Good afternoon,
There are a few items that I wish to pass along to the ARRL South Texas Section. For those that are ARRL Volunteer Examiners, there is a program already in place that helps the youth not only with the cost of taking the exam
but also reimburses them for the cost of the FCC application fee.
ARRL Youth Licensing Grant Program Information The ARRL Youth Licensing Grant Program, in effect since April 19, 2022, covers the one-time $35 application fee for new license candidates younger than 18 years old for tests administered under the ARRL Volunteer Examiner Coordinator (ARRL VEC) program.
The $35 FCC application fee will be reimbursed after the ARRL VEC receives the completed reimbursement form and the new license has been issued by the FCC. The reimbursement check will be mailed to the fee payer.
Additionally, candidates younger than 18 years old would pay a reduced exam session fee of $5 to the ARRL VEC VE team at the time of the exam. The $5 fee is for all candidates under the age of 18 regardless of the exam level taken. Proof of under-18 status is required at the session (what to bring to an exam session). The program is sponsored by ARRL The National Association for Amateur Radio®.
For the VE there is also a new ARRL VEC Test Report available for download as well as an interactive version. The links for all the information are on the link below. https://www.arrl.org/youth-licensing-grant-program
For the year 2024, I would like to see more activities involving the Scouts, or any youth for that matter. Events for the youths do not have to revolve around Scouting’s Jamboree, or to help Scouts get their Radio Merit Badge. Those are all great events, but we should not focus on only a few events each year for the youth.
With the new technology that is being introduced to our hobby each year, it might be nice to see our Affiliated Clubs, and non-Affiliated clubs put on demonstrations on how to build or set up devices like any of the spots on the market, or gateways, nodes, or other similar items. Like Openspot or Zumspot to name just two. If you are in a club that already does this, email me with the information and we will put it on the ARRL STX website.
The next item is the Solar Eclipse that is occurring in April. If your organization, be it a club, ARES group, or other entity is planning on helping an EOC, SOC, or another group during this event, please email me at
If the club you belong to sponsors special events, hosts CW training, or anything else that the ARRL website does not have a place to advertise, let me know and we will see about getting it posted on the ARRL STX
site. We may not be able to post everything, but we will try our best to get the word out.
One of the new items for Affiliated clubs is the updated Club Commission Program. For those that do not know, the commission the club receives for any new ARRL member they sign up went up from $15 to 20 dollars. For any ARRL member who renews through the club, the club receives a $5 commission. This is all listed under Affiliated Club Benefits: https://www.arrl.org/affiliated-club-benefits
I know it is still early to discuss ARRL Field Day 2024, but if you or club wishes to increase the visitation of their event do not forget to list it on the ARRL Field Day Locator site. It is only a few months away, and time has a way of passing us by.
For those who have not heard, Bob Heil – K9EID passed away. The announcement from ARRL is at the link below. https://www.arrl.org/news/bob-heil-k9eid-silent-key
Thank you,
ARRL STX Section Manager
Stuart Wolfe - KF5NIX