II 

118TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 3690 

To amend the Communications Act of 1934 to prohibit the application of 

certain private land use restrictions to amateur station antennas, and 

for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

JANUARY 30, 2024 

Mr. WICKER (for himself and Mr. BLUMENTHAL) introduced the following bill; 

which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, 

Science, and Transportation 

A BILL 

To amend the Communications Act of 1934 to prohibit the 

application of certain private land use restrictions to 

amateur station antennas, and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Amateur Radio Emer5 gency Preparedness Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

7 Congress finds the following: 

8 (1) More than 770,000 amateur operators in 

9 the United States are licensed by the Federal ComVerDate Sep 11 2014 23:11 Feb 01, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S3690.IS S3690

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1 munications Commission (in this section referred to 

2 as the ‘‘Commission’’) in the amateur radio services, 

3 and, by treaty, amateur operators licensed by other 

4 countries are authorized to operate within the 

5 United States. 

6 (2) Amateur radio, in addition to providing life7 saving emergency communications at no cost to tax8 payers, provides a fertile ground for technical self9 training in modern telecommunications, electronics 

10 technology, and emergency communications tech11 niques and protocols. 

12 (3) There is a strong Federal interest in the ef13 fective performance of amateur stations established 

14 at the residences of amateur operators. Among other 

15 reasons, when an emergency arises, it can be too 

16 late, and too dangerous, to erect an effective an17 tenna. However, amateur stations have been shown 

18 to be frequently and increasingly precluded by un19 reasonable private land use restrictions, including re20 strictive covenants. 

21 (4) Commission regulations have for more than 

22 3 decades prohibited State and local regulation of 

23 amateur station antenna structures that precludes 

24 or fails to reasonably accommodate amateur service 

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1 imum practicable regulation to accomplish a legiti2 mate State or local purpose. The policy of the Com3 mission has been and is to require States and local4 ities to permit erection of a station antenna struc5 ture at heights and dimensions sufficient to reason6 ably accommodate amateur service communications. 

7 The Commission struck an appropriate balance by 

8 enabling effective use of the amateur service without 

9 burdening localities and adjoining properties. 

10 (5) The Commission has sought guidance and 

11 direction from Congress with respect to the applica12 tion of the Commission’s limited preemption policy 

13 regarding amateur service communications to private 

14 land use restrictions, including restrictive covenants. 

15 (6) In section 207 of the Telecommunications 

16 Act of 1996 (47 U.S.C. 303 note; Public Law 104– 

17 104), Congress provided guidance, direction, and au18 thority to the Commission by directing the Commis19 sion to promulgate regulations that have preempted 

20 all private land use restrictions applicable to exterior 

21 communications facilities that impair the ability of 

22 citizens to receive television broadcast signals, direct 

23 broadcast satellite services, or multichannel 

24 multipoint distribution services, or to transmit and 

25 receive wireless internet services. 


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1 (7) To further the public interest benefits that 

2 amateur radio brings to society, private land use re3 strictions that prohibit, restrict, or impair amateur 

4 operators from operating, installing, or maintaining 

5 effective outdoor amateur station antenna structures 

6 should also be preempted. 

7 SEC. 3. APPLICATION OF PRIVATE LAND USE RESTRIC8 TIONS TO AMATEUR STATION ANTENNAS. 

9 (a) IN GENERAL.—Part I of title III of the Commu10 nications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 301 et seq.) is amended 

11 by adding at the end the following: 

12 ‘‘SEC. 346. APPLICATION OF PRIVATE LAND USE RESTRIC13 TIONS TO AMATEUR STATION ANTENNAS. 

14 ‘‘(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

15 ‘‘(1) AMATEUR OPERATOR.—The term ‘amateur 

16 operator’— 

17 ‘‘(A) has the meaning given such term in 

18 section 97.3 of title 47, Code of Federal Regu19 lations, or any successor regulation; and 

20 ‘‘(B) includes any other person authorized 

21 to operate an amateur station in the United 

22 States. 

23 ‘‘(2) AMATEUR STATION.—The term ‘amateur 

24 station’ has the meaning given such term in section 


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1 97.3 of title 47, Code of Federal Regulations, or any 

2 successor regulation. 

3 ‘‘(3) ANTENNA.—The term ‘antenna’ in4 cludes— 

5 ‘‘(A) the transmitting and receiving ele6 ments; 

7 ‘‘(B) any feedline, control enclosures, or 

8 electrical enclosures necessary for effective 

9 transmission or reception; and 

10 ‘‘(C) any support structure, guy wire, an11 chor, or tie-off. 

12 ‘‘(4) COMMUNITY ASSOCIATION.—The term 

13 ‘community association’ means— 

14 ‘‘(A) a condominium association (as de15 fined in section 604 of the Condominium and 

16 Cooperative Abuse Relief Act of 1980 (15 

17 U.S.C. 3603)); 

18 ‘‘(B) a cooperative association (as defined 

19 in such section); and 

20 ‘‘(C) a residential real estate management 

21 association (as defined in section 528 of the In22 ternal Revenue Code of 1986). 

