NRB Vice President of Public Policy and Salem Media VP of Government Affairs Nic Anderson is urging the Senate to act on the AM Radio for Every Vehicle Act.
In a Townhall op-ed, Anderson wrote, “When a hostile nation, a terrorist cell, or a solar storm takes down the power grid, Americans won’t find out what to do from a smartphone app. Cell towers will go dark within hours, and internet service will go with them. But one technology will still be talking: AM radio.”
The House passed the bill September 15 with overwhelming bipartisan support, and its Senate companion has more than 60 cosponsors and has cleared committee.
What’s missing, Anderson says, is floor time. “A lone procedural objection should not be enough to stand between the American people and the most resilient communications system the nation has.” If unanimous consent can’t be reached, he argues, “Senate leadership should bring this bill up for an up-or-down vote and let the Senate decide.”
He points to the Primary Entry Point system, a network of dozens of primarily AM radio stations, that works with FEMA and has been fortified to serve as the backbone of the national Emergency Alert System. Anderson wrote, “These stations exist so that the president can address the nation when every other channel has failed…Every dollar invested in that infrastructure is wasted if Americans have nothing to receive it with.”
“In a disaster, the car is often the only working radio a family has left,” he wrote. “It has its own power source and its own antenna, and it goes wherever the family goes.”
Anderson points to the 2023 Lahaina wildfire, 2024’s Hurricane Helene in western North Carolina, and the January 2025 Los Angeles wildfires. He also notes that US officials have confirmed state-backed hackers from China have burrowed into American telecommunications networks and critical infrastructure.
On the automakers’ argument that electromagnetic interference from electric motor components is the problem, Anderson wrote, “Make no mistake: those engineering challenges can be solved with shielding and filtering, and several manufacturers already offer AM radio in their electric vehicles.” He adds that seven former FEMA administrators from both parties have urged Congress to protect AM radio, and that President Trump has repeatedly expressed support for keeping it in vehicles. The bill, Anderson wrote, “requires that AM radio stay standard equipment in new vehicles at no extra cost to the driver. Nothing more.”
Anderson wrote, “When the lights go out, AM radio will still be there. The question is whether our cars will be able to hear it.”
To pass the AM Act, the Senate will have to act quickly once reconvening following this week’s midterm elections. Sen. Chuck Grassley said in October that the bill’s most likely paths to success are through unanimous consent, where just one objection could stop it, or a ride on year-end legislation such as a rural health care package, a tax bill, or appropriations.
The NAB has released PSAs in English and Spanish asking radio listeners to contact their members of Congress by texting AM to 39179, urging them to support legislation that ensures AM radio remains in cars. Get them for your station here.
