AM Radio for Every Vehicle Act of 2023

II Calendar No. 208 118TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION S. 1669 To require the Secretary of Transportation to issue a rule requiring access to AM broadcast stations in motor vehicles, and for other purposes. IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES MAY 17, 2023 Mr. MARKEY (for himself, Mr. CRUZ, Ms. BALDWIN, Mrs. FISCHER, Mr. LUJA´N, Mr. VANCE, Mr. MENENDEZ, Mr. WICKER, Mr. BROWN, Mr. CRAMER, Mr. BLUMENTHAL, Mrs. CAPITO, Ms. KLOBUCHAR, Mr. MAR- SHALL, Mr. SANDERS, Mr. SCOTT of Florida, Mrs. GILLIBRAND, Mr. BUDD, Ms. SMITH, Mr. ROUNDS, Mr. OSSOFF, Mrs. BLACKBURN, Mr. TESTER, Mr. DAINES, Ms. CANTWELL, Mr. MANCHIN, Mr. YOUNG, Mr. SULLIVAN, Mr. MURPHY, Mr. GRAHAM, Ms. ROSEN, Ms. ERNST, Ms. CORTEZ MASTO, and Mr. HAWLEY) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation SEPTEMBER 12, 2023 Reported by Ms. CANTWELL, with an amendment [Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed in italic] A BILL To require the Secretary of Transportation to issue a rule requiring access to AM broadcast stations in motor vehi- cles, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:17 Sep 13, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1669.RS S1669 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 2 •S 1669 RS SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 1 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘AM Radio for Every 2 Vehicle Act of 2023’’. 3 SEC. 2. AM BROADCAST STATIONS RULEMAKING. 4 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 5 (1) ADMINISTRATOR.—The term ‘‘Adminis- 6 trator’’ means the Administrator of the Federal 7 Emergency Management Agency. 8 (2) AM BROADCAST BAND.—The term ‘‘AM 9 broadcast band’’ means the band of frequencies be- 10 tween 535 kilohertz and 1705 kilohertz, inclusive. 11 (3) AM BROADCAST STATION.—The term ‘‘AM 12 broadcast station’’ means a broadcast station li- 13 censed for the dissemination of radio communica- 14 tions— 15 (A) intended to be received by the public; 16 and 17 (B) operated on a channel in the AM 18 broadcast band. 19 (4) AUTHORIZED ALERT ORIGINATOR.—The 20 term ‘‘authorized alert originator’’ means a Federal, 21 State, local, Tribal, or territorial government agency 22 or official that is legally authorized to initiate alert 23 messages for transmission to the public using the 24 Integrated Public Alert and Warning System. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:17 Sep 13, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S1669.RS S1669 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 3 •S 1669 RS (5) COMPTROLLER GENERAL.—The term 1 ‘‘Comptroller General’’ means the Comptroller Gen- 2 eral of the United States. 3 (6) DEVICE.—The term ‘‘device’’ means a piece 4 of equipment or an apparatus that is designed— 5 (A) to receive signals transmitted by a 6 radio broadcast station (as defined in section 3 7 of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 8 153)); and 9 (B) to play back content or programming 10 derived from those signals. 11 (7) DIGITAL AUDIO AM BROADCAST STATION.— 12 (A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘digital 13 audio AM broadcast station’’ means an AM 14 broadcast station that— 15 (i) is licensed by the Federal Commu- 16 nications Commission; and 17 (ii) uses an In-band On-channel sys- 18 tem (as defined in section 73.402 of title 19 47, Code of Federal Regulations (or a suc- 20 cessor regulation)) for broadcasting pur- 21 poses. 22 (B) EXCLUSION.—The term ‘‘digital audio 23 AM broadcast station’’ does not include an all- 24 digital AM station (as defined in section 73.402 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:17 Sep 13, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S1669.RS S1669 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 4 •S 1669 RS of title 47, Code of Federal Regulations (or a 1 successor regulation)). 2 (8) INTEGRATED PUBLIC ALERT AND WARNING 3 SYSTEM.—The term ‘‘Integrated Public Alert and 4 Warning System’’ means the public alert and warn- 5 ing system of the United States described in section 6 526 of the Homeland Security Act of 2002 (6 7 U.S.C. 321o). 8 (9) MANUFACTURER.—The term ‘‘manufac- 9 turer’’ has the meaning given the term in section 10 30102(a) of title 49, United States Code. 11 (10) MOTOR VEHICLE.—The term ‘‘motor vehi- 12 cle’’ has the meaning given the term in section 13 30102(a) of title 49, United States Code. 14 (11) RECEIVE.—The term ‘‘receive’’ means to 15 receive a broadcast signal via over-the-air trans- 16 mission. 17 (12) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ 18 means the Secretary of Transportation. 19 (13) SIGNAL.—The term ‘‘signal’’ means radio 20 frequency energy that a holder of a radio station li- 21 cense granted or authorized by the Federal Commu- 22 nications Commission pursuant to sections 301 and 23 307 of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 24 301, 307) intentionally emits or causes to be emitted 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:17 Sep 13, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S1669.RS S1669 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 5 •S 1669 RS at a specified frequency for the purpose of transmit- 1 ting content or programming to the public. 