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§ 97.313 Transmitter power standards.

(a) An amateur station must use the minimum transmitter power necessary to carry out the desired communications.

(b) No station may transmit with a transmitter power exceeding 1.5 kW  PEP.

(c) No station may transmit with a transmitter power output exceeding 200 W PEP:

(1) On the 10.10-10.15 MHz segment;

(2) On the 3.525-3.60 MHz, 7.025-7.125 MHz, 21.025-21.20 MHz, and 28.0-28.5 MHz segment when the control operator is a Novice Class operator or a Technician Class operator; or

(3) The 7.050-7.075 MHz segment when the station is within  ITU Regions 1 or 3.

(d) No station may transmit with a transmitter power exceeding 25 W  PEP on the  VHF 1.25 m band when the  control operator is a Novice operator.

(e) No station may transmit with a transmitter power exceeding 5 W  PEP on the  UHF 23 cm band when the  control operator is a Novice operator.

(f) No station may transmit with a transmitter power exceeding 50 W  PEP on the  UHF 70 cm band from an area specified in paragraph (a) of footnote US270 in § 2.106, unless expressly authorized by the  FCC after mutual agreement, on a case-by-case basis, between the Regional Director of the applicable field facility and the military area  frequency coordinator at the applicable military base. An  Earth station or telecommand station, however, may transmit on the 435-438 MHz segment with a maximum of 611 W effective radiated power (1 kW equivalent isotropically radiated power) without the authorization otherwise required. The transmitting antenna elevation angle between the lower half-power (−3 dB relative to the peak or antenna bore sight) point and the horizon must always be greater than 10°.

(g) No station may transmit with a transmitter power exceeding 50 W  PEP on the 33 cm band from within 241 km of the boundaries of the White Sands Missile Range. Its boundaries are those portions of Texas and New Mexico bounded on the south by latitude 31°41′ North, on the east by longitude 104°11′ West, on the north by latitude 34°30′ North, and on the west by longitude 107°30′ West.

(h) No station may transmit with a transmitter power exceeding 50 W  PEP on the 219-220 MHz segment of the 1.25 m band.

(i) No station may transmit with an effective radiated power (ERP) exceeding 100 W  PEP on the 60 m band. For the purpose of computing  ERP, the transmitter  PEP will be multiplied by the antenna gain relative to a half-wave dipole antenna. A half-wave dipole antenna will be presumed to have a gain of 1 (0 dBd). Licensees using other antennas must maintain in their  station records either the antenna manufacturer's  data on the antenna gain or calculations of the antenna gain.

(j) No station may transmit with a transmitter output exceeding 10 W  PEP when the  station is transmitting a  SS emission type.

(k) No station may transmit in the 135.7-137.8 kHz (2200 m) band with a transmitter power exceeding 1.5 kW  PEP or a radiated power exceeding 1 W  EIRP.

(l) No station may transmit in the 472-479 kHz (630 m) band with a transmitter power exceeding 500 W  PEP or a radiated power exceeding 5 W  EIRP, except that in Alaska,  stations located within 800 kilometers of the Russian Federation may not transmit with a radiated power exceeding 1 W  EIRP.

(m) No station may transmit with a peak equivalent isotropically radiated power (EIRP) exceeding 316 W in the 76-81 GHz (4 mm) band.

§ 97.315 Certification of external RF power amplifiers.

(a) Any external RF power amplifier (see § 2.815 of the  FCC Rules) manufactured or imported for use at an amateur radio  station must be certificated for use in the  amateur service in accordance with subpart J of part 2 of the  FCC Rules. No amplifier capable of  operation below 144 MHz may be constructed or modified by a non-amateur service licensee without a grant of certification from the  FCC.

(b) The requirement of paragraph (a) does not apply if one or more of the following conditions are met:

(1) The amplifier is constructed or modified by an amateur radio operator for use at an amateur station.

(2) The amplifier was manufactured before April 28, 1978, and has been issued a marketing waiver by the FCC, or the amplifier was purchased before April 28, 1978, by an amateur radio operator for use at that operator's  station.

(3) The amplifier is sold to an amateur radio operator or to a dealer, the amplifier is purchased in used condition by a dealer, or the amplifier is sold to an amateur radio operator for use at that operator's station.

