TITLE 47--TELECOMMUNICATION
CHAPTER I--FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS
COMMISSION (CONTINUED)
Subpart F -- Qualifying Examination Systems
Sec. 97.501 Qualifying for an amateur operator license.
Each applicant must pass an examination for a new amateur operator
license grant and for each change in operator class. Each applicant for
the class of operator license grant specified below must pass, or
otherwise receive examination credit for, the following examination
elements:
(a) Amateur Extra Class operator: Elements 1, 2, 3, and 4;
(b) General Class operator: Elements 1, 2, and 3;
(c) Technician Class operator: Element 2.
Sec. 97.503 Element standards.
(a) A telegraphy examination must be sufficient to prove that the
examinee has the ability to send correctly by hand and to receive
correctly by ear texts in the international Morse code at not less than
the prescribed speed, using all the letters of the alphabet, numerals 0-
9, period, comma, question mark, slant mark, and prosigns AR, BT, and
SK. Element 1: 5 words per minute
(b) A written examination must be such as to prove that the examinee
possesses the operational and technical qualifications required to
perform properly the duties of an amateur service licensee. Each written
examination must be comprised of a question set as follows:
(1) Element 2: 35 questions concerning the privileges of a
Technician Class operator license. The minimum passing score is 26
questions answered correctly.
(2) Element 3: 35 questions concerning the privileges of a General
Class operator license. The minimum passing score is 26 questions
answered correctly.
(3) Element 4: 50 questions concerning the privileges of an Amateur
Extra Class operator license. The minimum passing score is 37 questions
answered correctly.
Sec. 97.505 Element credit.
(a) The administering VEs must give credit as specified below to an
examinee holding any of the following license grants or license
documents:
(1) An unexpired (or expired but within the grace period for
renewal) FCC-granted Advanced Class operator license grant: Elements 1,
2, and 3.
(2) An unexpired (or expired but within the grace period for
renewal) FCC-granted General Class operator license grant: Elements 1,
2, and 3.
(3) An unexpired (or expired but within the grace period for
renewal) FCC-granted Technician Plus Class operator (including a
Technician Class operator license granted before February 14, 1991)
license grant: Elements 1 and 2.
(4) An unexpired (or expired but within the grace period for
renewal) FCC-granted Technician Class operator license grant: Element 2.
(5) An expired or unexpired FCC-granted Novice Class operator
license grant: Element 1.
(6) A CSCE: Each element the CSCE indicates the examinee passed
within the previous 365 days.
(7) An unexpired (or expired less than 5 years) FCC-issued
commercial radiotelegraph operator license or permit: Element 1.
(8) An expired FCC-issued Technician Class operator license document
granted before March 21, 1987: Element 3.
(9) An expired or unexpired FCC-issued Technician Class operator
license document granted before February 14, 1991: Element 1.
(b) No examination credit, except as herein provided, shall be
allowed on the basis of holding or having held any other license grant
or document.
Sec. 97.507 Preparing an examination.
(a) Each telegraphy message and each written question set
administered to an examinee must be prepared by a VE holding an Amateur
Extra Class operator license. A telegraphy message or written question
set may also be prepared for the following elements by a VE holding an
operator license of the class indicated:
(1) Element 3:----------- Advanced Class operator.
(2) Elements 1 and 2:---- Advanced or General Class operators.
(3) Element 2:----------- Advanced, General, Technician (including
Technician Plus) Class operators.
(b) Each question set administered to an examinee must utilize
questions taken from the applicable question pool.
(c) Each telegraphy message and each written question set
administered to an examinee for an amateur operator license must be
prepared, or obtained from a supplier, by the administering VEs
according to instructions from the coordinating VEC.
(d) A telegraphy examination must consist of a message sent in the
international Morse code at no less than the prescribed speed for a
minimum of 5 minutes. The message must contain each required telegraphy
character at least once. No message known to the examinee may be
administered in a telegraphy examination. Each 5 letters of the alphabet
must be counted as 1 word. Each numeral, punctuation mark and prosign
must be counted as 2 letters of the alphabet.
