Resources
Licensing, exams & official sources
Everything you need to get on the air legally: HAM exam sessions near your city, GMRS licence filing, and the federal rule pages behind every article in our newsroom.
Get licensed
HAM exams near you & GMRS licences
The FCC site is a maze, so these go straight to the pages that matter — plus a live search for exam sessions in your own city or region. Both services need a valid licence before you transmit.
HAM testing
Technician class is a 35-question multiple-choice exam given by volunteer examiners — no Morse code.
Exam sessions near you — closest first
Search once and we pull the upcoming in-person and remote sessions run by FCC-recognized VEC teams, ordered from closest to farthest.
Find a HAM exam session
ARRL VEC exam-session finder — search in-person and online test sessions by ZIP or state.
ARRL VEC (FCC-recognized)
All FCC-recognized exam coordinators
Official FCC list of Volunteer Examiner Coordinators if you'd rather test with another VEC.
fcc.gov
Amateur Radio Service overview
FCC page covering Technician, General and Amateur Extra classes and Part 97 rules.
fcc.gov
Get your FRN first (CORES)
Register in CORES for an FCC Registration Number — required before you test or pay the $35 fee.
fcc.gov
GMRS licence
No test at all: register, pay the $35 fee, and the licence covers your family for 10 years.
GMRS licensing — official FCC page
No exam required. One $35 licence covers your whole immediate family for 10 years.
fcc.gov
Apply for a GMRS licence (ULS)
File FCC Form 605 in the Universal Licensing System under radio service code ZA.
fcc.gov
Part 95 Subpart E rules
The actual GMRS rules: power limits, repeater use, permitted communications.
eCFR (federal register)
Look up any licence in ULS
Search the FCC licence database by callsign or licensee name.
fcc.gov
Where our news comes from
Primary sources, not hearsay
Every regulatory article in the PulseYard newsroom links back to one of these pages. If an article makes a claim about a rule, fee or band edge, the source link on that article is the authority — read it before you change how you operate.
FCC Daily Digest
Every FCC release, order and public notice the day it's published — our main watch list for rule changes.
fcc.gov
FCC Headlines & news releases
Commission-level announcements, including proposed rulemakings that may affect Part 95 and Part 97.
fcc.gov
Part 97 — Amateur Radio Service rules
The live federal regulation text. eCFR updates within days of a rule taking effect.
eCFR (federal register)
Part 95 Subpart E — GMRS rules
Power limits, repeater and permitted-use rules for GMRS, straight from the regulation.
eCFR (federal register)
Federal Register — FCC proposed rules
Open comment periods and NPRMs, so you can weigh in before a rule is final.
federalregister.gov
ARRL news
Amateur-radio advocacy coverage of FCC filings, band-plan disputes and enforcement.
arrl.org
NOAA Weather Radio All Hazards
Official transmitter list, coverage maps and SAME codes for the 162 MHz weather channels.
weather.gov (NOAA)
FCC licence search (ULS)
Verify any callsign's licence class, status and expiry — the same database our callsign check uses.
fcc.gov
Data accuracy
How PulseYard stays current
Live look-ups
Exam sessions are pulled live from HamStudy.org VEC calendars at search time, and callsigns are checked against the FCC licence database — nothing is cached in a stale local copy.
Verified operators
Station and net records are maintained by licensed operators with a verified callsign badge, so corrections come from people on the air in that area.
Sourced articles
Newsroom posts carry a required source link. Spot something out of date? Publish a correction from Write an article and cite the rule.