23 ‘‘(5) LESSEE.—The term ‘lessee’ means a per24 son who, in exchange for payment— 


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1 ‘‘(A) takes temporary possession of resi2 dential real estate through a lease; or 

3 ‘‘(B) takes possession, in whole or in part, 

4 by lease or purchase, of residential real estate 

5 subject to a ground lease. 

6 ‘‘(6) PRIVATE LAND USE RESTRICTION.—The 

7 term ‘private land use restriction’ means— 

8 ‘‘(A) a publicly recorded provision (whether 

9 such provision is denoted as a covenant, deed 

10 restriction, declaration, use restriction, covenant 

11 that runs with the land, or otherwise) that— 

12 ‘‘(i) touches or concerns the real es13 tate to which the provision applies; and 

14 ‘‘(ii) limits or restricts the use of the 

15 real estate or imposes conditions on the 

16 use of the real estate; or 

17 ‘‘(B) a rule or regulation of a community 

18 association, whether publicly recorded or not, 

19 that limits or restricts the use of real estate or 

20 imposes conditions on the use of real estate. 

21 ‘‘(b) CERTAIN RESTRICTIONS PROHIBITED.—A pri22 vate land use restriction that prohibits, restricts, or im23 pairs, or has the effect of prohibiting, restricting, or im24 pairing, an amateur operator from operating, installing, 

25 or maintaining any amateur station antenna on property 


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1 subject to the control of the amateur operator may not 

2 be adopted or enforced, except as permitted by subsection 

3 (c). 

4 ‘‘(c) PERMISSIBLE RESTRICTIONS.— 

5 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to paragraph (2), 

6 the following private land use restrictions applicable 

7 to amateur station antennas may be adopted or en8 forced: 

9 ‘‘(A) A restriction that requires an ama10 teur station antenna to be installed in compli11 ance with the specifications of the manufacturer 

12 of the antenna, applicable zoning ordinances, 

13 amateur radio tower ordinances (if any), and 

14 governmentally adopted building codes. 

15 ‘‘(B) A restriction that requires an ama16 teur station antenna to be maintained in a 

17 structurally safe condition. 

18 ‘‘(C) A restriction that requires any dete19 riorated or structurally unsafe component of an 

20 amateur station antenna to be repaired, re21 placed, or removed. 

22 ‘‘(D) A restriction that requires an ama23 teur station antenna to be removed if the prop24 erty on which the antenna is located ceases to 


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1 be subject to the control of an amateur oper2 ator. 

3 ‘‘(E) A restriction that requires an ama4 teur station antenna ground-mounted electrical 

5 enclosure, ground-mounted control enclosure, or 

6 guy wire anchor to be visually screened if such 

7 enclosure or anchor— 

8 ‘‘(i) is visible from the street faced by 

9 the dwelling; or 

10 ‘‘(ii) is located in an unfenced side or 

11 rear yard and is visible from an adjoining 

12 property. 

13 ‘‘(2) REASONABLE APPLICATION AND ENFORCE14 MENT.—A private land use restriction permitted by 

15 paragraph (1) shall be reasonably applied and en16 forced. 

17 ‘‘(d) LIMITATIONS ON PRIOR APPROVAL.— 

18 ‘‘(1) REQUIREMENT NOT PRESENT IN LAND

19 RECORDS AT TIME OF PURCHASE OR LEASE.—A re20 quirement in a private land use restriction for an 

21 amateur operator to obtain prior approval for the in22 stallation of an amateur station antenna may not be 

23 adopted or enforced if such requirement for prior 

24 approval was not present in the publicly recorded 


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1 land records prior to the purchase or lease of the 

2 property by the amateur operator. 

3 ‘‘(2) INFORMATION REQUIRED FOR PRIOR AP4 PROVAL.—A private land use restriction that re5 quires an amateur operator to submit an application 

6 for approval of an amateur station antenna prior to 

7 installation may not be adopted or enforced if the in8 formation required to be submitted as part of the 

9 application is greater or more detailed than the in10 formation required to be submitted as part of an ap11 plication for any other improvement. 

12 ‘‘(3) DEEMED APPROVAL.—If a community as13 sociation or other person authorized to enforce a pri14 vate land use restriction applicable to an amateur 

15 station antenna does not approve or deny an appli16 cation of an amateur operator for approval of the in17 stallation of an amateur station antenna by the day 

18 that is 45 days after the date on which the applica19 tion is submitted, the application shall be deemed to 

20 be approved on the 45th day. 

21 ‘‘(4) EXISTING APPROVAL.—If a private land 

22 use restriction requires an amateur operator to sub23 mit an application for approval of an amateur sta24 tion antenna prior to installation, after a community 

25 association or other person authorized to enforce the 


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1 restriction approves the application, no further ap2 proval of the antenna may be required, unless there 

3 is a material change in the dimensions or structural 

4 integrity of the antenna. 

