rdunajewski

Private Members-Only systems are sometimes listed to A) try to attract new members or B ) advertise the repeater exists to help with frequency coordination. If someone checks this site to see what frequencies may be open, they'll see the listing even if it's a private system.

Please check your callsign closely. Your callsign is actually WRAI450. That's 4 letters and 3 numbers, the 4th letter is the letter "I". Here's the license in our system: https://www.mygmrs.com/callsign?callsign=wrai450

I disagree with their interpretation of DSL as being interconnected. I'd say dial-up is a bit more nebulous, but also not quite "interconnected" in the way the rules are meant to prohibit. The idea isn't to prevent linking between repeaters, it was to prevent a phone line from being hooked up to the repeater (i.e. an autopatch) where an unlicensed user could dial the phone number (intentionally or unintentionally) and begin making transmissions on the GMRS side. This is the reason for telephone interconnection being banned. When you use DSL, you're using the phone line but your DSL modem is sending a digital signal on the phone line concurrent with any analog phone traffic. The phone company at the office end demodulates the signal and patches you into the Internet via their fiber trunks. At no point can someone dial your phone number and gain access to the repeater. When you use dial-up it's a similar story except you're using the analog phone line to dial the remote office and send the data stream over the normal audio path. So yes, you're making a phone call over the phone line but someone can't just ring your phone number and gain access to the repeater. So even this, technically, should be allowed. I wouldn't test the FCC on it, but for technical reasons it should be permissible. Their point about VoIP is spot-on though. A VoIP system like we use with Asterisk and app_rpt is basically a private PBX system. You're making phone calls between internal extensions, not connected to the Public Switched Telephone Network. There's no phone number for someone to dial, and no way for someone who isn't authenticated in the system from being able to activate a repeater. By restricting to GMRS licensees only (and keeping Ham operators off of the network), there is controlled access only to licensed individuals which meets the FCC's rules. Now if this VoIP system had a public phone number, it would be considered interconnected and would be in violation of the FCC rules. Again, someone could just ring that number and begin transmitting on a licensed service, which is what this aims to prevent in the first place.

Line A and Line C restrictions were removed from the GMRS rules proposed in the WT 10-119 Report & Order. Next Thursday is the FCC meeting to consider the R&O. GMRS operators still are not allowed to communicate with foreign stations, so I asked the FCC to exclude Canada from this restriction just like they did for CB radio in the same R&O. Basically there is the same service on the Canadian side (slightly different rules, no licenses) so there's no actual interference anymore. Back in the day these frequencies were for public safety and/or business use in Canada so it would have caused problems. Now, it's almost the same service and type of users so there's no reason to keep the ban in effect.

The forum registration is tied to your myGMRS account. So in order to create a forum account, you would have a full myGMRS account as well with access to the repeater listing information. We opened up guest access to allow new and prospective members to be able to ask questions and decide whether they wanted to participate in the community. Once they have a valid GMRS license they are free to sign up and have full forum access. To answer the poster's question about contacting a repeater owner, you may look up the repeater listing and click on the owner's username. That will bring up their profile with the mailing address attached to their GMRS license with the FCC. We don't expose their email address to non-members for obvious security reasons. In fact, the only reason we show the address is because it's public record with the FCC, so it's already available to the public.

https://www.fcc.gov/ecfs/search/filings?proceedings_name=10-119&sort=date_disseminated,DESC

Here's the officially posted version: https://www.fcc.gov/ecfs/filing/105032447715358

I just submitted my comment to the FCC, just waiting for them to approve it and post it on the site. Then I'll share the link. In the meantime, I'm attaching it here so everyone can read what I submitted. I found some inconsistencies in their Report & Order so I tried to drive the point home on a few issues. Overall I am very happy with the rules they proposed as they're a lot simpler when you consider how bad the current set is. They also were thinking about destroying GMRS as we know it, and they backpedaled on virtually all of those ideas. I re-read their report and they seemed to use the survey I submitted back in 2010 in their decision to continue allowing the repeaters. I think they weren't aware there we so many still in use, and over the past several years there have been many more added to this site. So thank you to all the repeater owners who posted here, that definitely made a difference! I don't think they will really consider many changes if any this close to the meeting (May 18th), but they did release the draft ahead of time so I wanted to fight as hard as I could to sway them in any way possible. If they were going this far with digital data, there was little reason not to allow digital voice in my opinion. Also, the data emissions were limited to bubblepack radios anyway, which is completely unfair. Hopefully we get some of what I asked for, but either way I'm content that the service hasn't been completely trashed like it almost was. I urge everyone else to post a comment, however short it is. The FCC did listen to your prior comments, and the proceeding is still technically open. Feel free to reference my comment, agree or disagree with what I had to say (but please consider the reasons I gave for my opinions before outright disagreeing with them). I believe we have until May 8th to have our comments read by the FCC for this meeting. There seems to be a 10-day sunshine period where they won't consider any new filings before the meeting. So please post a comment ASAP. Click on "+ New Filing" on the left side of the page. Fill out your contact information, optionally your callsign, type is "Comment" or "Reply To Comments", and attach a document (Word, PDF, etc) with your comments: https://www.fcc.gov/ecfs/search/filings?sort=date_disseminated,DESC&proceedings_name=10-119 FCC Report and Order Comment.docx

