The following "job descriptions" (guidelines, if you will) are 
descriptive of the volunteer appointments most likely available 
in YOUR area of the USA. 
 
For appointment applications or further information, contact the 
Field Services Department, ARRL HQ, 225 Main St. Newington CT. 
 
----- 
TECHNICAL COORDINATOR  
  
    The ARRL Technical Coordinator (TC) is a section-level official  
appointed by the Section Manager to coordinate all technical activities  
within the section.  The Technical Coordinator must be an ARRL full  
member holding a Novice class (or higher) amateur license.  The Technical  
Coordinator reports to the Section Manager and is expected to maintain  
contact with other section-level appointees as appropriate to insure a  
unified ARRL Field Organization within the section.  The duties of the  
Technical Coordinator are as follows: 
 
    1. Supervise and coordinate the work of the section's Technical  
Specialists.  
 
    2.  Encourage amateurs in the section to share their technical  
achievements with others through the pages of QST, and at club meetings,  
hamfests and conventions. 
 
    3.  Promote technical advances and experimentation at vhf/uhf and  
with specialized modes, and work closely with enthusiasts in these fields  
within the section. 
 
    4.  Serve as an advisor to radio clubs that sponsor training programs  
for obtaining amateur licenses or upgraded licenses in cooperation with  
the ARRL Affiliated Club Coordinator. 
 
    5.  In times of emergency or disaster, function as the coordinator  
for establishing an array of equipment for communications use and be  
available to supply technical expertise to government and relief agencies  
to set up emergency communications networks, in cooperation with the ARRL  
Section Emergency Coordinator.   
 
    6.  Refer amateurs in the section who need technical advice to local  
Technical Specialists.  
 
    7.  Encourage TSs to serve on RFI and TVI committees in the section  
for the purpose of rendering technical assistance as needed, in  
cooperation with the ARRL OO/Coordinator. 
 
    8.  Be available to assist local technical program committees in  
arranging suitable programs for ARRL hamfests and conventions. 
 
    9.  Convey the views of section amateurs and TSs about the technical  
contents of QST and ARRL books to ARRL Hq. Suggestions for improvements  
should also be called to the attention of the ARRL Hq. technical staff. 
 
   10.  Work with the appointed ARRL TAs (technical advisors) when called  
upon. 
 
   11.  Be available to give technical talks at club meetings, hamfests  
and conventions in the section. 
 
     Recruitment of new hams and League members is an integral part of  
the job of every League appointee.  Appointees should take advantage of  
every opportunity to recruit a new ham or member to foster growth of  
Field Organization programs, and our abilities to serve the public. 
 
FSD-109 
(191) 
------ 
 
OFFICIAL OBSERVER 
 
    The Official Observer program has been sponsored by the League for  
over 50 years to help amateurs help each other.  Official Observer  
appointees have aided thousands of amateurs to maintain their  
transmitting equipment and operating procedures in compliance with the  
regulations.  The object of the OO program is to notify amateurs by  
mail of operating/technical irregularities before they come to the  
attention of the FCC. 
 
    The OO is also the backbone of the Amateur Auxiliary to the FCC's  
Field Operations Bureau.  OOs are certified in the Auxiliary by  
passing a mandatory written examination. 
 
    The OO performs his function by listening rather than  
transmitting, keeping an ear out for such things as frequency  
instability, harmonics, hum, key clicks, broad signals, distorted  
audio, overdeviation, out-of-band operation, etc.  The OO completes  
his task once the notification card is sent.    
    In hard-core rules violations cases, OOs refer problems to higher  
echelons of the Amateur Auxiliary, and may be requested to gather  
evidence for possible FCC enforcement actions. 
 
Requirements follow: 
 
1.  Must take and pass examination to be certified as a member of the  
Amateur Auxiliary, an FCC requirement, based on study of the ARRL's  
Amateur Auxiliary Training Manual. 
 
2.  Must be an ARRL Full Member and have been a licensee of Technician  
Class or higher for at least four years. 
 
3.  Must report to the OO Coordinator regularly on FSD-23. 
 
4.  Maintain regular activity in sending out advisory notices as  
needed.  
 
    The OO program is one of the most important functions of the  
League.  A sincere dedication to helping our brother and sister  
amateurs is required for appointment.   
 