Sec. 97.509 Administering VE requirements.
(a) Each examination for an amateur operator license must be
administered by a team of at least 3 VEs at an examination session
coordinated by a VEC. Before the session, the administering VEs or the
VE session manager must ensure that a public announcement is made giving
the location and time of the session. The number of examinees at the
session may be limited.
(b) Each administering VE must:
(1) Be accredited by the coordinating VEC;
(2) Be at least 18 years of age;
(3) Be a person who holds an amateur operator license of the class
specified below:
(i) Amateur Extra, Advanced or General Class in order to administer
a Technician Class operator license examination;
(ii) Amateur Extra or Advanced Class in order to administer a
General Class operator license examination;
(iii) Amateur Extra Class in order to administer an Amateur Extra
Class operator license examination.
(4) Not be a person whose grant of an amateur station license or
amateur operator license has ever been revoked or suspended.
(c) Each administering VE must be present and observing the examinee
throughout the entire examination. The administering VEs are responsible
for the proper conduct and necessary supervision of each examination.
The administering VEs must immediately terminate the examination upon
failure of the examinee to comply with their instructions.
(d) No VE may administer an examination to his or her spouse,
children, grandchildren, stepchildren, parents, grandparents,
stepparents, brothers, sisters, stepbrothers, stepsisters, aunts,
uncles, nieces, nephews, and in-laws.
(e) No VE may administer or certify any examination by fraudulent
means or for monetary or other consideration including reimbursement in
any amount in excess of that permitted. Violation of this provision may
result in the revocation of the grant of the VE's amateur station
license and the suspension of the grant of the VE's amateur operator
license.
(f) No examination that has been compromised shall be administered
to any examinee. Neither the same telegraphy message nor the same
question set may be re-administered to the same examinee.
(g) Passing a telegraphy receiving examination is adequate proof of
an examinee's ability to both send and receive telegraphy. The
administering VEs, however, may also include a sending segment in a
telegraphy examination.
(h) Upon completion of each examination element, the administering
VEs must immediately grade the examinee's answers. The administering VEs
are responsible for determining the correctness of the examinee's
answers.
(i) When the examinee is credited for all examination elements
required for the operator license sought, 3 VEs must certify that the
examinee is qualified for the license grant and that the VEs have
complied with these administering VE requirements. The certifying VEs
are jointly and individually accountable for the proper administration
of each examination element reported. The certifying VEs may delegate to
other qualified VEs their authority, but not their accountability, to
administer individual elements of an examination.
(j) When the examinee does not score a passing grade on an
examination element, the administering VEs must return the application
document to the examinee and inform the examinee of the grade.
(k) The administering VEs must accommodate an examinee whose
physical disabilities require a special examination procedure. The
administering VEs may require a physician's certification indicating the
nature of the disability before determining which, if any, special
procedures must be used.
(l) The administering VEs must issue a CSCE to an examinee who
scores a passsing grade on an examination element.
(m) Within 10 days of the administration of a successful examination
for an amateur operator license, the administering VEs must submit the
application document to the coordinating VEC.
Sec. 97.511 Examinee conduct.
Each examinee must comply with the instructions given by the
administering VEs.
Sec. 97.513 VE session manager requirements.
(a) A VE session manager may be selected by the VE team for each
examination session. The VE session manager must be accredited as a VE
by the same VEC that coordinates the examination session. The VE session
manager may serve concurrently as an administering VE.
(b) The VE session manager may carry on liaison between the VE team
and the coordinating VEC.
(c) The VE session manager may organize activities at an examination
session.
Secs. 97.515-97.517 [Reserved]
Sec. 97.519 Coordinating examination sessions.
(a) A VEC must coordinate the efforts of VEs in preparing and
administering examinations.
(b) At the completion of each examination session, the coordinating
VEC must collect applicant information and tests results from the
administering VEs. Within 10 days of collection, the coordinating VEC
must:
(1) Screen collected information;
(2) Resolve all discrepancies and verify that the VE's
certifications are properly completed; and
(3) For qualified examinees, forward electronically all required
data to the FCC. All data forwarded must be retained for at least 15
months and must be made available to the FCC upon request.
