Political lobbying by the USKA

The “Political Lobbying of the USKA” is our “interface” to federal politics. Politics defines the framework within which amateur radio operates. If we are inadmissibly or disproportionately hindered in the exercise of our radio service, which is defined globally by the ITU Radio Regulations, we have democratic political instruments at our disposal.

In particular, our department regularly monitors

• the ongoing consultation procedures at federal level
• the activities of the Transport and Telecommunications Committees of the Federal Parliament
• the sessions of the Federal Parliament

As our federal legislation is increasingly influenced by international requirements, we must also follow developments abroad very closely. Particularly in the case of the EU, whose directives/directives and ordinances are often adopted into Swiss legal practice, even if they are not themselves part of Swiss law. This often causes uncertainties, especially in the area of our “freedom to experiment”, which makes it necessary to issue occasional statements and fact sheets.
(USKA’s “political lobbying” does not include specialist contacts with Comcom/Bakom).

Current activities

• Support for the sections in the implementation of Article TCA 37a in cantonal legislation (planning and building laws).
  The implementation guide can be downloaded here.
• Threat to freedom of software experimentation by the EU: proposed RED Directive Article 3(3)(i) also wants to make the uploading of any software to a CE-certified device subject to the CE certification obligation! Affects all electrical devices with a radio interface (including Bluetooth, WLAN, LoRa, Mobile, …). So almost everything, from smartphones, RPi, ESP32, laptops to household appliances. Actually unbelievable, even downright idiotic! Unfortunately, this is currently only being actively combated by the FSFE.org, but not (yet) by the IARU!!! – In Switzerland, this restriction is already in force, only radio amateurs are exempt (FAV Art 25 d,e and f), not “consumers” (FAV Ordinance on Telecommunications Equipment 784.101.2, Art 7 para 3i). Interestingly, consumers/PC users have not even noticed this “trap”……
  See also Heise and FSFE.
• Import bans: Some radio amateurs have been alarmed by a publication by Seco on the Bakom website that imports may only be made with the help of an “intermediary”. See USKA News article “Are import bans imminent?”. The reason for the uproar was the entry into force of the EU Market Surveillance Regulation. EU regulations have no legal force in Switzerland. Nevertheless, it can often be observed that federal offices feel that they would gain prestige in Brussels if they wrote parts of such EU regulations into Swiss ordinances (without parliamentary authorization) (“copy paste legitimization”). As a SFOE/UVEK consultation procedure on precisely this topic was underway in the summer, the USKA took the opportunity to draw up and submit a statement.
  To help radio amateurs find their way through the jungle of regulations, our department has produced a leaflet which can be downloaded here.

