Friday, October 11, 2019

ARRL Official Observers Ride Into Sunset

The 85-year-old ARRL Official Observer program was formally shut down on September 30, making way for the new Volunteer Monitor program. The OO program had been operated on a section level with appointments made by Section Managers and minimal involvement by ARRL Headquarters, but the new VM program is centralized in Newington and overseen by former FCC amateur enforcement head Riley Hollingsworth, K4ZDH. VM members will be vetted and trained by ARRL staff and will serve 3-year terms "at the pleasure of ARRL," according to the ARRL Letter.