     Recruitment of new hams and League members is an integral part of the  
job of every League appointee.  Appointees should take advantage of every  
opportunity to recruit a new ham or member to foster growth of Field  
Organization programs, and our abilities to serve the public. 
 
FSD-110 
(1288) 
 
----- 
 
AFFILIATED CLUB COORDINATOR 
 
 
    The ACC is the primary contact and resource person for each  
Amateur Radio club in the section, specializing in motivating,  
providing assistance and coordinating joint activities of radio clubs.   
The ACC is appointed by, and reports to, the Section Manager.  Duties  
and qualifications of the ACC include the following: 
 
1. Volunteer a great deal of time in getting to know the Amateur Radio  
clubs' members and officers person to person in his section. Learn  
their needs, strengths and interests and work with them to make club  
effective resources in their communities and more enjoyable for their  
members. 
 
2.  Encourage affiliated clubs in the section to become more active  
and, if the club is already healthy and effective, to apply as a  
Special Service Club (SSC). 
 
3.  Supply interested clubs with SSC application forms. 
 
4.  Assist clubs in completing SSC application forms, if requested. 
 
5.  Help clubs establish workable programs to use as SSCs. 
 
6.  Approve SSC application forms and pass them to the SM. 
 
7.  Work with other section leadership officials (Section Emergency  
Coordinator, Public Information Coordinator, Technical Coordinator, State  
Government Liaison, etc.) to insure that clubs are involved in the  
mainstream of ARRL Field Organization activities. 
 
8.  Encourage new clubs to become ARRL affiliated. 
 
9.  Ensure  that  annual  progress  reports  (updated  officers,  
liaison mailing addresses etc.) are forthcoming from all affiliated  
clubs.   
 
10. Novice Class license; ARRL membership required. 
 
     Recruitment of new hams and League members is an integral part of the  
job of every League appointee.  Appointees should take advantage of every  
opportunity to recruit a new ham or member to foster growth of Field  
Organization programs, and our abilities to serve the public. 
 
FSD-201 
(1288) 
 
----- 
 
EMERGENCY COORDINATOR 
 
   The ARRL Emergency Coordinator is a key team player in ARES on the  
local emergency communications scene. Working with the Section  
Emergency Coordinator, the DEC and Official Emergency Stations, the  
EC prepares for, and engages in management of communications needs in  
disasters. EC duties include: 
 
    1. Promote and enhance the activities of the Amateur Radio  
Emergency Service (ARES) for the benefit of the public as a voluntary,  
non-commercial communications service. 
 
    2. Manage and coordinate the training, organization and emergency  
participation of interested amateurs working in support of the  
communities, agencies or functions designated by the Section Emergency  
Coordinator/Section Manager. 
 
    3. Establish an emergency communications plan for the communities  
and agencies that will effectively utilize ARES members to cover the  
needs for tactical and formal Welfare message traffic. 
 
    4. Establish a viable working relationship with all federal,  
state, county, city governmental and private agencies in the ARES  
jurisdictional area which might need the services of ARES in  
emergencies. 
 
    5. Establish local communications networks run on a regular basis  
and periodically test those networks by conducting realistic drills. 
 
    6. Establish an emergency traffic plan, with Welfare traffic  
inclusive, utilizing the National Traffic System as one active  
component for traffic handling.  Establish an operational liaison with  
local and section nets, particularly for handling Welfare traffic in  
an emergency situation. 
 
    7. In times of disaster, evaluate the communications needs of the  
juris-diction and respond quickly to those needs.  The EC will assume  
authority and responsibility for emergency response and performance by  
ARES personnel under his jurisdiction. 
 
    8. Do all that is possible to further the favorable image of  
Amateur Radio by dedication to purpose and a thorough understanding of  
the mission of Amateur Radio. 
 
   Requirements:  Technician or higher class license; Full ARRL  
membership. 
 
     Recruitment of new hams and League members is an integral part of the  
job of every League appointee.  Appointees should take advantage of every  
opportunity to recruit a new ham or member to foster growth of Field  
Organization programs, and our abilities to serve the public. 
 
