Great article! It was nice to see some mentions of older projects as well, instead of just things currently (de)funded.

It looks like that first link just references the original article. Seems to be an AI generated summary, too.

No idea about bike licenses.

High power radios in the hands of people who don’t know what they’re doing can cause a lot of issues. FRS/GMRS radios under 2 Watts in the U.S. don’t need a license. Licensing is a way to make sure people using them know how to do so effectively, and provides for stiffer penalties if someone unlicensed causes issues.