2 (14) STANDARD EQUIPMENT.—The term 3 ‘‘standard equipment’’ means motor vehicle equip- 4 ment (as defined in section 30102(a) of title 49, 5 United States Code) that— 6 (A) is installed as a system, part, or com- 7 ponent of a motor vehicle as originally manu- 8 factured; and 9 (B) the manufacturer of the motor vehicle 10 recommends or authorizes to be included in the 11 motor vehicle for no additional or separate 12 monetary fee, payment, or surcharge, beyond 13 the base price of a motor vehicle. 14 (b) RULEMAKING REQUIRED.—Not later than 1 year 15 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary, in 16 consultation with the Administrator and the Federal Com- 17 munications Commission, shall issue a rule— 18 (1) requiring devices that can receive signals 19 and play content transmitted by AM broadcast sta- 20 tions be installed as standard equipment in motor 21 vehicles manufactured in the United States, im- 22 ported into the United States, or shipped in inter- 23 state commerce after the effective date of the rule; 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:17 Sep 13, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S1669.RS S1669 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 6 •S 1669 RS (2) requiring dashboard access to AM broadcast 1 stations in a manner that is conspicuous to a driver; 2 and 3 (3) allowing a manufacturer to comply with 4 that rule by installing devices that can receive sig- 5 nals and play content transmitted by digital audio 6 AM broadcast stations as standard equipment in 7 motor vehicles manufactured in the United States, 8 imported into the United States, or shipped in inter- 9 state commerce after the effective date of the rule. 10 (c) INTERIM REQUIREMENT.—For motor vehicles 11 manufactured in the United States, imported into the 12 United States, or shipped in interstate commerce between 13 the period of time beginning on the date of enactment of 14 this Act and ending on the effective date of the rule issued 15 under subsection (b) that do not include devices that can 16 receive signals and play content transmitted by AM broad- 17 cast stations, the manufacturer of the motor vehicles shall 18 provide clear and conspicuous labeling to inform pur- 19 chasers of those motor vehicles that the motor vehicles do 20 not include devices that can receive signals and play con- 21 tent transmitted by AM broadcast stations. 22 (d) ENFORCEMENT.— 23 (1) CIVIL PENALTY.—Any person failing to 24 comply with the rule issued under subsection (b) 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:17 Sep 13, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S1669.RS S1669 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 7 •S 1669 RS shall be liable to the United States Government for 1 a civil penalty in accordance with section 2 30165(a)(1) of title 49, United States Code. 3 (2) CIVIL ACTION.—The Attorney General may 4 bring a civil action in an appropriate district court 5 of the United States to enjoin a violation of the rule 6 issued under subsection (b) in accordance with sec- 7 tion 30163 of title 49, United States Code. 8 (e) STUDY.— 9 (1) STUDY REQUIRED.— 10 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Comptroller Gen- 11 eral shall study and assess whether an alter- 12 native communication system for delivering 13 emergency alerts and critical public safety in- 14 formation distributed by the Integrated Public 15 Alert and Warning System to drivers and pas- 16 sengers of motor vehicles exists that— 17 (i) is as reliable and resilient as AM 18 broadcast stations; and 19 (ii) is capable of ensuring the Presi- 20 dent (or a designee) can reach at least 90 21 percent of the population of the United 22 States in a time of crisis, including at 23 night. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:17 Sep 13, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S1669.RS S1669 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 8 •S 1669 RS (B) CONSIDERATIONS.—In carrying out 1 the study required by subparagraph (A), the 2 Comptroller General shall consider— 3 (i) the cost to drivers and passengers 4 to receive communications through an al- 5 ternative communication system; and 6 (ii) in consultation with the Federal 7 Emergency Management Agency, the Fed- 8 eral Communications Commission, and au- 9 thorized alert originators, the cost and 10 time required to develop and implement an 11 alternative resilient communication system 12 that fully replicates the capability to de- 13 liver emergency alerts and critical public 14 safety information distributed by the Inte- 15 grated Public Alert and Warning System. 16 (2) BRIEFING; REPORT.— 17 (A) BRIEFING.—Not later than 1 year 18 after the date of enactment of this Act, the 19 Comptroller General shall brief the appropriate 20 committees of Congress on the results of the 21 study required by paragraph (1)(A), including 22 recommendations for legislation and adminis- 23 trative action as the Comptroller General deter- 24 mines appropriate. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:17 Sep 13, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S1669.RS S1669 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 9 •S 1669 RS (B) REPORT.—Not later than 180 days 1 after the date on which the Comptroller General 2 provides the briefing required under subpara- 3 graph (A), the Comptroller General shall sub- 4 mit to the Committees on Commerce, Science, 5 and Transportation; and Homeland Security 6 and Governmental Affairs of the Senate; and 7 the Committees on Transportation and Infra- 8 structure and Homeland Security of the House 9 of Representatives a report describing the re- 10 sults of the study required under paragraph 11 (1)(A), including recommendations for legisla- 12 tion and administrative action as the Comp- 13 troller General determines appropriate. 14 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 15 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘AM Radio for Every 16 Vehicle Act of 2023’’. 17 SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 18 In this Act: 19 (1) ADMINISTRATOR.—The term ‘‘Adminis- 20 trator’’ means the Administrator of the Federal 21 Emergency Management Agency. 22 (2) AM BROADCAST BAND.—The term ‘‘AM 23 broadcast band’’ means the band of frequencies be- 24 tween 535 kilohertz and 1705 kilohertz, inclusive. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:17 Sep 13, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S1669.RS S1669 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 10 •S 1669 RS (3) AM BROADCAST STATION.—The term ‘‘AM 1 broadcast station’’ means a broadcast station licensed 2 for the dissemination of radio communications— 3 (A) intended to be received by the public; 4 and 5 (B) operated on a channel in the AM broad- 6 cast band. 7 (4) APPROPRIATE COMMITTEES OF CONGRESS.— 8 The term ‘‘appropriate committees of Congress’’ 9 means— 10 (A) the Committee on Commerce, Science, 11 and Transportation of the Senate; 12 (B) the Committee on Homeland Security 13 and Governmental Affairs of the Senate; 14 (C) the Committee on Transportation and 15 Infrastructure of the House of Representatives; 16 (D) the Committee on Homeland Security 17 of the House of Representatives; and 18 (E) the Committee on Energy and Com- 19 merce of the House of Representatives. 20 (5) COMPTROLLER GENERAL.—The term ‘‘Comp- 21 troller General’’ means the Comptroller General of the 22 United States. 23 (6) DEVICE.—The term ‘‘device’’ means a piece 24 of equipment or an apparatus that is designed— 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:17 Sep 13, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S1669.RS S1669 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 11 •S 1669 RS (A) to receive signals transmitted by a 1 radio broadcast station (as defined in section 3 2 of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 3 153)); and 4 (B) to play back content or programming 5 derived from those signals. 6 (7) DIGITAL AUDIO AM BROADCAST STATION.— 7 (A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘digital audio 8 AM broadcast station’’ means an AM broadcast 9 station that— 10 (i) is licensed by the Federal Commu- 11 nications Commission; and 12 (ii) uses an In-band On-channel sys- 13 tem (as defined in section 73.402 of title 47, 14 Code of Federal Regulations (or a successor 15 regulation)) for broadcasting purposes. 16 (B) EXCLUSION.—The term ‘‘digital audio 17 AM broadcast station’’ does not include an all- 18 digital AM station (as defined in section 73.402 19 of title 47, Code of Federal Regulations (or a 20 successor regulation)). 21 (8) INTEGRATED PUBLIC ALERT AND WARNING 22 SYSTEM; IPAWS.—The terms ‘‘Integrated Public Alert 23 and Warning System’’ and ‘‘IPAWS’’ mean the pub- 24 lic alert and warning system of the United States de- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:17 Sep 13, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S1669.RS S1669 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 12 •S 1669 RS scribed in section 526 of the Homeland Security Act 1 of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 321o). 2 (9) MANUFACTURER.—The term ‘‘manufacturer’’ 3 has the meaning given the term in section 30102(a) 4 of title 49, United States Code. 5 (10) PASSENGER MOTOR VEHICLE.—The term 6 ‘‘passenger motor vehicle’’ has the meaning given the 7 term in section 32101 of title 49, United States Code. 8 (11) RECEIVE.—The term ‘‘receive’’ means to re- 9 ceive a broadcast signal via over-the-air transmission. 10 (12) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 11 the Secretary of Transportation. 12 (13) SIGNAL.—The term ‘‘signal’’ means radio 13 frequency energy that a holder of a radio station li- 14 cense granted or authorized by the Federal Commu- 15 nications Commission pursuant to sections 301 and 16 307 of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 17 301, 307) intentionally emits or causes to be emitted 18 at a speci [Text truncated for display. 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