GovTrack’s Bill Summary
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H.R. 1147 (111th): Local Community Radio Act of 2009
- Introduced:
- Feb 24, 2009 (111th Congress, 2009–2010)
- Sponsor:
- Rep. Michael “Mike” Doyle Jr. [D-PA14]
- Status:
- Died (Passed House)
The bill’s title was written by the bill’s sponsor. H.R. stands for House of Representatives bill.
Library of Congress Summary
The summary below was written by the Congressional Research Service, which is a nonpartisan division of the Library of Congress.
12/16/2009.
Section
2
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Amends the Departments of Commerce, Justice, and State, the Judiciary, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2001 to require the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to modify the rules authorizing the operation of low-power FM radio stations, as proposed in MM Docket No. 99-25, to:
(1) prescribe protection for co-channels and first- and second-adjacent channels; and
(2) prohibit any applicant from obtaining a low-power FM license if the applicant has engaged in any manner in the unlicensed operation of any station in violation of the Communications Act of 1934.
(Current law is the same, except that clause
(1) instead requires prescribing minimum distance separations for third-adjacent channels, as well as for co-channels and first- and second-adjacent channels.) States that any license that was issued by the FCC to a low-power FM station prior to April 2, 2001, and that does not comply with the modifications adopted by the Commission in the above docket on April 2, 2001, shall remain invalid.
Eliminates provisions prohibiting the FCC from extending the eligibility for application for low-power FM stations beyond the organizations and entities as proposed in the above docket.
Section
3
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Requires the FCC to eliminate third-adjacent minimum distance separation requirements between: (1) low-power FM stations; and (2) full-service FM stations, FM translator stations, and FM booster stations.
Section
4
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Requires the FCC to comply with its existing minimum distance separation requirements for full-service FM stations, FM translator stations, and FM booster stations that broadcast radio reading services via an analog subcarrier frequency to avoid potential interference by low-power FM stations.
Section
5
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Requires the FCC, when licensing new FM translator stations, FM booster stations, and low-power FM stations, to ensure that: (1) licenses are available to FM translator stations, FM booster stations, and low-power FM stations; and (2) such decisions are made based on the needs of the local community.
Section
6
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Requires the FCC to modify its rules to address the potential for predicted interference to FM translator input signals on third-adjacent channels set forth in a specified technical report.
Section
7
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Requires the FCC to modify the interference complaint process in specified ways.
Section
8
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Requires the FCC to study and report to Congress on the impact that low-power FM stations will have on full-service commercial FM stations.
House Republican Conference Summary
The summary below was written by the House Republican Conference, which is the caucus of Republicans in the House of Representatives.
This summary can be found at http://www.gop.gov/bill/111/1/hr1147.
Background
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) created low-power FM-frequency radio stations in 2000 as a way of promoting local programming. Low-power stations are operated by non-commercial entities and broadcast weak signals (100 watts or less) that reach a limited geographic area. Due to concerns over frequency interference, Congress enacted restrictions on how closely those low-power stations could operate to their full-power counterparts. These restrictions resulted in fewer low-power stations than expected, and this bill is an effort to increase the number of low-power, local stations.
Backdoor Fairness Doctrine: Some Members may be concerned that this bill could allow the FCC to replace an existing and operating translator radio station with a new low-power FM station when the translator's license is up for renewal or even during the term of an existing license. The bill allows the FCC to take into account "needs of the local community" when determining licenses and this may displace translator stations if the FCC presumes that low-power FM stations are preferable for local communities. Translator radio stations rebroadcast and extend the signal of noncommercial full-power stations to communities which might not otherwise receive the service.
Summary
H.R. 1147 would amend rules that limit the number of low-power radio stations that may be licensed by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). The bill would repeal some engineering requirements that now limit the number of low-power radio stations that can operate in certain areas and would direct the FCC to ensure the availability of radio spectrum for both low-power FM stations and stations that translate FM signals initially transmitted by other stations.
Cost
The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimates that implementing H.R. 1147 would have no significant effect on the federal budget, but the bill contains intergovernmental and private sector mandates. CBO expects that several thousand entities would have to comply with the mandate. Because a small number of those entities are publicly owned, CBO estimates that the aggregate cost to public entities would be small and would fall below the annual threshold established for intergovernmental mandates. CBO also estimates that the aggregate cost to private entities would total at least tens of millions of dollars, but would probably fall below the annual threshold established for private-sector mandates.
House Democratic Caucus Summary
The House Democratic Caucus does not provide summaries of bills.
So, yes, we display the House Republican Conference’s summaries when available even if we do not have a Democratic summary available. That’s because we feel it is better to give you as much information as possible, even if we cannot provide every viewpoint.
We’ll be looking for a source of summaries from the other side in the meanwhile.
The bill contains the following citations to other parts of U.S. law:
Slip Laws
Slip laws refer to enacted bills and joint resolutions in their original form as enacted by Congress, that is, before other laws amend them. Slip laws are cited as “Public Law XXX-YYY”, where XXX is the number of the Congress in which the bill or resolution was introduced.
- Public Law 106-553:
H.R. 4942 (106th): Amy Boyer’s Law
United States Code
The United States Code is the compilation of permanent laws enacted by Congress. Temporary and other non-permanent laws do not appear in the United States Code. (About half of the United States Code is the law itself, called positive law. The other half is merely a compilation of the laws but has no legal significance.)
- Title 47: TELECOMMUNICATIONS
- Chapter 5: WIRE OR RADIO COMMUNICATION
- Subchapter III: SPECIAL PROVISIONS RELATING TO RADIO
- Part I: General Provisions
- Section 301: License for radio communication or transmission of energy
Statutes at Large
The United States Statutes at Large is the compilation of all laws enacted by Congress.
- 114 Stat. 2762A-111