Although Madison will soon have its own low power station, thousands of others are locked off the radio dial because of what many say are overly restrictive rules.
These rules could loosen by the end of the year, if bipartisan legislation in the House and Senate goes through successfully.
Rep. Mike Doyle, D-Penn., and Lee Terry, R-Neb., announced a plan Thursday that would expand access to low power radio. Similar legislation is being introduced to the Senate by John McCain, R-Ariz. and Maria Cantwell, D-Wash.
Rep. Doyle hopes that Congress will reconsider low power regulations enacted back in 2000 and "revolutionize what Americans hear on the radio."
In the first two years after the Federal Communications Commission first granted permits in 2000 to low power stations, the program proved wildly popular -- 3,000 organizations applied, but only 1,000 could be granted licenses because of limited access to channels.
Groups like National Public Radio (NPR) and the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) urged the commission to keep the reigns taut on low power stations, fearing that a glut of new stations in a listening area would create interference problems. ...
