Subject:  FCC court case set for Dec.....  (fwd)
Date:     Wed, 7 Oct 1998 164421 -0500 (CDT)
From:     "Roy L. Beavers" <rbeavers@llion.org>
To:       emfguru <rbeavers@llion.org>
--------------------------------------------------


......The following is a corrected copy......guru......

---------- Forwarded message ----------
Date: Wed, 07 Oct 1998 10:54:43 -0700
From: dingel@concentric.net
To: rbeavers@llion.org
Subject: Date for FCC court case set? 

Dear Roy:

There is one change in the news article below.  The court date for oral
arguments before the U.S. Court of Appeals, 2nd circuit has now been set
for December 14, 1998.  The case will be heard in New York.  

Libby Kelley
Executive Director
Ad Hoc Association of Parties Concerned about the FCC's
Radio Frequency Health and Safety Standards
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

FCC Court Case set for December, 1998.......

From: RCR News     October 5, 1998 


                          By Jeffrey Silva
      WASHINGTON...After months of delay, oral arguments are
set for the week of Dec. 14 on legal challenges to radio-frequency
radiation exposure guidelines adopted by the Federal Communications
Commission in late 1996.

       The outcome of the litigation has enormous implications for the
wireless telecom industry, which is struggling to bring mobile
phone, paging, dispatch and wireless local loop networks into
compliance with new RF safety guidelines.

       A remand or repeal of the FCC RF standard would throw
a wrench into legal and business affairs of wireless carriers.

       Though the new RF standard is stricter than the
previous one, the appellants, 'environmentalists, organized labor and
electrically sensitive individuals,' argue the guidelines still do not
protect consumers adequately. In addition, the groups claim the 1996 RF
standard conflicts with laws governing disabled citizens, the environment
and state rights.

        The FCC, supported by wireless carriers and equipment
manufacturers, says the 1996 RF standard included input from the Food
and Drug Administration, the Environmental Protection Agency,
the Occupational Safety and Health Administration and the National
Institute for Occupational Safety and Health.

         The 1996 FCC ruling incorporated elements of the RF
standard adopted by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics
Engineers and American National Standards Institute in 1992 and RF
guidelines issued by the National Council on Radiation in 1986. 

         "We think it's high time that this get into the
courtroom," said Libby Kelley, executive director of the San
Francisco-based Ad Hoc Association of Parties Concerned About the FCC's
Radio Frequency Health and Safety Rules.

          Originally, oral argument was scheduled in the U.S.
Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit for early August in New York City.
The FCC sought and received a couple extensions of the date for oral
argument.

          Recently, the FCC won a delay after convincing the
court the commission lawyer who will argue the case, Joel Marcus, could
not argue the case in September because of previous personal and business
obligations. Why the court did not schedule the case in October is
unclear.

           The RF health controversy was sparked by a Florida man
who claimed in a lawsuit five years ago that his wife’s fatal brain
cancer was caused by her cellular phone. The court ruled against H. David
Reynard in that case and no court to date has found any carrier or
manufacturer liable for damages in the handful of health-related lawsuits.

            A $25 million research program, underwritten by
cellular carriers and manufacturers and administered by Wireless
Technology Research has not produced any biological test results after
five years. 

            At the same time, Motorola Inc. says RF animal and
cell culture research has not produced any positive results.

            Still, the absence of fresh data from WTR -- which bills
itself as independent of industry influence -- has contributed to
uncertainty in the public about the safety of mobile phones.

             Given that, Rep. Edward Markey (D-Mass.) fought for
and won support for an amendment to E911/federal-land antenna-siting
legislation that would earmark $10 million spanning five years for
federal RF research on animals. 

             But because of controversy surrounding the Senate E911
bill, the legislation was shelved for the year. 

             The World Health Organization and individual
countries, meanwhile, are probing whether mobile phones contribute to
cancer or other illnesses. 





Archive provided courtesy of WaveGuide, http://www.wave-guide.org
Reprinted with permission of Roy Beavers, http://www.feb.se/EMF-L/EMF-L.html