Monthly Archives: March 2015

CO PRB-1 Bill Passed

Senate Bill 15-041, the state PRB-1 bill regarding amateur radio antennas, has passed both houses and has been sent to the Governor. Having now passed both the Senate and the House unanimously, the Governor will almost certainly sign it.

In the following extracts, capital letters indicate new material added to existing statutes; dashes through words indicate deletions from existing statutes and such material not part of act. So, it looks like this bill sailed through without change or amendment.

HOAs and local governing entities must now craft a policy that prescribes that in order to comply with this law, either covenants are to be changed or other rules are to be interpreted as permitting amateur radio antennas complying with the provisions of that FCC preemption. Note that in doing that, all three provisions (a), (b), and (c) carry equal weight. Therefore, no HOA can give more weight to aesthetic considerations than to accommodating amateur communications.

CONCERNING A REQUIREMENT THAT LOCAL GOVERNMENTS REGULATE AMATEUR RADIO COMMUNICATIONS IN ACCORDANCE WITH AN EXISTING FEDERAL PREEMPTION ESTABLISHED BY THE FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION.

29-20-109. Local government regulation of amateur radio antennas.

(1) NO LOCAL GOVERNMENT SHALL ENACT OR ENFORCE AN ORDINANCE OR RESOLUTION REGULATING AMATEUR RADIO ANTENNAS THAT FAILS TO CONFORM TO THE LIMITED PREEMPTION SET FORTH IN THE MEMORANDUM OPINION AND ORDER PRB-1 ENTITLED “FEDERAL PREEMPTION OF STATE AND LOCAL REGULATIONS PERTAINING TO AMATEUR RADIO FACILITIES”, 101 FCC 2d 952 (1985), ISSUED BY THE FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION AND FURTHER CODIFIED IN 47 CFR 97.15 (b). AN ORDINANCE OR RESOLUTION ADOPTED BY A LOCAL GOVERNMENT THAT REGULATES AMATEUR RADIO ANTENNAS SHALL CONFORM TO THE LIMITED FEDERAL PREEMPTION WHICH PROVIDES THAT LOCAL GOVERNMENT REGULATIONS INVOLVING THE PLACEMENT, SCREENING, OR HEIGHT OF ANTENNAS MUST:

(a) BE BASED ON HEALTH, SAFETY, OR AESTHETIC CONSIDERATIONS;
(b) BE CRAFTED TO REASONABLY ACCOMMODATE AMATEUR COMMUNICATIONS; AND
(c) REPRESENT THE MINIMUM PRACTICABLE REGULATION REQUIRED TO ACCOMPLISH THE LOCAL GOVERNMENT’S LEGITIMATE PURPOSE.