The FCC rules for amateur radio are in 47 CFR Part 97. Most day-to-day operating comes down to a few habits: say your call sign, stay within your privileges, keep business and broadcasting off the air, and do not cause interference. This guide covers those rules at the level you need for the Technician exam and your first contacts.
Station identification
- Phone (voice) identification must be in English. The rule encourages a phonetic alphabet to make the call sign clear (97.119(b)(2)); see the phonetic alphabet tool.
- CW identification works on any channel. The rule lists CW identification without conditions, and an automatic CW identifier may not send faster than 20 words per minute (97.119(b)(1)). CW is authorized on any frequency the control operator may use (47 CFR 97.305(a)). During RTTY or data communications, you may also identify by RTTY using a specified digital code (97.119(b)(3)).
- Tactical call signs such as “Race Headquarters” do not replace your FCC call sign. You still give it at least every 10 minutes and at the end of the communication (97.119(a); Technician pool question T1F02).
- Test transmissions must be identified too. Section 97.119 exempts only space stations and telecommand stations (97.119(a)). A separate rule lets a station sending control signals only to a model craft skip on-air identification, provided the transmitter carries a label with the call sign and the licensee’s name and address (47 CFR 97.215).
Indicators
You may add an indicator to your call sign, separated by a slash or a word that means slash (97.119(c)). Self-assigned indicators can go before or after the call sign but may not conflict with indicators in the FCC rules or with another country’s prefix.
Some indicators are required:
| Situation | What to add | Rule |
|---|---|---|
| You passed an upgrade exam and are using the new privileges before the upgrade appears in the FCC database | “AG” for General, “AE” for Amateur Extra, for example “N0CALL/AG” | 97.119(f) |
| You are the control operator at another licensee’s station and hold a higher class than that licensee | Your own call sign after the station’s call sign | 97.119(e) |
| You are using a special event call sign | Your assigned call sign at least once per hour | 97.119(d) |
Control operators and control points
The control operator is the licensed person designated by the station licensee to be responsible for the station’s transmissions. The control point is the place where that person performs the control function (47 CFR 97.3).
Responsibility is shared. The station licensee is responsible for proper operation and must designate the control operator; the FCC assumes the licensee is the control operator unless the station records show otherwise. When someone else is the control operator, both are equally responsible. The licensee must also make the station and its records available to an FCC representative on request (47 CFR 97.103).
There are three ways to control a station (47 CFR 97.109):
- Local control: the control operator directly manipulates the station’s operating adjustments and must be at the control point (97.3(a)(31)). Any station may be locally controlled.
- Remote control: the control operator works the station indirectly through a control link (97.3(a)(39)), and must be at the control point. Any station may be remotely controlled. Operating a station over the internet is an example (Technician pool question T1E10).
- Automatic control: devices and procedures keep the station within the rules while the control operator is away from the control point (97.3(a)(6)). Only the types of stations the rules specifically designate may operate this way. A repeater is one of them (47 CFR 97.205(d)).
Prohibited transmissions
A few exceptions in 47 CFR 97.113 come up often:
- You may tell other hams that you have amateur equipment for sale or trade, as long as you do not do it on a regular basis (97.113(a)(3)(ii)).
- A teacher may be paid while using an amateur station as part of classroom instruction at an educational institution (97.113(a)(3)(iii)).
- You may take part in an emergency preparedness or disaster readiness test or drill on behalf of an employer, within the time limits in the rule (97.113(a)(3)(i)).
- When no other means is reasonably available, amateurs may give broadcasters information directly related to the immediate safety of human life or protection of property (97.113(b)).
- You may occasionally retransmit US government weather and propagation forecasts intended for the public (97.113(c)). The only other non-amateur signals that may be retransmitted are communications between a manned spacecraft and its Earth stations, with prior NASA approval. Only repeater, auxiliary and space stations may automatically retransmit other amateur signals (97.113(d)).
Some one-way transmissions are allowed, including brief transmissions to adjust your station or establish contact, Morse code practice, information bulletins for amateurs, telecommand and telemetry (47 CFR 97.111(b)). Q signals and other abbreviations may be used as long as they do not obscure the meaning of a message (General pool question G1B07, which cites 97.113(a)(4)); the reference page lists common ones.
Third-party communications
A third-party communication is a message from you (the first party) to another amateur (the second party) on behalf of someone else (the third party) (47 CFR 97.3(a)(47)). Passing along a message for a neighbor counts, and so does letting an unlicensed friend speak into your microphone, since the rules allow a third party to take part in stating the message (47 CFR 97.115(b)).
The FCC lists the countries with third-party arrangements. At the end of an international third-party exchange, your identification must also include the call sign of the station you exchanged the message with (97.115(d)). A person whose amateur license was revoked, or who is under a related suspension or cease-and-desist order, may not take part in stating the message (97.115(b)(2)). Even without third parties, contacts with other countries must be limited to matters incidental to amateur radio and remarks of a personal character (47 CFR 97.117).
Interference and good amateur practice
Part 97 cannot cover every situation, so it sets a general standard: in anything the rules do not specifically cover, operate according to good engineering and good amateur practice (47 CFR 97.101(a)).
Good amateur practice includes habits like these:
- Listen before you transmit, and ask whether the frequency is in use. The ARRL’s considerate operator guidance points out that no net or group has a special right to a frequency, but that whoever is there first should be protected from interference as far as possible.
- Follow the band plan. A band plan is a voluntary division of a band to avoid interference between incompatible modes (ARRL band plan). It is a guideline, not an FCC rule (Technician pool question T2A10).
- Use the minimum power necessary for the contact. That one is a rule (47 CFR 97.313(a)).
- Resolve conflicts politely. If two stations interfere with each other, work it out on the air.
Emergencies
The rules give emergency communications priority. At all times and on all frequencies, control operators must give priority to stations providing emergency communications, except stations transmitting RACES training drills and tests (47 CFR 97.101(c)).
These exceptions are narrow. Section 97.403 covers only the immediate safety of human life and immediate protection of property, and only when normal communication systems are not available. Outside a real emergency, every other rule in this guide still applies. The emergency communications guide explains how organized groups prepare for these situations.