In the American Radio Relay League (ARRL) and the Radio Amateurs of Canada (RAC), the section manager is an elected volunteer who implements and manages ARRL / RAC programs in the section, which is an administrative division of the organization that consists of a state, or part of state for the ARRL and a province or group of provinces for the RAC. The section manager is elected by the members of the organization who reside in the Section and holds office for a two-year term. There are no term limits.
ARRL / RAC programs include emergency communications, message traffic relay, technical activity / problem-solving / radio-frequency interference investigation and mitigation, volunteer monitoring, government relations, public relations in the general community, information services for amateurs, and cooperation with affiliated clubs. For each of these areas, the section manager appoints a leadership official to oversee the specific pertinent activities. These leadership individuals are collectively referred to as the cabinet.
Cabinet positions include:
The section manager also appoints volunteers to serve within these program areas to include official emergency station, official bulletin station, official observer, public information officer, asst. section emergency coordinator, district emergency coordinator, emergency coordinator, official relay station, local government liaison, and technical specialist.
The cadre of ARRL/RAC volunteers in any given Section serve at the pleasure of thdanager and are available to help other members or the Amateur Radio community at large by providing leadership and assistance in various areas of interest.
In addition to managing these programs, the section manager also assists members with questions, issues or problems dealing with the organization's products and services; maintains liaison with the frequency coordinating body in the jurisdiction; maintains a relationship with the local field office of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC)(US only) and maintains communications with members in the Section via email bulletins, web pages and personal visits to Amateur Radio club meetings, hamfests and conventions.
There are currently 71 sections in the ARRL,[1] (United States) and 8 sections in the RAC[2] (Canada).