WASHINGTON, D.C. — The U.S. House has passed the AM Radio for Every Vehicle Act, moving the proposed mandate to the Senate for the final congressional decision.

The House approved H.R. 979 by voice vote on September 15 under suspension of the rules, a procedure generally used for measures expected to receive broad support.

The vote is a major advance for the legislation, but it does not make the proposal law. The Senate must approve identical language—either by acting on H.R. 979 or reconciling it with companion bill S. 315—before the measure can be sent to the president.

What the House bill would require

H.R. 979 would direct the U.S. Department of Transportation to require accessible AM reception as standard equipment in new passenger vehicles sold in the United States without a separate charge to the consumer.

According to the Congressional Budget Office, the department would have one year after enactment to issue the rule. The requirement would sunset eight years after enactment unless Congress later extends it.

The legislation would also require the Government Accountability Office to study the role of in-vehicle AM broadcasting in distributing emergency alerts through the Integrated Public Alert and Warning System.

The Senate is now the unfinished step

Supporters have spent more than three years pressing Congress to preserve AM reception as automakers redesign vehicle dashboards and, in some cases, remove AM receivers from electric vehicles.

The House action resolves one chamber’s position. The remaining question is whether the Senate can complete matching action on its limited calendar. Any difference between the House and Senate language would have to be resolved before final passage.

Broadcasters should therefore describe the measure as House-passed legislation—not an enacted federal requirement. Automakers are not yet operating under a new mandate, and the Department of Transportation has not begun the one-year rulemaking period described in the bill.

RNN will update this report when Senate action is scheduled or completed.

Sources: The House Committee on Energy and Commerce, the Office of the Clerk of the U.S. House of Representatives and the Congressional Budget Office.