Previous activities

• Introduction of the new antenna article TCA 37a into the revised Telecommunications Act TCA, to simplify antenna licensing procedures (valid from 1.1.2021).
  This “political lobbying” campaign by the USKA was the biggest effort to date to expand the status quo of Swiss amateur radio. As is well known, there is no “amateur radio law” in Switzerland as there is in Germany, for example, so we have to incorporate our acquis into various existing laws and ordinances and always be very vigilant when they are amended. In cooperation with the USKA sections, we have organized numerous visits by federal parliamentarians to amateur radio stations in order to demonstrate to these political decision-makers one-to-one what this issue is actually about.
• USKA consultation response to the amendment of the Telecommunications Act TCA dated March 30, 2016.
  Statement in the BZG consultation procedure (revision of the Civil Protection and Civil Defense Act): Emergency radio groups can become “partners” of the FOCP. The USKA statement can be downloaded here.
• Submission of a parliamentary procedural motion (National Council) concerning “emergency radio” (inquiry as to whether the ITU’s requirements in this area are also being implemented in Switzerland). The postulate 13-4089 can be viewed here, including the Federal Council’s statement. From today’s perspective (failure of emergency calls etc. in the event of power shortages), the refusal at that time to implement ITU RR 25.9A is downright offensive.
• Use of National Council Question Time (on the question of whether the lessons of the second progress report of the EU R&TTE Directive are also being applied in Switzerland) (freedom to experiment). Business No. 10.5426 Question from National Councillor Natalie Rickli “Amateur radio service” can be viewed here. The answer from Federal Councillor Moritz Leuenberger here.
• Compulsory CE: In 2009, Bakom enclosed a sheet with the license invoices which declared the CE requirement to be compulsory for all amateur radio. This massive obstruction of amateur radio in Switzerland caused great astonishment even in Germany. This affront led to a petition from the then USKA member HB9AMC to the USKA board. The radio amateurs searched for a long time for the reason for this regulation, which threatened the freedom to experiment. After some time, it turned out that this provision had been adopted voluntarily by Bakom, without this being required by the “Bilaterals I” (the EU itself confirmed this, see here, 1st paragraph! Unbelievable).
  After fierce protests, Bakom granted the radio amateurs a kind of “concession”, which is still valid today. However, as there were still subsequent cases of penalties, among other things because the CE mark on an imported device was only 3.5 mm high instead of 5 mm, we wrote a letter to the editor that was printed by SEV-Bulletin in 2013. This is by no means just about us radio amateurs, but also about the freedom to experiment in the areas of research and development, as well as in education. Where would the Swiss economy end up if we actually – following the advice of Bakom – made it impossible for our engineers and researchers to carry out their work? If necessary, the USKA will take to the barricades to preserve the freedom to experiment – which also includes free imports. These are completely unworthy machinations of Switzerland, with unknown clients and purposes. There is no parliamentary control here.
  Nevertheless, this serious attack on the vested rights of radio amateurs led to the formation of the “Taskforce on the legal framework for amateur radio” at the 2010 USKA delegates’ meeting, which has since monitored legislation in our area of interest and actively intervened where necessary.
• Letter to Federal Councillor M. Leuenberger (document to follow)

Who are we?

The “Political Lobbying” team at USKA deals with political processes in our area of interest. Among other things, it draws up statements in consultation procedures and examines the submission of motions to the Federal Parliament and its committees. The team advises the USKA Executive Board on political matters and submits proposals to it.
This department expressly does not deal with regular specialist contacts of all kinds with various federal authorities, which are usually very satisfactory at a technical, non-political level. Although our team is a permanent commission of the USKA, it is put together ad hoc by people interested in the respective topic and can be expanded at any time. The last time the team was deployed on a large scale was when an article on antennas for radio amateurs was to be included in the Telecommunications Act. All drafting is done as a team. Political lobbying is effectively the “long range radar” of Swiss amateur radio policy.

Implementation of FMG/LTC/TCA Article 37a into cantonal law

USKA has succeeded in introducing an article 37a in the Swiss Telecommunications Act (TCA) which simplifies the authorisation procedure for the construction of simple amateur radio antennas.
The “planning and building law” in Switzerland is mainly regulated by the cantons. The municipalities then have their own “building regulations”.
Our federalist state structure means that federal law must be explicitly transferred to cantonal and communal law so that it can develop its full effect there.
The cantonal implementation is now being taken in hand by the sections of the USKA. The sections have been informed about this, including at the Section Presidents’ Conference 2021 in Möriken AG (21 August 2021). In the case of cantons with several sections, these will form working groups in this regard.

The timetable:

By December 2021, the sections will put together their teams and report this to the USKA Board (for the attention of Political Lobbying).
for cantons that do not put together a team, USKA will publicly advertise and award this task among the members residing in the canton in question.

Here you can find the guidelines for the implementation of the antenna article LTC 37a: Guidelines in german, Guidelines in french.

Status of implementation as of June 8, 2022 – Etat des activités le 8 juin 2022

Stand der Umsetzung per 8. Juni 2022 – Etat des activités le 8 juin 2022

Download “Information sheet Import of electrical articles by radio amateurs – Clarification of legal terms”

Download: “Merkblatt Import elektrischer Artikel durch Funkamateure – Klärung rechtlicher Begriffe”