HamSandwich

Your callsign is showing. That's a good thing.

Study › Technician › T1E › T1E04

T1E04

COMMISSION'S RULES · Control operator: eligibility, designating, privileges, duties, location, required; Control point; Control types: automatic, remote

T1E04§ 97.103(b)T1E →

What determines the transmitting frequency privileges of an amateur station?

  1. AThe frequency authorized by the frequency coordinator
  2. BThe frequencies printed on the license grant
  3. CThe highest class of operator license held by anyone on the premises
  4. DThe class of operator license held by the control operator
Why Under 97.103(b) the station licensee must designate a control operator, and the station may only transmit within the privileges of that person's operator license class. So privileges follow the person actually in charge of the transmissions, not the equipment or the station call sign. This is what lets a Technician's station be used on General or Extra frequencies when a higher class licensee acts as control operator, and it also limits an Extra's station to Technician privileges when a Technician is the control operator.
Watch out Amateur license grants do not print a list of frequencies, so that choice describes nothing real. And it is not enough for a higher class licensee just to be on the premises; that person must actually be the designated control operator responsible for the transmissions.
Privileges ride with the person at the controls, not the radio: control operator's class sets the limits.
HamSandwich explanation, first draft. The question and answers are the NCVEC text.
47 CFR 97.103(b) Station licensee responsibilities.

(a) The station licensee is responsible for the proper operation of the station in accordance with the FCC Rules. When the control operator is a different amateur operator than the station licensee, both persons are equally responsible for proper operation of the station.

(b) The station licensee must designate the station control operator. The FCC will presume that the station licensee is also the control operator, unless documentation to the contrary is in the station records.

(c) The station licensee must make the station and the station records available for inspection upon request by an FCC representative.

eCFR text as of 1 Sep 2026 · read on ecfr.gov
← T1E03 All of T1E T1E05 →

The rest of T1E

  1. T1E01 When may an amateur station transmit without a control operator?
  2. T1E02 Who may be the control operator of a station communicating through an amateur satellite or space station?
  3. T1E03 Who must designate the station control operator?
  4. T1E04 What determines the transmitting frequency privileges of an amateur station?
  5. T1E05 What is an amateur station's control point?
  6. T1E06 When, other than during an emergency, may a Technician class licensee be the control operator of a station op…
  7. T1E07 When the control operator is not the station licensee, who is responsible for the proper operation of the sta…
  8. T1E08 Which of the following is an example of automatic control?
  9. T1E09 Which amateur stations may be remotely controlled?
  10. T1E10 Which of the following is an example of remote control as defined in Part 97?
  11. T1E11 What is a control operator as defined in Part 97?
ARRL Ham Radio License ManualSponsored · View on Amazon →Baofeng UV-5R Dual Band Two Way RadioSponsored · View on Amazon →