(c) Any external RF power amplifier appearing in the Commission's database as certificated for use in the  amateur service may be marketed for use in the  amateur service.

§ 97.317 Standards for certification of external RF power amplifiers.

(a) To receive a grant of certification, the amplifier must:

(1) Satisfy the spurious emission standards of § 97.307 (d) or (e) of this part, as applicable, when the amplifier is operated at the lesser of 1.5 kW  PEP or its full output power and when the amplifier is placed in the “standby” or “off” positions while connected to the transmitter.

(2) Not be capable of amplifying the input RF power (driving signal) by more than 15 dB gain. Gain is defined as the ratio of the input  RF power to the output  RF power of the amplifier where both power measurements are expressed in peak envelope power or mean power.

(3) Exhibit no amplification (0 dB gain) between 26 MHz and 28 MHz.

(b) Certification shall be denied when:

(1) The Commission determines the amplifier can be used in services other than the Amateur Radio Service, or

(2) The amplifier can be easily modified to operate on frequencies between 26 MHz and 28 MHz.

§ 97.311  SS emission types.

(a) SS emission transmissions by an  amateur station are authorized only for communications between points within areas where the  amateur service is regulated by the  FCC and between an area where the amateur service is regulated by the  FCC and an  amateur station in another country that permits such communications.  SS emission transmissions must not be used for the purpose of obscuring the meaning of any communication.

(b) A station transmitting  SS emissions must not cause  harmful interference to  stations employing other authorized emissions, and must accept all interference caused by  stations employing other authorized emissions.

(c) When deemed necessary by a Regional Director to assure compliance with this part, a station licensee must:

(1) Cease SS emission transmissions;

(2) Restrict SS emission transmissions to the extent instructed; and

(3) Maintain a record, convertible to the original information (voice, text, image, etc.) of all spread spectrum communications transmitted.

§ 97.309  RTTY and  data emission codes.

(a) Where authorized by §§ 97.305(c) and 97.307(f) of the part, an  amateur station may transmit a RTTY or  data emission using the following specified digital codes:

(1) The 5-unit, start-stop, International Telegraph Alphabet No. 2, code defined in ITU-T Recommendation F.1, Division C (commonly known as “Baudot”).

(2) The 7-unit code specified in ITU-R Recommendations M.476-5 and M.625-3 (commonly known as “AMTOR”).

(3) The 7-unit, International Alphabet No. 5, code defined in IT--T Recommendation T.50 (commonly known as “ASCII”).

(4) An amateur station transmitting a  RTTY or  data emission using a digital code specified in this paragraph may use any technique whose technical characteristics have been documented publicly, such as CLOVER, G-TOR, or PacTOR, for the purpose of facilitating communications.

(b) Where authorized by §§ 97.305(c) and 97.307(f), a  station may transmit a  RTTY or  data emission using an unspecified digital code, except to a  station in a country with which the United  States does not have an agreement permitting the code to be used.  RTTY and  data emissions using unspecified digital codes must not be transmitted for the purpose of obscuring the meaning of any communication. When deemed necessary by a Regional Director to assure compliance with the  FCC Rules, a  station must:

(1) Cease the transmission using the unspecified digital code;

(2) Restrict transmissions of any digital code to the extent instructed;

(3) Maintain a record, convertible to the original information, of all digital communications transmitted.

§ 97.307 Emission standards.

(a) No amateur station transmission shall occupy more  bandwidth than necessary for the information rate and emission type being transmitted, in accordance with good amateur practice.

(b) Emissions resulting from modulation must be confined to the band or segment available to the control operator. Emissions outside the necessary  bandwidth must not cause splatter or keyclick interference to  operations on adjacent frequencies.

(c) All spurious emissions from a  station transmitter must be reduced to the greatest extent practicable. If any  spurious emission, including chassis or power line radiation, causes  harmful interference to the reception of another radio  station, the licensee of the interfering  amateur station is required to take steps to eliminate the interference, in accordance with good engineering practice.

