Washington, D.C. – Yesterday afternoon, Congressman John D. Dingell (D-MI15) and Congressman Gene Green (D-TX29) introduced H.R. 2482, the Public Safety Spectrum and Wireless Innovation Act. H.R. 2482 is supported by a wide array of stakeholders, including the Public Safety Alliance (PSA), the Association of Public-Safety Communications Officials-International (APCO), the National Sheriffs Association (NSF), the International Association of Fire Chiefs (IAFC), the Communications Workers of America (CWA), the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB), the Texas Association of Broadcasters (TAB), and the Michigan Association of Broadcasters (MAB).
“I am proud to work with my friend, Gene Green, to introduce legislation that provides for public safety’s critical needs and ensures that free over-the-air broadcasting is not threatened,” said Dingell. “H.R. 2482, if enacted, will accomplish these goals and, in so doing, better protect American lives and consumer choice. I urge all of my colleagues in the House to support this bill and its passage.”
“The broad support this bill has attracted in such a short period of time is a testament to its importance and far-reaching appeal,” added Green. “I am proud that John Dingell, my colleague and good friend, asked me to join him in this effort. H.R. 2482 addresses the top priority of the public safety community: to provide additional spectrum and funding so they can do their job more effectively and better protect American lives. This bill also ensures our free over-the-air broadcast system is preserved as we move forward in answering the spectrum challenges our country faces in the years ahead.”
H.R. 2482 is companion legislation to Senators John Rockefeller and Kay Bailey Hutchison’s bi-partisan bill, S. 911. While both bills reallocate the D-Block to public safety, H.R. 2482 builds on S. 911 by adding more explicit broadcaster protections with respect to a voluntary incentive auction of spectrum.
A summary of the bill’s provisions, as well as letters in support of the bill, can be found here:
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