Some of us remember when we had to go to a FCC Field Office to take a Ham Radio license exam. Others of us remember when we were lucky enough that the FCC came to town once or twice a year to administer exams, usually in a noisy echo filled room.

In late 1982 all that changed when Congress passed the Goldwater-Wirth Bill (That was Senator Barry Goldwater, K7UGA). This bill became law and the Volunteer Examiner Coordinator (VEC) program was born. It permitted the FCC to accept voluntary and uncompensated services of licensed radio amateurs to prepare and administer examinations. In late 1983, Congress passed another K7UGA sponsored bill which provided for recouping VEC expenses by charging a fee to each candidate taking one or more exam elements. The maximum permissible fee amount is set each year by the FCC based on the Consumer Price Index. In 1984 the FCC began certifying VECs to coordinate these volunteers in preparing and administering exams for Amateur Radio licenses.

So what’s a VEC?  It’s an organization that has entered into an agreement with the FCC to coordinate the efforts of volunteers in preparing and administering examinations for Amateur Radio licenses. Volunteer Examiners (VE’s) are individuals accredited by a VEC and are the people who actually administer the exams. Exam sessions must be coordinated by a VEC, but are conducted by VE’s.

The Volunteer Examiner must meet some FCC established requirements:

- Must be at least 18 years of age.

- Must not own a significant interest in or be an employee of a company or other entity that manufactures or distributes equipment connected with amateur radio transmissions. (This is no place for a conflict of interest.)

- Must never have had their amateur station or operator license revoked or suspended.

- A VE cannot administer an exam to that VE’s direct or extended family including nieces, nephews, or in-laws.

- Must hold a valid General, Advanced, or Extra Class license.

Each VEC is left to decide how it will determine the qualifications of its VE’s.  The ARRL takes this responsibility seriously. Each potential ARRL VE must:

- Complete a VE application and send it to the ARRL.

- Furnish a photocopy of your current General, Advanced, or Extra Class license.

- Successfully complete a review of the VE Manual, or must have current on-the-job training through participation with another VEC.

Once accredited as a VE, your credentials are good for three years or until your FCC license expires, whichever comes first. Accreditation renewal is automatic for VE’s who have participated in at least one exam session during the 12 month period prior to their accreditation expiration.

Every VE Team must have at least three accredited examiners who must be present at all times during an exam session. All three examiners must grade each test and agree on the test results. Most VE teams have a test coordinator who chooses the questions from the appropriate question pool, secures the exam elements and answer keys at all times, and then checks all paperwork from the session before sending the required results to the VEC.