(d) For transmitters installed after January 1, 2003, the mean power of any spurious emission from a station transmitter or  external RF power amplifier transmitting on a frequency below 30 MHz must be at least 43 dB below the mean power of the fundamental emission. For transmitters installed on or before January 1, 2003, the mean power of any  spurious emission from a  station transmitter or  external RF power amplifier transmitting on a frequency below 30 MHz must not exceed 50 mW and must be at least 40 dB below the mean power of the fundamental emission. For a transmitter of mean power less than 5 W installed on or before January 1, 2003, the attenuation must be at least 30 dB. A transmitter built before April 15, 1977, or first marketed before January 1, 1978, is exempt from this requirement. 

(e) The mean power of any spurious emission from a  station transmitter or  external RF power amplifier transmitting on a frequency between 30-225 MHz must be at least 60 dB below the mean power of the fundamental. For a transmitter having a mean power of 25 W or less, the mean power of any  spurious emission supplied to the antenna transmission line must not exceed 25 µW and must be at least 40 dB below the mean power of the fundamental emission, but need not be reduced below the power of 10 µW. A transmitter built before April 15, 1977, or first marketed before January 1, 1978, is exempt from this requirement.

(f) The following standards and limitations apply to transmissions on the frequencies specified in § 97.305(c) of this part.

(1) No angle-modulated emission may have a modulation index greater than 1 at the highest modulation frequency.

(2) No non-phone emission shall exceed the bandwidth of a communications quality  phone emission of the same modulation type. The total  bandwidth of an independent sideband emission (having B as the first symbol), or a multiplexed  image and  phone emission, shall not exceed that of a communications quality A3E emission.

(3) Only a RTTY or  data emission using a specified digital code listed in § 97.309(a) of this part may be transmitted. The symbol rate must not exceed 300 bauds, or for frequency-shift keying, the frequency shift between mark and space must not exceed 1 kHz.

(4) Only a RTTY or  data emission using a specified digital code listed in § 97.309(a) of this part may be transmitted. The symbol rate must not exceed 1200 bauds, or for frequency-shift keying, the frequency shift between mark and space must not exceed 1 kHz.

(5) A RTTY,  data or multiplexed emission using a specified digital code listed in § 97.309(a) of this part may be transmitted. The symbol rate must not exceed 19.6 kilobauds. A  RTTY,  data or multiplexed emission using an unspecified digital code under the limitations listed in § 97.309(b) of this part also may be transmitted. The authorized  bandwidth is 20 kHz.

(6) A RTTY,  data or multiplexed emission using a specified digital code listed in § 97.309(a) of this part may be transmitted. The symbol rate must not exceed 56 kilobauds. A  RTTY,  data or multiplexed emission using an unspecified digital code under the limitations listed in § 97.309(b) of this part also may be transmitted. The authorized  bandwidth is 100 kHz.

(7) A RTTY,  data or multiplexed emission using a specified digital code listed in § 97.309(a) of this part or an unspecified digital code under the limitations listed in § 97.309(b) of this part may be transmitted.

(8) A RTTY or  data emission having designators with A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, J or R as the first symbol; 1, 2, 7, 9 or X as the second symbol; and D or W as the third symbol is also authorized.

(9) A station having a  control operator holding a Novice or Technician Class operator license may only transmit a  CW emission using the  international Morse code.

(10) A station having a  control operator holding a Novice Class operator license or a Technician Class operator license may only transmit a  CW emission using the  international Morse code or  phone emissions J3E and R3E.

(11) Phone and  image emissions may be transmitted only by  stations located in  ITU Regions 1 and 3, and by  stations located within  ITU Region 2 that are west of 130° West longitude or south of 20° North latitude.

(12) Emission F8E may be transmitted.

(13) A data emission using an unspecified digital code under the limitations listed in § 97.309(b) also may be transmitted. The authorized  bandwidth is 100 kHz.

(14) In the 60 m band:

(i) A station may transmit only  phone,  RTTY,  data, and  CW emissions using the emission designators and any additional restrictions that are specified in the table below (except that the use of a narrower necessary  bandwidth is permitted):

(ii) The following requirements also apply:

(A) When transmitting the phone,  RTTY, and  data emissions, the suppressed carrier frequency may be set as specified in § 97.303(h).

(B) The control operator of a  station transmitting  data or  RTTY emissions must exercise care to limit the length of transmission so as to avoid causing  harmful interference to United  States Government stations.

§ 97.305 Authorized emission types.