5 ‘‘(e) ANTENNAS THAT DO NOT REQUIRE PRIOR AP6 PROVAL.—A requirement in a private land use restriction 

7 for an amateur operator to obtain prior approval for the 

8 installation of an amateur station antenna may not be 

9 adopted or enforced with respect to any of the following 

10 types of amateur station antennas: 

11 ‘‘(1) 1 METER OR LESS IN DIAMETER OR DI12 AGONAL MEASUREMENT.—An antenna for use by an 

13 amateur operator that is less than 1 meter in diame14 ter or diagonal measurement, or having other meas15 urements prescribed by the Commission. 

16 ‘‘(2) FLAGPOLE ANTENNAS.—A flagpole, capa17 ble of dual use as a flagpole and an amateur station 

18 antenna, not greater than 43 feet in height above 

19 ground. 

20 ‘‘(3) WIRE ANTENNAS.—Minimally obtrusive 

21 wire antennas, of a length necessary for the fre22 quency of use intended. 

23 ‘‘(4) VERTICAL ANTENNAS.—Vertical antennas, 

24 not to exceed 43 feet in height above ground, includ25 ing collapsible whip and tilt-over antennas. 


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1 ‘‘(f) RULES OF CONSTRUCTION.— 

2 ‘‘(1) CONTROL OF PROPERTY.—For purposes of 

3 this section, property is subject to the control of an 

4 amateur operator if the amateur operator is an 

5 owner, lessee, or legal resident of the property. 

6 ‘‘(2) IMPAIRMENT OF INSTALLATION, MAINTE7 NANCE, OR OPERATION.—For purposes of this sec8 tion, a private land use restriction prohibits, re9 stricts, or impairs the installation, maintenance, or 

10 operation of an amateur station antenna if the re11 striction— 

12 ‘‘(A) unreasonably delays or prevents in13 stallation, maintenance, or operation of the an14 tenna; 

15 ‘‘(B) unreasonably increases the costs or 

16 difficulty of installation, maintenance, or oper17 ation of the antenna; or 

18 ‘‘(C) prevents or degrades reception or 

19 transmission of a signal acceptable to the ama20 teur operator. 

21 ‘‘(3) LIMITED COMMON AREA.— 

22 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—For purposes of this 

23 section, if there exists, within the property for 

24 which a community association is responsible, a 

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1 ator has the right to exclude use by others, the 

2 limited common area shall be treated as prop3 erty under the control of the amateur operator. 

4 ‘‘(B) PERMISSION ACCESS.—For purposes 

5 of subparagraph (A), access by a community 

6 association for roof repairs, landscaping, or 

7 other maintenance activities shall be treated as 

8 a permission, or authorized access, which does 

9 not limit or destroy the control of the amateur 

10 operator. 

11 ‘‘(g) ENFORCEMENT.— 

12 ‘‘(1) STAY OF ENFORCEMENT.—If an action is 

13 initiated to seek a declaratory ruling from the Com14 mission or a court of competent jurisdiction regard15 ing whether a private land use restriction complies 

16 with this section, any community association or 

17 other person seeking to enforce the restriction shall 

18 suspend all enforcement efforts with respect to the 

19 restriction until a ruling in the action has become 

20 final. 

21 ‘‘(2) PROHIBITION ON ACCRUAL OF PENALTIES

22 OR OTHER COSTS.—No penalty or other cost related 

23 to an amateur station antenna may accrue against 

24 an amateur operator under a private land use re25 striction while an action described in paragraph (1) 


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1 is pending to determine whether the restriction com2 plies with this section. 

3 ‘‘(3) BURDEN OF PROOF.— 

4 ‘‘(A) REGARDING COMPLIANCE WITH THIS

5 SECTION.—In any action before the Commis6 sion or a court of competent jurisdiction involv7 ing the interpretation of any provision of this 

8 section, the burden of demonstrating that a 

9 particular private land use restriction complies 

10 with this section shall be on the party that 

11 seeks to impose, maintain, or enforce the re12 striction. 

13 ‘‘(B) REGARDING VIOLATION OF PRIVATE

14 LAND USE RESTRICTION.—In any action before 

15 the Commission or a court of competent juris16 diction to determine whether an amateur sta17 tion antenna violates a private land use restric18 tion, the party alleging the violation bears the 

19 burden of proof. 

20 ‘‘(h) PRIVATE RIGHT OF ACTION.—A person harmed 

21 by a violation of this section may bring an action against 

22 the person alleged to have committed the violation in an 

23 appropriate district court of the United States without 

24 first exhausting remedies under State law. 


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1 ‘‘(i) AFFIRMATION OF LIMITED PREEMPTION OF

2 STATE AND LOCAL LAND USE REGULATION.—Nothing in 

3 this section shall be construed to modify or otherwise limit 

4 the applicability of section 97.15(b) of title 47, Code of 

5 Federal Regulations, or any successor regulation.’’. 

6 (b) REGULATIONS.—Not later than 180 days after 

7 the date of the enactment of this Act, the Federal Commu8 nications Commission shall promulgate regulations to im9 plement the amendment made by subsection (a). 

Æ 


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