Digital TV Delay Act
On February 4, the House passed the “DTV Delay Act,” S.352, which will help mitigate anticipated challenges for consumers posed by the digital television (“DTV”) transition. On February 11, President Obama signed this bill into law. Specifically, S. 352 postpones the date of the analog-to-digital television transition from February 17, 2009, to June 12, 2009. The purpose of the bill’s provisions providing for this delay is to provide more time to get coupons for the digital TV converter boxes to the millions of American households that are still on the waiting list.
In the transition to digital television, Americans need a one-time delay to get ready. Without this delay, millions of Americans may see their televisions “go dark” on February 18, 2009, disproportionately impacting low-income, rural, and elderly Americans. The Nielsen Company estimates that there are 6.5 million households (6 percent) that will lose all TV reception if the February deadline remains in place.
The federal effort to help people buy converters to prepare for DTV has been insufficient to keep up with the need across the nation. The Commerce Department estimates that more than 2 million households are currently on a waiting list to receive almost 3.7 million coupons to help them buy digital TV converter boxes.
The Obama Administration called for this delay -- with transition co-director John Podesta writing, "With coupons unavailable, support and education insufficient, and the most vulnerable Americans exposed, I urge you to consider a change to the legislatively-mandated analog cutoff date."
The Senate first passed a DTV Delay bill (S. 328) on January 26 by voice vote. However, on January 28, by a vote of 258-168, House Republicans successfully blocked this bill when it was brought up under suspension of the rules (requiring a two-thirds vote).
Then, on January 29, the Senate passed a slightly modified version of the bill (S. 352) by UC, including certain new language. Some TV stations will shut off their analog feeds before June, and some public safety officials want to operate their radio systems on those channels as soon as they are vacated. The new language would grant those officials with the appropriate licenses the authority to use those airwaves without further approval from the FCC.
Among its several provisions, the Senate-passed bill (S. 352):
- Delays the transition by 115 days and extend the license terms of the commercial and public safety entities that will use the DTV spectrum after the transition by a corresponding number of days.
- Permits consumers who never redeemed coupons to apply for replacement coupons, while ensuring that no household can redeem more than two coupons.
- Expressly preserves broadcasters’ ability to transition before the new transition date, if such a move does not interfere with another broadcast signal. The Act makes clear that the existing FCC rules and regulations concerning interference and consumer education will continue to apply.
- Expressly preserves the ability of public safety entities to use the DTV spectrum before the new transition date, subject to existing FCC rules.