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Local Community Radio Act Sweeps House Subcommittee in 15 to 1 vote The
Local Community Radio Act was passed out of the House Subcommittee on
Communications, Technology and the Internet this morning in a sweeping
15 to 1 vote. The Act would allow for the creation of hundreds of new,
low power FM (LPFM) radio stations that would broadcast community news
and local perspectives to neighborhoods across the country. “All
I can say is, it's about time,” said Rep. Anna Eshoo (D-CA), a
co-sponsor of the bill. “It was absurd and ridiculous that broadcasters
went to such great lengths to block the public from having some small
measure of access to the airwaves, and disgraceful that we had to spend
more two million dollars to prove what the FCC already had shown—that
LPFM would not interfere with full power stations.” Big
broadcasters have historically opposed the Local Community Radio Act,
claiming that LPFM could cause interference to full power stations, a
concern later disproven by a Congressionally mandated study. But with
unanimous FCC support, strong bipartisan co-sponsorship, and grassroots
momentum, even industry news is now predicting a win. “We do not expect
that there is any stopping it at this point,” the Radio Business Report
commented this morning. “The bill still has a long way to go in
the legislative process, but I am optimistic that by the end of the
year the Local Community Radio Act will be signed into law,” said
Congressman Doyle (D-PA), lead co-sponsor of the bill with Congressman
Lee Terry (R-NE). The bill gained the support of former doubters
of LPFM, including Rep. Cliff Stearns (R-FL), a former lead co-sponsor
of anti-LPFM legislation and ranking Republican on the subcommittee,
Rep. Greg Walden (R-OR), the only former broadcaster in Congress, and
Rep. John Dingell (D-MI), who called for the study of LPFM interference
in 2000. “Today’s vote signals a policy shift towards more local
and diverse media,” said Cory Fischer-Hoffman, Campaign Director for
the Prometheus Radio Project. “We need to use this momentum to push for
full passage of the Local Community Radio Act so groups working
tirelessly to have a voice in their communities can start building
stations.” Hundreds of groups—including schools, churches, and
emergency responders—were denied licenses in 2000 after Congress
blocked the FCC from handing them out in crowded media markets. Advocates
point to the successes of existing low power FM stations to prove their
value to communities. “When Hurricane Katrina hit the Gulf, low power
radio was the only source of emergency information in a number of
counties. Residents in East Texas tuned their battery-operated radios
to KZQX-LP while they waited a week for power to be restored,” said
Andalusia Knoll, Community Station Director at the Prometheus Radio
Project. “In Louisiana, KOCZ-LP has proven essential to the cultural
survival of Zydeco music, which is rarely heard on the airwaves. And
low power station WRYR hosts public debate about the environmental
impacts of development on the Chesapeake Bay.” “Congress should
act swiftly to pass LPFM and support the families, workers, and places
of worship that serve as the anchors in our communities,” said Joel
Kelsey, Policy Analyst at Consumers Union. Nancy Zirkin of the
Leadership Conference on Civil Rights added, “In an era of mass media
consolidation, we in the civil rights community believe that it is
critical to promote diverse ownership and diverse viewpoints over the
public airwaves, and we look forward to the passage of this bill into
law.” The Local Community Radio Act is now poised to move to the
full Energy and Commerce Committee, chaired by longtime LPFM supporter
Rep. Henry Waxman (D-CA). |