ARRL Outgoing QSL Service Announces New Rate Structure
TAGS: amateurs, arrl, cards, e-mail, questions
01/10/2011
Effective January 17, 2011, a new pricing structure will go into effect for the ARRL Outgoing QSL Service. With the new rate structure, amateurs will no longer need to count outgoing cards and then guess as to what to pay based upon a half-pound rate; a simple weighing of the cards is all that is necessary to determine what amount to send to the Bureau. This new structure also accommodates a small rate increase in response to recent postage, shipping and handling costs.
The last rate revision for the Outgoing QSL Service was in January 2007. Even though international shipping costs have remained flat over the last 4 years, domestic shipping costs have risen more than 16 percent since 2007, while material and handling costs continue to climb 1 to 2 percent each year.
The new rate will be:
- $2 for 10 or fewer cards in one envelope.
- $3 for 11-20 cards in one envelope, or
- 75 cents per ounce, for packages with 21 or more cards. For example, a package containing 1.5 pounds — 24 ounces, or about 225 cards — of cards will cost $18.
If you have any questions concerning the ARRL Outgoing QSL Service or the rates to use the service, please send them via e-mail to buro@arrl.org.
New Amateur Radio Bill Introduced in Congress
TAGS: amateur radio, amateur radio communications, Amateur Radio Emergency Communications, arrl,disaster relief, emergency, Enhancement Act, homeland security, house committee, Officer David Sumner,private land, residential antenna installations, sheila jackson lee
01/10/2011
The Amateur Radio Emergency Communications Enhancement Act, which died at the end of the 111th Congress, has been reintroduced in the 112th Congress asHR 81. The sponsor is Representative Sheila Jackson Lee (D-TX-18). The new bill — which was introduced on January 5 — has been referred to the House Committee on Energy and Commerce.
Rep Jackson Lee first introduced the bill — HR 2160 — in the 111th Congress in April 2009. It gained an additional 41 co-sponsors but did not progress out of the committee of jurisdiction. A similar bill introduced in the Senate — S 1755 — made it all the way through that body in December 2009, but likewise was not taken up by the House. The objective of the bill — which is supported by the ARRL — is for the Secretary of Homeland Security to study the uses and capabilities of Amateur Radio communications in emergencies and disaster relief and to identify and make recommendations regarding impediments to Amateur Radio communications, such as the effects of private land use regulations on residential antenna installations.
“We are hopeful that this early start will lead to success in the new Congress,” commented ARRL Chief Executive Officer David Sumner, K1ZZ.