ARLB029 RF guidelines proposed
QST de W1AW
ARRL Bulletin 29  ARLB029
From ARRL Headquarters
Newington CT  March 12, 1993
To all radio amateurs

The FCC has proposed changing its guidelines for evaluating
environmental RF radiation, to reflect the guidelines adopted in
1992 by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) and the
Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers, Inc. (IEEE).

"The new guidelines differ significantly from those they replace,"
the Commission said.  "For example two 'tiers' of exposure levels
are now recommended, one for 'controlled' environments, and another,
generally more restrictive, for 'uncontrolled' environments.  Also,
new restrictions are placed on currents induced in the human body by
RF fields below 100 MHz.

"Another significant change is the imposition of stricter
limitations on automatic exclusions for low-power devices, such as
hand-held radios and telephones, based on operating power.  The 1982
guidelines generally excluded such devices with powers of seven
watts or less.  The new guidelines contain more complex and more
restrictive criteria for such exclusions, with allowable power
decreasing as frequency increases."
/EX