Posted on 08/27/2020 9:29:07 AM PDT by tbw2
Does Section 303(n) of the Communications Act of 1934 mean that the feds can search your home without a warrant if you have a ham radio license, slang for having an amateur radio license? Conspiracy theories have arisen that this Act is used to justify warrantless inspections of homes with wireless equipment, those accused of broadcasting without a license or even anyone’s home. What does the Act say, and what does the government actually do regarding its enforcement?
(Excerpt) Read more at hubpages.com ...
Does Section 303N of the Communications Act of 1934 Mean the Feds Will Search Your Home Without a Warrant?
https://hubpages.com/politics/Does-Section-303N-of-the-Communications-Act-of-1934-Mean-the-Feds-Will-Search-Your-Home-Without-a-Warrant
A statute does not trump the constitution. Well, it used to be that way, pre CV.
Remember Pearl Harbor!
Get the gear. Learn how to use it. F**k the license. When the time comes to use it, nobody’s gonna be checking.
No it does not.
Nellie Ohr enthusiastically endorses your advice...
;>)
At the link, short answer to title question is Yes. They can.
But they likely won’t.
Unlicensed people are allowed to use Ham Radio in times of emergency.
No, but the feds can search you anytime they feel like it. It may not be legal, and they may shoot you and your dog during the course of the search. All the feds have to do is to apologize afterwards for the misunderstanding.
This must be going around facebook or something, because this is the 2nd thread I’ve seen about this.
The answer is, yes, the FCC does have the ability to observe or otherwise inspect Ham radio equipment. This is not something they are going to do unless they have a specific complaint against you. i.e., you have equipment that is interfering with radio transmissions. Such interferance is easy to track and locate. Amateurs do it all the time. It’s called a fox hunt, and is something Ham clubs do for fun.
Even if you are not a Ham, the FCC can get a warrant to search your premises if they have reason to believe you have hardware that is illegally interfering with legitimate legal transmissions. You can be fined rather significant sums for illegally interfering with others’ legal use of radio spectrum.
However, unless you are tinkering with stuff that has significant RF components, you’re unlikely to run afoul of the FCC.
Yeah, I’m a Ham
While I'd generally agree that when the SHTF, licenses are probably not going to be the most important thing on your mind, if you actually want to LEARN how to use the hardware, you're pretty likely to get in some serious trouble learning how to properly use it before the SHTF. Learning how to use it after the fact isn't going to be nearly as easy as you think. Also, when you are transmitting, you are very easily located, even by amateurs, much less professionals.
Hams really love to help people learn how to do things the right way. Find a local club, and they are more than willing to teach you everything (and more) than you want to know.
As am I.
I ended up being a technical expert (as a ham) talking to I think it was the Pacific Legal Foundation. They were researching suing the FCC for privacy violations because they thought that random home searches were being done using the ham radio license as an excuse.
I ended up being a technical expert (as a ham) talking to I think it was the Pacific Legal Foundation. They were researching suing the FCC for privacy violations because they thought that random home searches were being done using the ham radio license as an excuse.
“Hams really love to help people learn how to do things the right way.”
That’s all fine and well, but if having a ham license means you give up your 4th amendment rights, then I’m not getting one.
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