What changed
Club station licenses — edited Aug 31, 2026 by Unknown editor
This is the first recorded version, so every line is shown as added. Note: Imported from content/wiki
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A club call sign is issued to the club as an entity, not to a person, and it is what makes a club
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station, a repeater, a Field Day operation or a special event sound like the club rather than
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whoever happened to bring the radio.
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## What the FCC requires
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Under Part 97 a club station license needs four things:
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- **At least four members** — the club must be a bona fide organization with at least four persons.
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- **A name, a document of organization and a primary purpose** related to amateur radio. Simple
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bylaws satisfy this; you do not need to be incorporated.
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- **A trustee** who is a licensed amateur, holds an Amateur Extra, Advanced, General or Technician
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license, and is a member of the club. The trustee is the FCC's point of contact and is responsible
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for the station's operation.
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- **An FRN** for the club, obtained separately from the trustee's own FRN. See
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[FCC FRN and CORES](/wiki/licensing/fcc-frn).
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Applications go through a Club Station Call Sign Administrator — in practice a VEC such as the ARRL
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VEC — rather than directly to the FCC.
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## Trustee responsibilities
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The trustee is not a figurehead. They:
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- Keep the license current — club licenses renew on the same ten-year cycle as individual ones, and
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a lapsed club call is a common and avoidable embarrassment.
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- Keep the mailing address current, because FCC correspondence goes there and an undeliverable
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address can cost the license.
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- Are accountable for how the station is operated, including proper station identification and
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control operator requirements when guests are on the air.
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Name a successor trustee in your bylaws. Clubs lose call signs when the trustee moves away, becomes
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inactive or dies and nobody has authority to file a change.
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## Vanity and memorial calls
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Clubs may apply for a vanity call sign under the same rules as individuals, and a club holding the
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license of a deceased member may request that call sign as a memorial — with the consent of the
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licensee's next of kin. This is how many clubs end up operating with the call of a founder or a
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well-known local operator. See [vanity call signs](/wiki/licensing/vanity-call-signs).
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## Using the club call
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- **Special events** — a 1×1 call sign is a separate, temporary grant, not a change to your club
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call. See [special event stations](/wiki/activities/special-event-stations).
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- **Contests and Field Day** — entries are usually made under the club call with a designated
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control operator at each position.
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- **Repeaters** — a repeater is normally licensed under the club call, with the trustee as the
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responsible party for the coordination paperwork. See [club repeaters](/wiki/clubs/club-repeaters).
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- **QSLs and logging** — decide who holds the log and answers cards before your first big operation,
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not after the cards arrive. See [logging and QSLs](/wiki/operating/logging-and-qsls).