When the ARRL Board of Directors met for its 2012 Second Meeting July 20-21 in Windsor, Connecticut, it did so with a full agenda. Besides hearing and approving recommendations from its two standing committees -- the Administration and Finance Committee and the Programs and Services Committee -- the Board voted to hold the 2014 ARRL National Convention July 17-20 in Hartford, Connecticut, the birthplace of the League in 1914.

Here are some highlights of the actions taken at the meeting:

• Change to ARRL Field Day Rules: Due to concerns regarding extreme heat and weather conditions in many parts of the country, the Board voted to change the Field Day rules to permit Class A and B stations to begin to set up earlier. Prior to the rule change, these stations were not allowed to begin setting up their stations before 1800 UTC on the Friday before Field Day. Now these stations can begin setting up as of 0000 UTC on the Friday before Field Day (Thursday afternoon or evening, local time). Even though the rule change permits setup to begin 18 hours earlier, cumulative setup time shall not exceed 24 hours. This is the first major change to the Field Day rules since 2003, when a new class -- Class F for EOC stations -- was added.
• Band Plans: The Board voted to approve the band plans for 13 cm, 23 cm and 33 cm — as proposed by the ARRL UHF/Microwave Band Plan Committee — as the ARRL National Band Plans. All ARRL Band Plans can be viewed here.
• IARU Member-Societies: The ARRL Board of Director voted to instruct the ARRL Secretary to cast a vote on behalf of the ARRL in favor of admitting The Federation of Radio Sport of Azerbaijan (FRSA) and the St Vincent and the Grenadines Amateur Radio Club (SVGARC) to the International Amateur Radio Union (IARU).
• Awards and Honors: The Board honored four amateurs with awards, and named former ARRL West Gulf Division Director Thomas W. Comstock, N5TC, as Director Emeritus of the ARRL.

The next ARRL Board Meeting -- the 2013 Annual Meeting -- will be held January 18-19 in New Orleans, Louisiana. The complete Minutes of the 2012 Second Meeting of the ARRL Board of Directors will soon be available on the ARRL website.