Major Radio, TV Issues Teed Up for Action in DC

posted on 11.24.2025

- AM Radio Bill Vote, FCC Action on TV Cap

As Texas broadcasters transition from their Thanksgiving Day food bank drives and community dinners to covering storied football rivalries, major public policy actions await action by Congress and the FCC to ensure both Radio and TV stations are positioned to serve their local communities well into the future.

AM Radio

More than two-thirds of U.S. House and Senate members are co-sponsoring the AM Radio for Every Vehicle Act which Sen. Ted Cruz is leading in the upper chamber with the bipartisan support of 24 Texans in the lower chamber – the most of any state except California.

This measure is a response to plans announced two years ago by a handful of electric vehicle manufacturers to drop AM Radio from new models, claiming they couldn’t resolve interference created by the EV motors despite competitors successfully deploying the technology.

Within days of Sen. Cruz introducing the legislation, one of the automakers reversed their plans and issued an “over the air” update to activate the AM Radio in vehicles they’d claimed couldn’t carry it, revealing these automakers’ intention to charge consumers for a service Congress mandates be provided free of charge and serves as the backbone of the nation’s emergency communications system.

Lawmakers must hold votes on the measure before it can be enacted into law which President Trump has pledged to do.

TV Ownership Deregulation

The FCC is poised to consider eliminating the arbitrary and anticompetitive regulations prohibiting any broadcast television company from serving more than 39 percent of the country.

The change is needed to level the competitive playing field with unregulated Big Tech companies that are permitted to serve the entire country without any of the consumer protections or public service obligations imposed on local broadcasters.

Despite the FCC’s clear authority to change this rule, some progressives and far-right media channels opposed to fair competition continue to claim otherwise, prompting TAB to encourage Sen. John Cornyn and seven Texans in the House to remain steadfast in their support of this change.

Questions? Contact Oscar Rodriguez or call (512) 322-9944.

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