(a) Except as specified elsewhere in this part, an amateur station may transmit a  CW emission on any frequency authorized to the  control operator.

(b) A station may transmit a  test emission on any frequency authorized to the  control operator for brief periods for experimental purposes, except that no  pulse modulation emission may be transmitted on any frequency where  pulse is not specifically authorized and no  SS modulation emission may be transmitted on any frequency where  SS is not specifically authorized.

(c) A station may transmit the following emission types on the frequencies indicated, as authorized to the  control operator, subject to the standards specified in § 97.307(f) of this part.

§ 97.303 Frequency sharing requirements.

The following paragraphs summarize the frequency sharing requirements that apply to amateur stations transmitting in the frequency bands specified in § 97.301 of this part. Each frequency band allocated to the  amateur service is designated as either a secondary service or a primary service. A  station in a secondary service must not cause  harmful interference to, and must accept interference from,  stations in a primary service.

(a) Where, in adjacent ITU Regions or sub-Regions, a band of frequencies is allocated to different services of the same category (i.e., primary or secondary services), the basic principle is the equality of right to operate. Accordingly, stations of each service in one Region or sub-Region must operate so as not to cause  harmful interference to any service of the same or higher category in the other Regions or sub-Regions.

(b) Amateur stations transmitting in the 70 cm band, the 33 cm band, the 23 cm band, the 5 cm band, the 3 cm band, or the 24.05-24.25 GHz segment must not cause  harmful interference to, and must accept interference from,  stations authorized by the United  States Government in the radio location service.

(c) Amateur stations transmitting in the 76-81 GHz segment, the 136-141 GHz segment, or the 241-248 GHz segment must not cause  harmful interference to, and must accept interference from,  stations authorized by the United  States Government, the  FCC, or other nations in the radio location service.

(d) Amateur stations transmitting in the 430-450 MHz segment, the 23 cm band, the 3.3-3.4 GHz segment, the 5.65-5.85 GHz segment, the 13 cm band, or the 24.05-24.25 GHz segment, must not cause  harmful interference to, and must accept interference from,  stations authorized by other nations in the radio location service.

(e) Amateur stations receiving in the 33 cm band, the 2400-2450 MHz segment, the 5.725-5.875 GHz segment, the 1.2 cm band, the 2.5 mm band, or the 244-246 GHz segment must accept interference from industrial, scientific, and medical (ISM) equipment.

(f) Amateur stations transmitting in the following segments must not cause  harmful interference to radio astronomy stations: 76-81 GHz, 136-141 GHz, 241-248 GHz, 275-323 GHz, 327-371 GHz, 388-424 GHz, 426-442 GHz, 453-510 GHz, 623-711 GHz, 795-909 GHz, or 926-945 GHz. In addition, amateur stations transmitting in the following segments must not cause  harmful interference to  stations in the Earth exploration-satellite service (passive) or the space research service (passive): 275-286 GHz, 296-306 GHz, 313-356 GHz, 361-365 GHz, 369-392 GHz, 397-399 GHz, 409-411 GHz, 416-434 GHz, 439-467 GHz, 477-502 GHz, 523-527 GHz, 538-581 GHz, 611-630 GHz, 634-654 GHz, 657-692 GHz, 713-718 GHz, 729-733 GHz, 750-754 GHz, 771-776 GHz, 823-846 GHz, 850-854 GHz, 857-862 GHz, 866-882 GHz, 905-928 GHz, 951-956 GHz, 968-973 GHz and 985-990 GHz.

(g) In the 2200 m and 630 m bands:

(1) Amateur stations in the 135.7-137.8 kHz (2200 m) and 472-479 kHz (630 m) bands shall only operate at fixed locations.  Amateur stations shall not operate within a horizontal distance of one kilometer from a transmission line that conducts a power line carrier (PLC) signal in the 135.7-137.8 kHz or 472-479 kHz bands. Horizontal distance is measured from the  station's antenna to the closest point on the transmission line.

(2) Prior to commencement of operations in the 135.7-137.8 kHz (2200 m) and/or 472-479 kHz (630 m) bands,  amateur operators shall notify the Utilities Telecom Council (UTC) of their intent to operate by submitting their call signs, intended band or bands of  operation, and the coordinates of their antenna's fixed location.  Amateur stations will be permitted to commence  operations after the 30-day period unless UTC notifies the  station that its fixed location is located within one kilometer of PLC systems operating in the same or overlapping frequencies.

