House Commerce to Eye AM Radio Vehicle Mandate Draft Bill in Apparent GOP U-Turn

The House Commerce Committee said Tuesday it plans an April 30 hearing on a revised draft version of the AM Radio for Every Vehicle Act. The move represents an apparent reversal in panel Republicans' position on the measure, which would mandate U.S. automakers keep AM radio technology in future domestic-made vehicles, given they voiced skepticism about a previous iteration (HR-3413/S-1669) earlier in this Congress (see 2401050065). The AM radio bill's backers within and outside the broadcast industry pointed to the hearing announcement as a sign of momentum but stopped short of labeling it an indication House leaders had reached a clear-cut deal to ease the measure's passage through the lower chamber.

House Commerce Chair Cathy McMorris Rodgers, R-Wash., indicated during a short interview Tuesday she doesn’t view plans for the AM Radio for Every Vehicle Act hearing as a definitive about-face for panel Republicans on the measure. She was among several House Communications Subcommittee Republicans who raised concerns during a June hearing about imposing a new mandate on automakers (see 2306060088).

“I was hoping that the car companies would make the right decision” to keep access to the technology in future vehicles “without this bill being necessary,” Rodgers told us. “We don’t have that commitment yet, so we’re moving forward so that people have access to AM radios.” Pro-mandate lobbyists told us Rodgers changed her mind on the legislation in part because HR-3413 included enough co-sponsors to easily clear the 218-vote threshold for majority passage in the House, including Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La. The measure had 244 co-sponsors as of Tuesday afternoon.

Rodgers said in a statement announcing the hearing that it’s “alarming that some auto manufacturers are considering not installing AM radios in new cars” given the technology “plays an essential role during public emergencies when other alert systems that rely on the electric grid and cellphone networks don’t work.” Other lawmakers previously noted concerns that more automakers have not followed Ford (see 2305230047) in voluntarily agreeing not to remove access to AM radio amid pressure from Capitol Hill. House Commerce didn’t announce a specific time or location for its April 30 hearing on the measure.

The new discussion draft mirrors some elements of HR-3413/S-1669 but also includes some noticeable changes. The new measure still mandates vehicles to include access to “AM broadcast stations,” but it jettisons a requirement from HR-3413/S-1669 that access be on the car “dashboard” and instead requires it to be “easily accessible to a driver.” The draft requires the effective date for DOT’s future role to be between two and three years after the department issues it. It would give automakers that made no more than 40,000 passenger vehicles an additional two years to comply. The draft requires DOT to consult broadcasters and automakers as it writes the rule. The draft requires DOT review the rule every five years to evaluate its “impacts on public safety” and changes to FEMA Integrated Public Alert Warning System technologies “that enable resilient and accessible alerts to drivers and passengers of passenger motor vehicles.”

Broadcast industry officials told us the April 30 hearing is a significant development and that they feel well positioned for the AM radio bill to succeed because of Rodgers’ apparent support for the measure's new version and the number of other lawmakers from both parties now backing the bill. NAB President Curtis LeGeyt said during an onstage Q&A Monday during the group’s Las Vegas show that he was confident about the measure's future. “I think we’re gonna get this bill over the finish line,” he said: “We’re aware of the division in Washington right now, but this issue has brought together a consensus on the Republican and Democrat sides that is extremely atypical.” NAB praised House Commerce Tuesday for scheduling the new hearing.