Senate Commerce Committee Chairman John McCain plans to offer a bill on Tuesday that would require broadcasters to only air the new, crisp digital television signals by 2009 and would subsidize the cost for those consumers who rely on traditional television to see those signals.
His measure would provide up to $1 billion for consumers, particularly lower-income households, to either buy a device that would convert the digital signals back into a format that they could watch or to install cable or satellite service.
The National Association of Broadcasters, which represents scores of local television stations, said it would oppose the bill because it would not cover all the traditional television sets in American households, estimated at over 70 million.
"NAB opposes the bill on grounds that tens of millions of Americans could lose access to local TV stations if the McCain bill becomes law," said NAB spokesman Dennis Wharton.
A team of lobbyists for the organization fanned out across Capitol Hill urging lawmakers to oppose the bill, one congressional aide said. McCain, an Arizona Republican, has long fought broadcasters over using government-given airwaves.
His bill is slated to be considered by the Senate Commerce Committee on Wednesday though its future beyond that stage is murky because Congress is trying to adjourn by early October and the House of Representatives has not acted either.
House Commerce Committee Chairman Rep. Joe Barton (news, bio, voting record) does back setting a deadline for finishing the digital transition and supplying one converter to each household, an aide said.
MILLIONS OF TV SETS OUT THERE
The Federal Communications Commission (news - web sites) has mandated that by July 2007 all new television sets with screens 13 inches or larger must be able to receive digital signals but the Consumer Electronics Association estimates that Americans replace their sets only every eight to 10 years.
While roughly 17 million homes do not subscribe to cable or satellite service, many homes have additional television sets in bedrooms, kitchens and elsewhere, adding to the number that may require converter boxes or need to be replaced.
Converters now cost roughly $300-$400, but as production and demand rises, the price would likely fall, possibly to as little as $50, according to some experts.
McCain's legislation would pay for the aid by using proceeds the government would receive from auctioning the broadcasters' old airwaves to commercial wireless services, a sale that could bring in billions of dollars.
Some of those airwaves would also go to public safety groups which are hungry for more so they can better communicate and the McCain bill would provide grants for the organizations to buy new equipment.
His expected bill would also require traditional television sets made after September 2005 that cannot receive digital signals to include a label warning the buyer that without additional equipment, it would not work after 2008.
It would also order the FCC (news - web sites) to decide by 2005 what are broadcasters' obligations for serving the public interest when airing digital as well as decide whether cable companies must carry additional digital channels offered by local television stations.
