The House Expected to Vote On The AM Radio Act

House Majority Leader Steve Scalise has scheduled a standalone vote on the AM Radio for Every Vehicle Act for the week of September 14, giving the bill its first firm House floor date after years of committee wins and missed windows.

The National Association of Broadcasters said Thursday that Scalise set H.R. 979 for a vote on its own, rather than leaving it to a post-election lame-duck session or to language attached to a surface transportation package. The bill would require the secretary of transportation to finish a rulemaking within one year mandating AM receivers as a no-cost standard feature in all vehicles sold in the United States, including electric models.

Reps. Gus Bilirakis (R-Fla.) and Frank Pallone (D-N.J.) lead the House measure. Sens. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) and Ed Markey (D-Mass.) lead the Senate companion, S. 315. The legislation has 317 House cosponsors and 61 in the Senate.

NAB President and CEO Curtis LeGeyt praised Scalise, House leadership, and the four lead sponsors. “Our listeners have made their voices heard loud and clear: AM radio is an indispensable lifeline during emergencies, a trusted source of news and information, and a vital connection for communities nationwide,” he said. “Now is the time to finish the job.”

Industry officials have argued that time is short as Congress returns from the summer recess and the 119th Congress heads toward adjournment at year’s end. On NAB’s AirTime podcast on September 2, Nic Anderson, director of government affairs for Salem Media Group and vice president of public policy for the National Religious Broadcasters, said advocates have pressed for a vote on the House Suspension Calendar and have taken that case to the White House and House leadership. 

If automakers can drop AM because it is cheaper or easier, he warned, the same logic could later be used against FM and free over-the-air radio in cars.

A House win would send the measure to the Senate and, if that chamber acts, to the president. President Donald Trump has backed the mandate in public comments, including on Hugh Hewitt’s syndicated radio show.

Earlier versions cleared the Senate Commerce Committee in July 2023 and the House Energy and Commerce Committee in September 2024, but the 118th Congress adjourned without a floor vote despite large bipartisan cosponsor lists in both chambers.

NAB President and CEO Curtis LeGeyt called the scheduling an important step for legislation that “has earned overwhelming bipartisan support in Congress and across the country.” He thanked House leadership and the lead sponsors “along with hundreds of lawmakers from both parties whose persistence and leadership have brought us to this moment,” and said listeners have made clear that AM radio is “an indispensable lifeline during emergencies, a trusted source of news and information, and a vital connection for communities nationwide.” 

He urged every House member to vote yes and “finish the job.”

If the House passes H.R. 979, the Senate would still have to act—either on S. 315, which has cleared committee but faced procedural holds, or by aligning text in a must-pass package.