The basis and purpose
Part 97 opens by stating why the service exists: emergency communication, advancement of the radio art, technical and operator training, expansion of the trained operator pool, and international goodwill. Every other rule follows from those.
Core obligations
- Operate only within your license class privileges on frequencies allocated to the amateur
- Identify with your call sign at least every ten minutes during a communication and at the end.
- Use the minimum power necessary — the legal ceiling is 1,500 W PEP, but that is a maximum, not
- Control operator present. Every transmission occurs under the supervision of a control
- Station records and address must be current with the FCC.
service.
a target.
operator who is responsible for it.
Prohibited
Business communications, broadcasting to the general public, music, obscene or indecent language, codes intended to obscure meaning, false or deceptive signals, and unidentified transmissions. See prohibited transmissions.
RF exposure
Every station must perform an RF exposure evaluation for its configuration. The FCC removed the old categorical exemptions for amateurs in 2021, so this applies to essentially all stations. It is a calculation, not a measurement — free calculators do it in five minutes, and you keep the result on file.
Emergencies
In a genuine emergency involving immediate safety of life or property, you may use any means of radiocommunication at your disposal, including frequencies and services you are not normally authorized to use. This is a narrow exception and it is real.