Thursday, January 26th Nominations and How to Optimize Your Broadcast Station's Workflow by Pascal Blanchette, VP of Solutions at MaestroVision Meeting space details will be released via the Chapter email group in the days preceding the meeting 
Chris J. Cain Oct 19, 1946 - Dec 13, 2022 During his career Chris was employed at WHA in Radio Hall on the UW Madison campus, he worked at WISM Radio as Chief Engineer before being promoted to Director of Engineering for the 14 radio station group, he went on to finish his broadcasting career at WISC-TV as Chief Engineer. Our Chapter 11 Years AgoLast Meeting Minutes
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| Woodward Radio Group CE |
| WMTV TV, Broadcast Engineer |
| WKOW PT MC Operator |
Chapter 24 eNews Needs You
Be the FCC News Author
Program Ideas Appreciated
Amateur Radio News
Compiled by Tom Weeden, WJ9H
Congresswoman Debbie Lesko introduced a bill in the U.S. House of Representatives (H.R. 9664) on December 21 to require that the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) replace the current HF digital symbol rate limit with a 2.8 kHz bandwidth limit.
After being petitioned by ARRL, The National Association for Amateur Radio®, in 2013 (RM-11708) for the same relief, in 2016 the Commission issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (WT Docket No. 16-239) in which it agreed that the HF symbol rate limit was outmoded, served no purpose, and hampered experimentation. But the Commission questioned whether any bandwidth limit was needed in its place. Most amateurs, including the ARRL, objected to there being no signal bandwidth limit in the crowded HF bands given the possibility that unreasonably wide bandwidth digital protocols could be developed, and since 2016 there has been no further FCC action.
In conjunction with introducing the legislation, Congresswoman Lesko stated that "With advances in our modern technology, increased amounts of data can be put on the spectrum, so there is less of a need for a regulatory limit on symbol rates. I am pleased to introduce this important piece of legislation to update the FCC's rules to support the critical role amateur radio operators play and better reflect the capabilities of our modern radio technology."
ARRL President Rick Roderick, K5UR, hailed introduction of the bill. Roderick stated that "the FCC's delay in removing this outdated restriction has been incomprehensible, given that the biggest effect of the delay is to require totally inefficient spectrum use on the already-crowded amateur HF bands. I hope that the Commission will act to remove this harmful limitation without waiting for the bill to be passed."
ARRL Legislative Committee Chairman John Robert Stratton, N5AUS, added that "the symbol rate limit hampers experimentation and development of more efficient HF data protocols by U.S. amateurs. For all practical purposes the field has been ceded to amateurs outside the U.S., where there is no comparable limit. Removing the restriction not only will allow U.S. amateurs to use the most efficient data protocol suitable for their purpose, but it also will promote and incentivize U.S. amateurs to experiment with and develop even more efficient protocols."
New General License Exam Question Pool Released
The National Conference of Volunteer Examiner Coordinators' (NCVEC) Question Pool Committee (QPC) has released the 2023 - 2027 General Class FCC Element 3 Syllabus and Question Pool to the public. The new General Question Pool is effective July 1, 2023, through June 30, 2027.
The new pool incorporates some significant changes compared to the 2019 - 2023 version. Its 432 questions were modified slightly to improve wording and to replace distractors; 51 new questions were generated, and 73 questions were eliminated. This resulted in a reduction of 22 questions, bringing the total number of questions in the pool down from 454. The level of difficulty of questions is more balanced, and the techniques and practices addressed have been updated.
"The newly revised pool must be used for General-class license exams starting July 1, 2023," said ARRL VEC Manager Maria Somma, AB1FM, who is a member of the NCVEC Question Pool Committee. "New test designs will be available to ARRL Volunteer Examiners on that date. The ARRL VEC will supply its officially appointed, field-stocked VE teams with new General exam booklet designs around mid-June."
ETRS Form One Submission
by Gary Timm
Wisconsin SECC Broadcast Chair
The FCC has issued a Public Notice which opened ETRS on January 3, 2023 for Form One updating. The PN includes instructions for using ETRS and an FCC contact if you have any issues or questions. Form One submissions are due by February 28, 2023.
DASDEC/One-Net User Advisory
by Gary Timm
Wisconsin SECC Broadcast Chair
A notice was recently released by Digital Alert Systems of a new vulnerability in its software. This is not the same issue that was patched in 2019 and again brought to light in August 2022 when it was to be revealed to the public. This is a NEW vulnerability, but the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) considers this to be a low-end/medium level threat (see CISA link below) so DAS will just include a fix in their next software update.
This affects Broadcasters using a DASDEC EAS unit, and Cable Operators using a Monroe One-Net EAS unit. Those users should (1) ensure your contact info with DAS is current, and (2) install the software update as soon as DAS emails you that it is available.
