RADIO AMATEUR CIVIL EMERGENCY SERVICE

Radio Amateur Civil Emergency Service

The Radio Amateur Civil Emergency Service (RACES), was originally developed in the Cold War era of the 1950’s to allow local Civil Defense organizations to take advantage of the amateur radio resource in their communities.  Pursuant to United States Code, Chapter 47 Part 97.407, the RACES registered amateur radio operators are the only radio amateurs allowed to operate if the President of the United States has invoked the Emergency War Powers Act, which suspends normal operations in the Amateur radio Service as described in Part 97.  The core requirements of “prior registration” and “direction by an agency responsible for disaster recovery” are also core requirements to AUXCOMM.

The Sussex County AUXCOMM Group licensed operators, registered with the Sussex County Emergency Management, will be the RACES Operators in the event that the President invokes the War Powers Act.

  1. The Sussex County Department of Emergency Operations, as “a government agency of competent jurisdiction”, will maintain and direct a legally constituted RACES program, to provide for continued auxiliary communication support under a Presidential Declaration of the Emergency War Powers Act.
  1. The “prior registration” of individual FCC licensed amateur operators as AUXCOMM personnel with the Sussex County Emergency Operations Department meets the RACES Requirement of “prior registration”.
  1. Unless the current RACES Radio Officer has been separately appointed by the EOD, The Auxiliary Communications Leader (ACL), is the de facto RACES Radio Officer (RO), as a previous EOD appointee. A Deputy ACL, is a de facto Assistant Radio Officer (ARO).