FSD-46 
(1288) 
 
----- 
 
 
NET MANAGER 
 
    For coordinating and supervising traffic handling activities in  
the section, the SM may appoint one or more Net Managers, usually on  
recommendation of the Section Traffic Manager.  The number of NMs  
appointed may depend on a section's geographical size, the number of  
nets operating in the section, or other factors having to do with the  
way the section is organized.  In some cases, there may be only one  
net manager in charge of the one section net, or one NM for the phone  
net, one for the cw net.  In larger or more traffic-active sections  
there may be several, including NMs for the vhf net or nets, for the  
RTTY net, or NTS local nets not controlled by ECs.  All ARRL NMs  
should work under the STM in a coordinated section traffic plan. 
 
    Some nets cover more than one section but operate in NTS at the  
section level.  In this case, the Net Manager is selected by agreement  
among the STMs concerned and the NM appointment conferred on him by  
his resident SM. 
 
    NMs may conduct any testing of candidates for ORS appointment (see  
below) that they consider necessary before making appointment  
recommendations to the STM.  Net Managers also have the function of  
requiring that all traffic handling in ARRL recognized nets is  
conducted in proper ARRL form. 
 
    Requirements: Novice class license or higher;  Full ARRL  
membership. 
 
     Recruitment of new hams and League members is an integral part of the  
job of every League appointee.  Appointees should take advantage of every  
opportunity to recruit a new ham or member to foster growth of Field  
Organization programs, and our abilities to serve the public. 
 
FSD-1 
(1288) 
 
------ 
OFFICIAL BULLETIN STATION 
 
    Rapid dissemination of information is the lifeblood of an active,  
progressive organization.  The ARRL Official Bulletin Station network  
provides a vital communications link for informing the amateur  
community of the latest developments in Amateur Radio and the League.   
ARRL bulletins, containing up-to-the-minute news and information of  
Amateur Radio, are issued by League Headquarters as soon as such news  
"breaks."  These bulletins are transmitted on a regular schedule by  
ARRL Headquarters station W1AW. 
 
    The primary mission of OBS appointees is to copy these bulletins  
directly off the air from W1AW -- on voice, cw or RTTY/ASCII -- and  
retransmit them locally for the benefit of amateurs in the particular  
coverage area, many of whom may not be equipped to receive bulletins  
directly from W1AW. 
 
    ARRL bulletins of major importance or of wide-ranging scope are  
mailed from Headquarters to each Bulletin Manager and OBS appointee.   
However, some bulletins, such as the ARRL DX Bulletin (transmitted on  
Fridays UTC), are disseminated only by W1AW because of time value.   
Thus it is advantageous for each OBS to copy W1AW directly.  In some  
sections, the Bulletin Manager may assume the responsibility of  
copying the bulletins from W1AW; therefore, individual OBSs should be  
sure to meet the Bulletin Manager on a regular, agreed-upon schedule  
to receive the latest bulletins. 
 
    Inasmuch as W1AW operates on all bands (160-2 meters), the need  
for OBSs on hf has lessened somewhat in recent times.  However, OBS  
appointments for hf operation can be conferred by the Section Manager  
(or the Bulletin Manager, depending on how the SM organizes the  
section) if the need is apparent.  More importantly, to serve the  
greatest possible "audience," OBS appointees who can send ARRL  
bulletins over vhf repeaters, and via uploading to packet bulletin  
board systems (PBBS) are of maximum usefulness and are much in demand.   
If possible, an OBS who can copy bulletins directly from W1AW (or the  
Bulletin Manager) should be assigned to each major repeater in the  
section.  Bulletins should be transmitted regularly, perhaps in  
conjunction with a vhf repeater net, on a repeater "bulletin board"  
(tone-accessed recorded announcements for repeater club members), or  
via a RTTY or packet (computer) mailbox, if one is functioning  
locally.  Duties and requirements of the OBS include the following: 
 
    1.  OBS candidates must have a Novice class license or higher. 
     
    2.  Retransmission of ARRL bulletins must be made at least once  
per week to maintain appointment. 
 
    3.  OBS candidates are appointed by the Section Manager (or by the  
Bulletin Manager, if the SM so desires) and must adhere to a schedule  
that is mutually agreeable.  
 
