On the ARRL PR committe mailing list this morning, Allen G Pitts, W1AGP, the ARRL’s Media & PR Manager reported the following year-end statistics:
- he ARRL grew by 1100 members,
- There was approximately a 1.2% growth in hams in the USA, using stats found at AH0A’s Amateur Radio Education Website, and
- there are 28,066 new US hams in 2008.
I hate to be a wet blanket, but the CIA estimates that the US population will grow by about 0.9% in 2008. If you assume that without any additional effort, the number of licensed hams would also go up by that amount, then the real increase is only about 0.3%. While that’s good, we need to do better.
Also, if the number of ARRL members increased by 1,100, then that is only a 0.7% increase (1100/153535) in the number of members, meaning that ARRL membership decreased as a percentage of licensed amateurs. In December 2007, that figure was 23.4% (153535/655842), while in December 2008 it is now 23.3% (154635/663564).
Finally, it would be interesting to know how many of those 28,066 new hams joined the League.