Another link in case people are having trouble accessing it: https://www.fcc.gov/document/part-95-reform

I thought so too, until you read that it's only for units with non-removable antennas. Basically it's the Garmin waiver being codified and allowed on both FRS and GMRS. Also, can't use it on any of the repeater inputs which would be a good way to collect the GPS locations in a central location. Think about Search and Rescue, wouldn't you want a repeater (fixed or portable) to be receiving every unit's GPS location and keeping track rather than some other HT having to be the contact point? I'm going to post a formal comment about these draft rules to argue for digital voice and the removal of the non-removable antenna provision. Just about every other rule seems clear and useful in my opinion. They're still muddy on Part 90, but I think they still want the revenue from having to accept Part 95 radios. Doing away with the requirement hurts their revenue stream from the manufacturers. If they drop the antenna requirement then it looks like you can use any nearly digital modulation you want for texting and GPS, so long as it's under 1 second in TX length. That means P25 and NXDN, for example would be allowed. TDMA is another emission designator so that appears to be out, but I'm wondering about single-slot DMR. Does that fall under one of the permissible emission types as long as the second slot isn't being used (meaning the transmitter is keyed continuously, and not yielding for a second slot)? That would be useful to the majority of us who aren't using Garmin bubblepack radios with GPS on them. Otherwise this rule serves only a small group of users.

Just saw this today. I will formally pick through the rules later but wanted to share with the group and get your take on these. http://transition.fcc.gov/Daily_Releases/Daily_Business/2017/db0427/DOC-344617A1.pdf If I'm reading this right, this is the high-level summary for GMRS: FRS/GMRS combo radios prohibited going forwardLinking permissible, even using the PSTN (although telephone calls not allowed)Digital emissions allowed for short text messaging and location purposes, but apparently not digital voice (some strict restrictions)Allowed to use the FRS interstitial channels at 2 WattsRepeaters still allowedPower limits unchangedCertification for hand-held radios to be dropped

Please feel free to pressure the FCC to revise the rules to allow digital voice transmissions on GMRS. Emphasis on voice, not data. The rules are just out of date with the state of technology, so it'd be nice to bring GMRS up to the Ham standard, so to speak.

If both users are licensed, they may use GMRS for business purposes as long as the remaining rules are followed. So yes, you and your coworker, if both have a license, may use GMRS for commercial use but are still subject to, for example, the rules that require identification, cooperative channel use, prohibits explicit language, etc. If a business holds a grandfathered license still (very few left), they may issue radios to their employees for business purposes. The other rules still apply, but the terms of their license may specify some special usage or restrictions (i.e. only authorized for certain frequencies). Since only individuals can get a license today, you're probably asking about the first case.

I and others on here are of the opinion that any Part 90 gear that meets the technical requirements in Part 95 (which virtually all do today) is okay to use on GMRS when operated within the appropriate limits. I know you mentioned Part 95 specifically, and there is still a legal gray area on what I just said above. The issue is that there isn't a lot of equipment available that is certified for GMRS to the extent that the Part 95 rules are a major hinderance to the service. Following the letter of the law, then you should only use Part 95 equipment. However the rules exist to set minimum technical requirements and modern Part 90 radios are compliant and worthy substitutes (in many cases also exceed the specifications of Part 95). From an enforcement standpoint, it's really a non-issue. I've seen no reports of the FCC taking issue with a Part 90 radio, being operated correctly (i.e. within proper power limits), on GMRS. There is no way to tell aside from a station inspection that the radio is not Part 95 compliant. I'll stress once again that this is opinion, but it is a prevailing opinion in the community it seems.

What is your callsign? I'll check and see what's going on.

Thanks for the heads-up guys. I made some changes that should fix that for you. There's still a chance emails could end up in your Spam folders, so please check in there, too.

Sorry about that, I responded to your email with some more info.