Here are the details of the Security Advisory from the DAS website:
www.digitalalertsystems.com/security-advisory
Contact DAS Support with any questions.
ALL Wisconsin EAS Participants
Some of you may have received an FCC statement on a new CISA report.
You will recall that the last paragraph repeats an ominous warning first issued in the FCC's August 2022 Public Notice: "Failure to receive or transmit EAS messages during national tests or actual emergencies because of an equipment failure may subject the EAS Participant to enforcement." (my emphasis)
As has been said before, ALL EAS Participants are wise to be sure they are running the most current software on their EAS unit, and that it is operative and in good repair.
TV Audio Descriptions
The FCC's audio description rules require certain television broadcast stations and multichannel video programming distributors (MVPDs) to provide audio description for a portion of the video programming they televise to consumers. The 2020 Audio Description Order expanded the availability of audio description by phasing the requirements in for an additional 10 DMAs each year for four years.
The Madison WI DMA is one of the 10 additional markets now under the FCC TV Audio Description mandate. For more information about audio description Click Here.
SBE MemberPlus Adds SBE University Courses to Member Benefit
Certification and Education
compiled by Jim Hermanson
| Exam Dates | Location | Application Deadline (to SBE National Office) |
February 3-13, 2023 |
Local Chapters (Madison Area) |
January 6, 2023 |
June 1-12, 2023 |
Local Chapters (Madison Area) |
April 21, 2023 |
August 4-14, 2023 |
Local Chapters (Madison Area) |
June 16, 2023 |
November 3-13, 2023 |
Local Chapters (Madison Area) |
September 8, 2023 |
When you are ready to take an SBE exam, note the open exam schedule, complete the appropriate application (found here... http://www.sbe.org/applications) and send it directly to the SBE National office (see address below) with the respective fee. You will be notified once your application is approved. Before the exam time, your local certification chairman will receive a list of applicants and exams in his/her area and arrange for a proctor. He/she will then contact applicants to schedule a mutually agreeable date, time, and place for the exam(s) within the respective exam date window. This must be coordinated before the exam will be sent by SBE National. Completed exam(s) will be mailed back to SBE National for grading. Pass/fail results will be mailed directly to the applicants.
The majority of SBE certifications are open book and access to the Internet is allowed to give a more "real world" situation.
You may mail, email, or fax your applications to:
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Megan E. Clappe Certification Director 9102 N. Meridian St. Suite 150 Indianapolis, IN 46260 317-846-9120 Fax mclappe@sbe.org |
To apply for a specialist certification, an individual must currently hold certification on the Broadcast Engineer, Senior Broadcast Engineer, Professional Broadcast Engineer or Broadcast Networking Engineer Certification level. Exams must be completed within three hours and consist of 50 multiple-choice questions (two points each) and one essay question (20 points maximum). Examinees are provided one essay question to answer. Exams are pass/fail, and a score of 84 is a passing grade.
SBE Education Committee Launches Disability Survey
The SBE Education Committee is undertaking a survey that could have far-reaching benefits for some of our current membership, as well as future membership. Spearheading the initiative is SBE Education Committee member Len Watson, CPBE. The goal is to help those members connect with opportunities or to help those who were forced to leave due to challenges.
SBE Plans Expanded Ennes Workshop at the 2023 NAB Show
The SBE is planning to hold a two-day SBE Ennes Workshop at the 2023 NAB Show. It will be held April 14 and 15 at the Westgate Resort and Casino. Registration for the Workshop will be separate from the NAB Show convention registration, and will be available on the SBE website, sbe.org, in January. The registration fee will include access to the two days of instruction in either the RF 101 or NextGen Broadcast track, and continental breakfast and a midday refreshment on both days.The NextGen track is suitable preparation to take the SBE ATSC3 Specialist Certification exam. An exam session will be provided after the Workshop. Separate advance exam registration is required. Applicants also need to hold the requisite SBE Certification. Details on the exam opportunity will be included with the online Workshop registration.
Take Advantage of SBE's Comprehensive Archive of Webinars
Did you know that the SBE offers more than 140 archived webinars on technical, regulatory and management topics? Go to On-Demand Webinars - The Society of Broadcast Engineers (sbe.org) to see what is available to you. Is there a topic that is missing from our archives that you would like to see? Contact Education Director Cathy Orosz at corosz@sbe.org with your requests!Views expressed herein do not necessarily reflect the official position of the Society of Broadcast Engineers (SBE), its officers, or its members. SBE Chapter 24, Inc. regrets, but is not liable for, any omissions or errors. Articles of interest to Chapter 24 members are accepted up to the close of business the 1st day of each month. Send your article to lcharles@sbe.org.