Next Meeting. The next meeting will be Tuesday, November 10, 1998, 9:30 a.m., at KLSY/KIXI Studios, 12011 N.E. First Street, Bellevue.  Directions.

George Bisso called the meeting to order at 9:45. The minutes of the September 8 meeting were reviewed and approved.

Checking Account Balance: $4,213.14

Christmas Meeting, December 8. Don't forget!!

Hip Radio Broadcast. Kris McGowan hasn't heard anything more about the man who hears Krista FM radio in his hip replacement. She plans to call him after Krista radio moves to another location.

Blocked From Moving Transmitter From Gold Mountain. George reported there is no change in the situation whereby Canada has blocked NOAH from moving their transmitter from Gold Mountain to Squak Mountain due to potential interference to Frasier Valley. Two mountain ranges would guarantee no interference if Canada approved the relocation. All equipment except the transmitter has been in place for over a year. Members discussed examples of other applications that Industry Canada has not approved because of potential interference.

Digital Cellular Tower Buildout. Chuck Zappala discussed some of the hindrances the cellular industry is encountering in completing build-out of their systems. Getting approval for tower construction has been difficult in some communities because local governments have the jurisdiction to deny requests and courts have upheld some of these decisions. If the battle for cellular companies becomes too costly with legal fees, etc., they will back off and leave a hole in the area. Chuck pointed out that many towers will go away because of build-out of microsites.

IX to SMR. Jerry Noe reported an ongoing interference problem to Wiztronics' SMR customers from Nextel in Bellingham. Interference is caused by digital modulation resulting in adjacent channel interference in close proximity to Nextel's transmitter site at St. Joe Hospital. The Bellingham Fire Department is also experiencing the interference. Nextel is currently working on the problem.

IX from Metro. Dennis Rainier briefed on interference to a downtown Seattle customer caused by spurious emission from Metro. Metro has fixed the problem.

IX to Repeater in Tacoma. Dennis Rainier and Denny Anderson discussed an interference problem to a local community repeater. Barcode readers from the warehouse of Super Value were illegally operating on the repeater input frequency, thereby jamming the repeater. FCC's analysis of the equipment indicated it had been modified and would no longer pass type acceptance. FCC issued a Notice of Violation and Super Value subsequently applied for an STA. Super Value kept operating even though FCC denied the STA. They were then issued a fine for $10,000.

Telex Headsets. George Bisso provided information about a wireless headset, manufactured by Telex, that NFL teams are using which have potential to cause interference to licensed users in Part 74. The Telex system is digital and uses 32 frequencies in the Part 74 UHF television band. It is unlicensed and non-broadcast so it is not legal in the broadcast auxiliary service. Telex has begun marketing the system to colleges and high schools, calling it "Coach Comm". George is passing on this information to FCC.

GPS Interference to Repeaters. The FCC Office has been working on an ongoing problem for Radio Link. The repeaters on Tiger Mountain have been experiencing interference from surveyors, allegedly using Trimble GPS equipment. The signal is sporadic as it disappears for a couple of days then comes back, usually on Fridays. FCC is trying to locate the Trimble distributor for this area.

FCC Items of Interest. Dennis Anderson briefed on the following topics. Most FCC documents can be found on FCC's web site: http:/www.fcc.gov.

• FCC Proposes to Make Telephone Bills Clearer. The FCC has proposed to make telephone bills more consumer-friendly by providing customers with information they need to make informed choices in a competitive telecommunications marketplace and protect themselves against unscrupulous practices. Guidelines proposed are (1) Telephone bills should be clearly organized and highlight any new charges or changes to consumers' services, (2) Bills should contain full and non-misleading descriptions of all charges and clear identification of the service provider responsible for each charge, and (3) Bills should contain clear and conspicuous disclosure of any information consumers need to make inquiries about charges. FCC seeks input from all interested parties.
• Cramming. Kris warned about the practice of "cramming" which shows up as a vague or miscellaneous charge on your phone bill.

The meeting adjourned at 11:45

Shirley Perry