I have a small network set up using a modified version of app_rpt. I use my own registration server so there's no dependency on the AllStar network, and no way to accidentally connect to a Ham repeater. By keeping them separate, we're in compliance with the FCC regulations for GMRS in that we're preventing unauthorized access. You just need a PC you can wipe clean and put Linux on (or even a Raspberry Pi), and a piece of hardware to interface with the repeater. We've used the URIx board from DMK Engineering (about $70), and the RTCM board (no PC needed, but more expensive at about $270). The RTCM is tricky to set up but the big draw is that there's no need to alter the firewall settings at the repeater site (some people have no way to forward ports). If that's something you're interested in, let me know and I can PM you with more details.

Ed, the issue should now be fixed. We had an issue with the forums and they went offline for a couple of days. Your myGMRS account should let you log in here now like it did before. If you still have trouble just send me a private message.

Hey Drake, Could you send me a private message and let me know which repeaters shouldn't be assigned to you? I'm not sure why that happened yet.

Hi Seven, Welcome! Let's see if I can answer those questions for you. Others may chime in and lend their expertise as well. 1. This is a Ham radio, and is not certified for use on GMRS frequencies. According to the FCC Rules (Part 95), any radio used on GMRS frequencies must carry Part 95A certification. However, as you may find if you do your own research, it's very hard to find a currently-produced Part 95A radio which is repeater capable. It's kind of a niche and most manufacturers don't bother with it anymore. For us, that presents us with a dilemma. Either we are stuck using very old and obsolete equipment, or we could use Part 90 radios (virtually all commercial-grade radios for business or public safety use) which adheres to stricter technical requirements. I don't recommend or advocate it, but many people have decided that a Part 90 radio, when operated properly, is just as good or even better. Many of the Baofeng radios and their clones now carry Part 90 certification when the user is unable to change the frequency on the fly. So the short answer is, yes it's a Ham radio. The longer answer is, it may have Part 90 certification and would then perform similarly to a Part 95A radio, so you would be using it at your own risk. The argument has been made with the FCC but to date no answer has been given. 2. For simplex, you can use any GMRS frequency that is not a repeater input (467.xxx MHz). You can speak in another language, but you are required to state your callsign in English every 15 minutes during a conversation, and at the end of the conversation according to the FCC rules. Yes, you can set a PL tone on simplex for you and your friend. It will not provide true privacy, but would prevent you two from hearing other people on the same channel unless they happen to be using the same tone. 3. Yes, your GMRS license allows you to use a GMRS repeater. However, repeaters are privately owned and you need the permission of the owner. Some repeaters are posted on this site as "open" which means any licensed user can use it without permission (just follow the rules), while some are private or require explicit permission. The listing for the repeater on this website should indicate which, and you can contact the owner through this site. The repeater will retransmit your audio over a wider area so others can hear you who would not normally be able to hear your radio directly. It's not private, and anyone else who has the repeater programmed in their radio could talk back to you. 4. English isn't required, but you may want to talk to the repeater owner and give them a heads-up that you intend to speak in another language but will be complying with the FCC rules. Some people are alarmed by not knowing what someone is saying on their repeater, so it doesn't hurt to state that up front to avoid confusion. Nothing in GMRS is private, so others would be able to hear you if they're within range of the repeater (typically 15-30 miles, perhaps more) 5. Only one person may transmit at a time, so if there's a conversation going on already, you'll have to wait your turn. If you have something to add to the conversation, you can jump in and introduce yourself. Most people are happy to talk with you, so don't be shy about it. Just don't interrupt another conversation with your own. Good luck, and let me know if you need any further clarification!

Yeah, 50-60 mile radius is hard to achieve with one repeater, and very hard to achieve a good enough signal to make it practical over all 50-60 miles. I agree with the others, you need to get your antenna VERY high up to have a chance. The alternative is to set up multiple repeaters to give you the coverage you need. There are methods to link them via VoIP that are within the Part 95 rules as long as you protect the linking from unlicensed users (don't use something open to the public or you're asking for trouble). More repeaters means more money, but the cost of getting access to a tall enough tower (if you can even find one who will let a GMRS repeater up there) may be more than setting up several smaller sites. Send me a PM if you're interested in linking them privately, I have quite a bit of experience there.

Hi Frank, Can you see if you can edit now? I believe the issue is fixed.

What is your callsign? I will look into it if you still can't connect. As of late it appears the delay can be as long as 48 hours. Basically we get a dump of the FCC database every day at noon, but whether a new license is in that dump yet is up to the FCC's system. Sometimes they come up, sometimes they don't. It's a bit frustrating, but for now that's their limitation.

The email notifications sent to you should include a "Reply-To" address, which is the email address of the person requesting access. Most email clients will automatically send the email to the right party. Could you forward the email to me? I'd like to take a look at the email headers and see if they're being set properly in your case. Forward to rich@mygmrs.com.