(c) Each VEC must make any examination records available to the FCC,
upon request
(d) The FCC may:
(1) Administer any examination element itself;
(2) Readminister any examination element previously administered by
VEs, either itself or under the supervision of a VEC or VEs designated
by the FCC; or
(3) Cancel the operator/primary station license of any licensee who
fails to appear for readministration of an examination when directed by
the FCC, or who does not successfully complete any required element that
is readministered. In an instancce of such cancellation, the person will
be granted an operator/primary station license consistent with completed
examination elements that have not been invalidated by not appearing
for, or by failing, the examination upon readministration.
Sec. 97.521 VEC qualifications.
No organization may serve as a VEC unless it has entered into a
written agreement with the FCC. The VEC must abide by the terms of the
agreement. In order to be eligible to be a VEC, the entity must:
(a) Be an organization that exists for the purpose of furthering the
amateur service;
(b) Be capable of serving as a VEC in at least the VEC region (see
appendix 2) proposed;
(c) Agree to coordinate examinations for any class of amateur
operator license;
(d) Agree to assure that, for any examination, every examinee
qualified under these rules is registered without regard to race, sex,
religion, national origin or membership (or lack thereof) in any amateur
service organization;
Sec. 97.523 Question pools.
All VECs must cooperate in maintaining one question pool for each
written examination element. Each question pool must contain at least 10
times the number of questions required for a single examination. Each
question pool must be published and made available to the public prior
to its use for making a question set. Each question on each VEC question
pool must be prepared by a VE holding the required FCC-issued operator
license. See Sec. 97.507(a) of this part.
Sec. 97.525 Accrediting VEs.
(a) No VEC may accredit a person as a VE if:
(1) The person does not meet minimum VE statutory qualifications or
minimum qualifications as prescribed by this part;
(2) The FCC does not accept the voluntary and uncompensated services
of the person;
(3) The VEC determines that the person is not competent to perform
the VE functions; or
(4) The VEC determines that questions of the person's integrity or
honesty could compromise the examinations.
(b) Each VEC must seek a broad representation of amateur operators
to be VEs. No VEC may discriminate in accrediting VEs on the basis of
race, sex, religion or national origin; nor on the basis of membership
(or lack thereof) in an amateur service organization; nor
on the basis of the person accepting or declining to accept
reimbursement.
Sec. 97.527 Reimbursement for expenses.
VEs and VECs may be reimbursed by examinees for out-of-pocket
expenses incurred in preparing, processing, administering, or
coordinating an examination for an amateur operator license.
Appendix 1 to Part 97--Places Where the Amateur Service is Regulated by
the FCC
In ITU Region 2, the amateur service is regulated by the FCC within
the territorial limits of the 50 United States, District of Columbia,
Caribbean Insular areas [Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, United States
Virgin Islands (50 islets and cays) and Navassa Island], and Johnston
Island (Islets East, Johnston, North and Sand) and Midway Island (Islets
Eastern and Sand) in the Pacific Insular areas.
In ITU Region 3, the amateur service is regulated by the FCC within
the Pacific Insular territorial limits of American Samoa (seven
islands), Baker Island, Commonwealth of Northern Mariana Islands, Guam
Island, Howland Island, Jarvis Island, Kingman Reef, Palmyra Island
(more than 50 islets) and Wake Island (Islets Peale, Wake and Wilkes).
Appendix 2 to Part 97--VEC Region
1. Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island and
Vermont.
2. New Jersey and New York.
3. Delaware, District of Columbia, Maryland and Pennsylvania.
4. Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, North Carolina, South Carolina,
Tennessee and Virginia.
5. Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Texas.
6. California.
7. Arizona, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, Oregon, Utah, Washington and
Wyoming.
8. Michigan, Ohio and West Virginia.
9. Illinois, Indiana and Wisconsin.
10. Colorado, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota
and South Dakota.
11. Alaska.
12. Caribbean Insular areas.
13. Hawaii and Pacific Insular areas.
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