(3) Amateur stations in the 135.7-137.8 kHz (2200 m) band shall not cause  harmful interference to, and shall accept interference from:

(i) Stations authorized by the United  States Government in the fixed and maritime mobile services;

(ii) Stations authorized by other nations in the fixed, maritime mobile, and radio navigation service.

(4) Amateur stations in the 472-479 kHz (630 m) band shall not cause  harmful interference to, and shall accept interference from:

(i) Stations authorized by the  FCC in the maritime  mobile service;

(ii) Stations authorized by other nations in the maritime mobile and aeronautical radio navigation services.

(5) Amateur stations causing  harmful interference shall take all necessary measures to eliminate such interference - including temporary or permanent termination of transmissions.

(h) 60 m band: (1) In the 5330.5-5406.4 kHz band (60 m band), amateur stations may transmit only on the five center frequencies specified in the table below. In order to meet this requirement,  control operators of  stations transmitting  phone,  data, and  RTTY emissions (emission designators 2K80J3E, 2K80J2D, and 60H0J2B, respectively) may set the carrier frequency 1.5 kHz below the center frequency as specified in the table below. For  CW emissions (emission designator 150HA1A), the carrier frequency is set to the center frequency.  Amateur operators shall ensure that their emissions do not occupy more than 2.8 kHz centered on each of these center frequencies.

(2) Amateur stations transmitting on the 60 m band must not cause  harmful interference to, and must accept interference from,  stations authorized by:

(i) The United States (NTIA and FCC) and other nations in the fixed service; and

(ii) Other nations in the mobile except aeronautical mobile service.

(i) Amateur stations transmitting in the 7.2-7.3 MHz segment must not cause  harmful interference to, and must accept interference from, international broadcast  stations whose programming is intended for use within Region 1 or Region 3.

(j) Amateur stations transmitting in the 30 m band must not cause  harmful interference to, and must accept interference from,  stations by other nations in the fixed service. The licensee of the  amateur station must make all necessary adjustments, including termination of transmissions, if  harmful interference is caused.

(k) For amateur stations located in  ITU Regions 1 and 3:  Amateur stations transmitting in the 146-148 MHz segment or the 10.00-10.45 GHz segment must not cause  harmful interference to, and must accept interference from,  stations of other nations in the fixed and mobile services.

(l) In the 219-220 MHz segment:

(1) Use is restricted to amateur stations participating as forwarding  stations in fixed point-to-point digital message forwarding systems, including intercity packet backbone networks. It is not available for other purposes.

(2) Amateur stations must not cause  harmful interference to, and must accept interference from, stations authorized by:

(i) The FCC in the Automated Maritime  Telecommunications System (AMTS), the 218-219 MHz Service, and the 220 MHz Service, and television  stations broadcasting on channels 11 and 13; and

(ii) Other nations in the fixed and maritime mobile services.

(3) No amateur station may transmit unless the licensee has given written notification of the  station's specific geographic location for such transmissions in order to be incorporated into a database that has been made available to the public. The notification must be given at least 30 days prior to making such transmissions. The notification must be given to: The American Radio Relay League, Inc., 225 Main Street, Newington, CT 06111-1494.

(4) No amateur station may transmit from a location that is within 640 km of an AMTS coast  station that operates in the 217-218 MHz and 219-220 MHz bands unless the  amateur station licensee has given written notification of the  station's specific geographic location for such transmissions to the AMTS licensee. The notification must be given at least 30 days prior to making such transmissions. The location of AMTS coast  stations using the 217-218/219-220 MHz channels may be obtained as noted in paragraph (l)(3) of this section.

(5) No amateur station may transmit from a location that is within 80 km of an AMTS coast  station that uses frequencies in the 217-218 MHz and 219-220 MHz bands unless that  amateur station licensee holds written approval from that AMTS licensee. The location of AMTS coast  stations using the 217-218/219-220 MHz channels may be obtained as noted in paragraph (l)(3) of this section.