    4.  OBS appointees should send a monthly activity report (such as  
FSD-210 under "Schedules and Net Affiliations") to the Bulletin  
Manager, indicating bulletin transmissions made and generally updating  
the Bulletin Manager to any OBS-related activities.  This reporting  
arrangement may be modified by the Bulletin Manager as he/she sees  
fit. 
 
    5.  As directed by the Bulletin Manager, OBSs will include in their  
bulletin transmissions news of local, section and regional interest. 
 
     Recruitment of new hams and League members is an integral part of the  
job of every League appointee.  Appointees should take advantage of every  
opportunity to recruit a new ham or member to foster growth of Field  
Organization programs, and our abilities to serve the public. 
 
FSD-7 
(987) 
 
------ 
 
OFFICIAL EMERGENCY STATION 
 
 
 
 
    Amateur operators of Novice Class and above may be appointed OES  
by their SEC or SM at the recommendation of their ECs or DECs (if no  
EC). The OES must be an ARRL member and set high standards of  
emergency preparedness and operating.  In addition to OES's operating  
within their own local EC jurisdictional areas, they should be able to  
respond in "off shore" emergencies, such as those which frequently  
occur in foreign countries.  Here are the standard qualifications and  
functions of this appointment: 
 
    1.  Possession of full ARRL membership and a Novice Class license  
or higher.   
 
    2.  Regular participation in the local ARES, if any, including all  
drills and tests, emergency nets and, of course, real emergency  
situations. 
 
    3.  Ability to operate independent of commercial mains including  
at least one-band mobile capability. 
 
    4.  Must be fully acquainted with standard ARRL message form and  
capable of using it in handling any third-party messages. 
 
    5.  Report monthly to the EC/DEC or SEC. 
 
 
     Recruitment of new hams and League members is an integral part of the  
job of every League appointee.  Appointees should take advantage of every  
opportunity to recruit a new ham or member to foster growth of Field  
Organization programs, and our abilities to serve the public. 
 
FSD-108 
(1288) 
 
 
----- 
 
OFFICIAL RELAY STATION 
 
 
    This is a traffic-handling appointment that is open to  
all classes  of license.  This appointment applies equally  
to all modes and all  parts of the spectrum.  It is for  
traffic-handlers, regardless of  mode employed or part of  
the spectrum used. 
 
    The potential value of the skilled operator with traffic  
know-how  to his country and community is enhanced by his  
ability and the  readiness of his station to function in the  
community interest in case  of emergency.  Traffic awareness  
and experience are often the signs by which mature amateurs  
may be distinguished. 
 
    Traditionally, there have been considerable differences  
between  procedures for traffic handling by cw, phone, RTTY,  
ASCII, packet and other modes.  Appointment requirements for  
ORS do not deal with these, but with factors equally  
applicable to all modes.  The appointed ORS  may confine  
activities to one mode or one part of the spectrum if he  
wishes.  There is no versatility requirement, although  
versatility  does indeed make it possible for anyone to  
perform a more complete  public service.  There is, however,  
the expectation that the ORS will  set the example in  
traffic handling however it is done.  To the extent  that he  
is deficient in performing traffic functions by any mode, to  
that extent he does not meet the qualifications for the  
appointment.   Here are the basic requirements: 
 
    1.  Full ARRL membership and Novice Class license or  
higher.  
    2.  Code and/or voice transmission capability. 
    3.  Transmissions, by whatever mode, must be of the  
highest  quality, both technically and operationally.  For  
example, cw signals  must be pure, chirpless, clickless,  
code sending must be well spaced  and properly formed.   
Voice transmission must be of proper modulation  
percentage or deviation, precisely enunciated with minimum  
distortion.   RTTY must be clickless, proper shift, etc.   
    4.  All ORS are expected to follow standard ARRL  
operating  practices (message form, ending signals,  
abbreviations or prowords,  courtesy, etc.). 
    5.  Regular participation in traffic activities, either  
free-lance  or ARRL-sponsored.  The latter is encouraged,  
but not required. 
 
    6.  Handle all record communications speedily and  
reliably and set  the example in efficient operating  
procedures.  All traffic is relayed  or delivered promptly  
after receipt.   
 
    7.  Report monthly to the STM, including a breakdown of  
traffic  
handled during the past calendar month. 
 
 
FSD-107 
(1288) 
 
----- 
-----