Sunset Provision at Issue for AM Radio Act
Now that the “AM Radio for Every Vehicle Act” passed a full committee markup on a 50-1 vote and is headed to the full House, supporters of the Act are urging that the Senate version be the one to become law. The
House version contains an eight-year sunset provision on the law requiring all cars manufactured in the U.S. to have an AM radio at no extra cost. The Senate version has no sunset provision. WABC, New York owner John Catsimatidis has been very vocal supporting the bill without the sunset provision. “77WABC and all AM radio stations across the country provide life-saving information and emergency alerts to the public. While the committee’s action may be a step forward, a ridiculous last-minute change sunsets the law in eight years. AM is the backbone of the emergency alert system and tornados, hurricanes, and other disasters won’t go away.”
receive on our mobile phones. With underlying frameworks that are 31 and 13 years old respectively, we think it’s time to explore if structural changes to these systems are needed, with an eye towards making sure we are leveraging the latest technology to save lives. Similarly, we will also vote to initiate a review of our system for collecting real-time data on network outages and restoration during and after major disasters. Since its inception in 2007, our Disaster Information Reporting System (DIRS) has proven to be a valuable tool for collecting actionable information to help with recovery efforts. While the DIRS reports are valuable, they can be time-consuming to produce, drawing resources away from responding to an ongoing disaster. The Commission will vote on reforms to streamline DIRS to make sure that its benefits outweigh its burdens. We’ll close our August meeting by removing unnecessary regulations and injecting common sense across the Commission’s policies—critical features to streamline the implementation of our Build America Agenda.” 
the report as momentum grows in Congress for legislation to ensure AM radio is accessible to the public in all vehicles. NAB president and CEO Curtis LeGeyt states, “When disaster strikes, AM radio has proven time and again its invaluable role as a source of factual, authoritative, up-to-the-minute information that saves lives. It is also a home to a diversity of programming that is often unavailable on other mediums and particularly important to otherwise underserved communities. It is critical that Congress address the need for AM radio capability in vehicles to ensure Americans can turn to local AM stations when they need them the most.”