(m) In the 70 cm band:

(1) No amateur station shall transmit from north of  Line A in the 420-430 MHz segment. See § 97.3(a) for the definition of  Line A.

(2) Amateur stations transmitting in the 420-430 MHz segment must not cause  harmful interference to, and must accept interference from,  stations authorized by the  FCC in the land  mobile service within 80.5 km of Buffalo, Cleveland, and Detroit. See § 2.106, footnote US230 for specific frequencies and coordinates.

(3) Amateur stations transmitting in the 420-430 MHz segment or the 440-450 MHz segment must not cause  harmful interference to, and must accept interference from,  stations authorized by other nations in the fixed and mobile except aeronautical mobile services.

(n) In the 33 cm band:

(1) Amateur stations must not cause  harmful interference to, and must accept interference from, stations authorized by:

(i) The United States Government;

(ii) The FCC in the Location and Monitoring Service; and

(iii) Other nations in the fixed service.

(2) No amateur station shall transmit from those portions of Texas and New Mexico that are bounded by latitudes 31°41′ and 34°30′ North and longitudes 104°11′ and 107°30′ West; or from outside of the United  States and its Region 2 insular areas.

(3) No amateur station shall transmit from those portions of Colorado and Wyoming that are bounded by latitudes 39° and 42° North and longitudes 103° and 108° West in the following segments: 902.4-902.6 MHz, 904.3-904.7 MHz, 925.3-925.7 MHz, and 927.3-927.7 MHz.

(o) Amateur stations transmitting in the 23 cm band must not cause  harmful interference to, and must accept interference from,  stations authorized by:

(1) The United States Government in the aeronautical radio navigation, Earth exploration-satellite (active), or space research (active) services;

(2) The FCC in the aeronautical radio navigation service; and

(3) Other nations in the Earth exploration-satellite (active), radio navigation-satellite (space-to-Earth) (space-to-space), or space research (active) services.

(p) In the 13 cm band:

(1) Amateur stations must not cause  harmful interference to, and must accept interference from, stations authorized by other nations in fixed and mobile services.

(2) Amateur stations transmitting in the 2305-2310 MHz segment must not cause  harmful interference to, and must accept interference from,  stations authorized by the  FCC in the fixed, mobile except aeronautical mobile, and radio location services.

(q) [Reserved]

(r) In the 5 cm band:

(1) Amateur stations transmitting in the 5.650-5.725 GHz segment must not cause  harmful interference to, and must accept interference from,  stations authorized by other nations in the mobile except aeronautical  mobile service.

(2) Amateur stations transmitting in the 5.850-5.925 GHz segment must not cause  harmful interference to, and must accept interference from,  stations authorized by the  FCC and other nations in the fixed-satellite (Earth-to-space) and  mobile services and also  stations authorized by other nations in the fixed service. In the United States, the use of  mobile service is restricted to Dedicated Short Range Communications operating in the Intelligent Transportation System.

(s) [Reserved]

(t) Amateur stations transmitting in the 2.5 mm band must not cause  harmful interference to, and must accept interference from,  stations authorized by the United  States Government, the  FCC, or other nations in the fixed, inter-satellite, or mobile services.

Note to § 97.303:

The Table of Frequency Allocations contains the complete, unabridged, and legally binding frequency sharing requirements that pertain to the Amateur Radio Service. See 47 CFR 2.104, 2.105, and 2.106. The United States, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands are in Region 2 and other U.S. insular areas are in either Region 2 or 3; see appendix 1 to part 97.

§ 97.301 Authorized frequency bands.

The following transmitting frequency bands are available to an amateur station located within 50 km of the Earth's surface, within the specified  ITU Region, and outside any area where the  amateur service is regulated by any authority other than the  FCC.

(a) For a station having a  control operator who has been granted a Technician, General, Advanced, or Amateur Extra Class operator license or who holds a CEPT radio-amateur license or IARP of any class:

(b) For a station having a  control operator who has been granted an Amateur Extra Class operator license, who holds a  CEPT radio amateur license, or who holds a Class 1 IARP license:

(c) For a station having a  control operator who has been granted an operator license of Advanced Class:

(d) For a station having a  control operator who has been granted an operator license of General Class:

(e) For a station having a  control operator who has been granted an operator license of Novice Class or Technician Class: