Have there been bills introduced before that would expand low power FM radio to my community? What is LPFM's legislative history?

Because folks like you have advocated to Congress to get rid of the Radio Broadcast Preservation Act, and to expand low power FM radio all across the United States, we have had a lot of success over the past few years! By working together to advocate on low power FM in our communities, in Congress, and across the country, we can repeal the idiotic law that limits our voices. In 2007, we're going to take it all the way, and repeal the law keeping community radio from your town. Here's a brief legislative history of LPFM expansion, to bring you up to date!

In 2004, Senators John McCain of Arizona and Patrick Leahy of Vermont introduced Senate Bill 2505, which would repeal the Radio Broadcast Preservation Act of 2000. On July 22, 2004, the Senate Commerce Committee listened to the American public, rather than the big broadcasters, and voted to expand low power FM radio, despite half-hearted attempts by now-ousted Montana Senator Conrad Burns, and New Jersey Senator Frank Lautenberg to amend or sink the legislation. The bill didn't move further than the Commerce Committee througout the rest of that Congressional session.

In 2005, Senators McCain and Leahy were joined by Senator Maria Cantwell of Washington State when they re-introduced the Local Community Radio Act of 2005, which would also repeal the Radio Broadcast Preservation Act of 2000. That bill was eventually amended to a big bill covering many communications issues, Senate Bill 2686, a bill with over 200 amendments, introduced by Senator Ted Stevens in the spring and summer of 2006.

While the bill would have limited the rights of communities to negotiate for their own public access television stations, and squashed many of our rights to access the content we want, whenever we want, on the Internet, a large coalition of community media advocates and media reformers agreed that we had a chance to make a statement for LPFM when it was amended, by surprise, to the Stevens bill.

Low power FM advocates, calling their legislators and asking them to support low power FM as well as protect Net Neutrality, community access TV, and more, were able to win a stunning victory for low power FM radio, when the Senate Commerce Committee voted 14-7 to expand low power FM! Open this page to see if your Senator voted to expand low power FM -- or if they voted against community radio. Conservative mainstays like Trent Lott of Mississippi and George Allen of Virginia joined McCain, Cantwell, and many others to expand low power FM. Search for LPFM to get a record of the vote!

There was also a lot of activity in the House of Represenatives this past legislative session, when Congresswoman Louise Slaughter, of upstate New York, introduced the Expand and Protect Local Community Radio Act in the fall of 2005. With Congresswoman Slaughter's leadership, that bill gathered eleven diverse cosponsors, including legislators from Arizona, California, New Mexico, Illinois, Hawaii, Massachusetts, and Michigan!

This proves that your work advocating to Congress makes a difference -- and you can do it again in 2007.