2017-17395: Personal Radio Service Reform
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The Federal Communications Commission (Commission) adopted a comprehensive reorganization of and update to the rules governing the Personal Radio Services (PRS). PRS provides for a wide variety of wireless devices that are used by the general public for personal communication uses, which include applications like walkie-talkies, radio controlled model toys, Personal Locator Beacons (PLBs), medical implant devices and other uses. In addition to the comprehensive review and update of the rules to reflect modern practices, the Commission enhanced the General Mobile Radio Service (GMRS) to allow new digital applications, allot additional interstitial channels and extend the license term from five to ten years. It also allotted additional channels to the Family Radio Service (FRS) and increased the power on certain FRS channels from 0.5 Watts to two Watts. It also updated the CB Radio Service to allow hands-free headsets, removed a restriction on communicating over long distances and removed other outdated requirements. These changes and others outlined below will update PRS rules to be more in line with current public demands for the services and will make the rules easier to read and find information, while also removing outdated requirements and removing unnecessary rules.
The agency’s own summary, as published.
What this changes
Amends 4 parts of the Code of Federal Regulations — the standing rules this notice rewrites.
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