🚀 go-pugleaf

> The MoU between the ARRL and the NWS is an MoU between the ARRL and the
> NWS. 

The MoU between the ARRL and the NWS is to specifically permit and
lay ground-rules  for cooperation of ARRL authorized ARES local
organizations with NWS local offices.

> It would probably
> do better with a revision nowadays, anyway.  

All MOU's should be revised periodically, anyway.

> I don't think many give thought to whether or not a ham is a member of
> the ARRL or not.  

Doesn't matter, you can be a member of ARES, the ARRL FIeld
Organization branch for Emergency Service for which the ARRL
executed the MOU, without being an ARRL member.  You only have to be
an ARRL member to receive an ARRL Field Leadership Appointment in
ARES or elsewhere.

> At the time, it was probably
> written in an area where the local population of hams had ONLY an ARES, did
> EVERYTHING in the ARES name, and didn't mind that, and who thought that the
> whole of the continent operated in the same way as they.  

Depends when it was written.  If it was written before the thaw in
the cold war, there was RACES all over the place and everyone knew it.

As I understand the MOU, it doesn't obligate anyone to anything, it merely
allows a local NWS WCM and a local ARES leader to make the ham
component of the local Skywarn an ARES operation, if mutually agreeable.

> But it didn't take into account the many
> various alternative ways of handling things ...

Why should it?  Should the ARRL MOU with the Red Cross should spell out
how we can help the Salvation Army, or should it specify that the Red
Cross can consult with REACT in some areas if they choose?

The ARRL-NWS MOU does not prohibit the NWS having MOUs with other
organizations either locally or nationally, any more than the
ARRL-ARC MOU would block an ARRL-SATERN MOU or an ARC-REACT MOU
(both of which I believe exist nationally and in many local areas).

> Works fine if your god is solely ARES, perhaps.  (Yes, pun intended.)

Nice pun.  The MOU exists primarily so that Hams in a territory 
which has no Skywarn program at all can point to it as why
the WCM should talk to them at all -- recognition from the home
office is a wonderful letter of introduction in burro-cracies.
Obviously if there is a strong RACES program, the RO can get an
even better introduction to the WCM via the EMD.  But when ARES is
all you've got, the MOU provides the fulcrum needed to lever a crack
in the catch-22 of burro-cracy.

>   Oh shoot!  I better change that SOP Manual!  <wink>

:-)

>   That's exactly how we do it here in Alachua County, Fla., too.  Currently,
> our membership is mostly amateur radio comprised.  But we intend in the
> future to include sections in our SOP manual on CB, FRS, GMRS - if enough
> interest for each rears itself.

You may have to go out and offer training to the other services to
create interest; if they don't know it's available to them too, they
may not get enough interest to ask.

(-: I can't see FRS being terribly useful, given the legal range ... is
it even legal to talk on FRS to an unrelated person? hi hi :-)

>   We notify our local OEM as a courtesy and, they courteously made the
> SUGGESTION that they take on the responsibility of passing all of our
> reports to the WCM at NWS-Jax.  This eliminates possible dupes being sent to
> NWS-Jax, and saves us work and time.  

That works for you; good.  As with some other places, when it seems
there will be a high volume of traffic coming, we put an experienced
radio operator at NWS-BOX who takes reports from each net or has them
relayed to him, by radio, and filters and dupes them.  He also
relays specific requests for observations back out to the field in
real time, and usually provides early announcement of new Warnings
before they tone out the WxRadio, at least to the net most directly
affected.

> But Our SKYWARN does not fill out
> activity reports and hand them to the local amateur radio EC.  

If your Net Coordinator doesn't accept a dual appointmet as an ARES
Net Manager, no reason you should have to.

73 de Bill N1VUX

-- 
Bill Ricker  N1VUX  wdr@world.std.com  "The freedom of the press belongs 
http://world.std.com/~wdr               to those who own one."--A.J.Liebling