It is suggested that each Council Owned Camp participating in the K2BSA / Radio Scouting Scout Camps On The Air (SCOTA) program have its own callsign by registering a club call with the FCC and having at least one Licensed Trustee and responsible person. Other members may be attached to the club, with or without an Amateur Radio License.
All adult operators, control or otherwise, shall be registered BSA members and possess valid current Youth Protection Training certification and present such certification to Camp Staff or other supervisory volunteers upon request to gain access or continue using the Camp Station.
When any youth members are operating the Camp Station, a licensed control operator must be present. This person does not have to be the trustee or responsible person but should be a member of the Camp Club. FCC Licensed registered adult members may operate the Camp Station without any youth members for testing of equipment or tuning of antennas as needed.
While it is not required that a Control Operator be a Camp Club member, he or she must be registered with the BSA and follow all BSA rules and regulations regarding the safety of its members as well as any specific rules outlined by the particular Camp.
Example: Troop 1234 is at Camp for the week, and the Scoutmaster or other volunteer Troop leader holds a valid FCC Amateur License. This person may request from the Camp Director, or his / her appointee, permission to use the station upon presenting a copy of the valid license.
If the youth is licensed, he or she may operate at the license privilege for his or her license following the ARRL Band Plan for frequencies and modes allowed for the license class.
The control operator may allow the youth operating the station to use their callsign, or the camp club call, provided the youth adheres to the control operator’s allowed frequencies and modes for his or her license class.
At no time shall a youth member be allowed to operate the Camp Station alone, regardless of whether the youth has a valid license or not.
At no time shall a single adult control operator be in the confines of the station location with a youth operator. If the station is in a publicly accessible area of the Camp, there must be others present and within plain sight of the control and youth operators.
In the event that the Camp Station is enclosed, out of public view, there must be a minimum of two adults at the operating position in compliance with current Youth Protection protocols.
There shall be no illegal drug, alcohol, or tobacco use within the confines of the Council Camp nor within the station area itself. Non-compliance shall result in immediate expulsion from the camp and its radio club (if a member). If illegal drugs are discovered to be or have been in use, local authorities shall be called immediately.
For any advancement requirements to have been met, one of the required two adults must also be registered as a Merit Badge Counselor for the requirement(s) to be considered accepted, and a Merit Badge card must be issued and signed by the registered counselor before submitting to the Camp’s advancement person.