metres.

The ARRL, RAC and RAQI are organizing a protest against this request.

The complete bulletin from the ARRL is available at:http://www.arrl.org/w1aw/1998-arlb030.html.

I ask you to disseminate this information to the radio amateur community to let them know about this new danger which we face.

73,
Daniel A. Lamoureux,
President of RAQI.

translated by:
James R. Hay,
President, MARC.