After months of waiting on Capitol Hill, the AM Radio for Every Vehicle Act cleared possibly its largest legislative hurdle on its path to passage. NAB SVP of Government Affairs Nicole Gustafson has spent 22 years in Washington and says she has never seen anything like it.
Last week, the House Energy and Commerce Committee included the bill in the Motor Vehicle Modernization Act of 2026, which is expected to be folded into the larger surface transportation reauthorization package. The NAB credited that to E&C Chairman Brett Guthrie (R-KY) and Rep. Gus Bilirakis (R-FL) alongside Ranking Member Frank Pallone (D-NJ), the bipartisan pairing that has defined the bill’s momentum since it first gained traction.
For Gustafson, who was featured on the NAB’s AirTime podcast, the fight centers on dashboard real estate and the revenue automakers have built around it. “That dashboard space, as it gets more and more crowded, it becomes very valuable,” she said. “Not only are they interested in charging for that space, but also the data that comes from those interactive listenership experiences that they can then monetize as well. But Americans want their radio.”
She pointed to Ford’s reversal on AM removal as evidence of that demand. “You think about a standard piece of farm equipment, the Ford F-150, and you’re going to take the AM radio out of that — those consumers revolted so quickly. Ford actually reversed course and said they were going to keep it in their vehicles for that upcoming model year.”
Even with the hurdles that the bill has yet to cross, Gustafson said the bill’s path is without precedent, with support on and off the Hill. “This has really been a masterclass in advocacy. I’ve worked in DC for 22 years, and I’ve never seen an issue go from absolutely not being on anyone’s radar to having the amount of support that this one has. Everyone is united on this except for the autos, who want to take it out of their vehicles.”
With committee inclusion secured, NAB is pressing stations to help push the bill to a floor vote. “As radio stations have members of Congress in their stations over congressional recesses or over the weekends or you’re having interviews with them, please ask them to encourage their leadership teams to bring this to the floor,” Gustafson commented.
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.
