Second-quarter lobbying disclosures show Washington’s fight over AM radio in cars is anything but over, with automakers and Big Tech interests outspending broadcasters in an effort to close off every avenue for the AM Radio for Every Vehicle Act’s path to passage.
The AM Act has two paths forward. One is as a standalone bill, which cleared committee back in November 2025 and has been waiting on a House floor vote ever since. The other runs through Rep. Brett Guthrie’s (R-KY) Motor Vehicle Modernization Act, which broadcasters hope will be folded into the BUILD America 250 Act that could carry the AM Act to passage without a standalone vote.
Toyota Motor North America led the automakers, reporting $2,020,500 in combined Q2 lobbying activity across two filings that named the AM Act among other issues. American Honda Motor Company disclosed $1,477,000, and General Motors reported $40,000.
The Consumer Technology Association added $1,370,000 in Q2 lobbying activity, with its transportation and mobility disclosures listing both the AM Act and the BUILD America 250 Act, potentially putting the association on both sides of the same legislative vehicle.
The NAB reported $2,620,000 in in-house lobbying expenses and also retained OnMessage Public Strategies and The Smith-Free Group, LLC, each disclosing $30,000 in outside lobbying tied to AM radio and the Local Radio Freedom Act. iHeartMedia filed seven separate lobbying reports for the quarter totaling $1,280,457, while Salem Media, which runs an in-house lobbying operation, reported $30,000.
Combined, the radio industry’s disclosed second-quarter lobbying totaled approximately $3,990,457, compared to $4,907,500 from Toyota, Honda, GM, and CTA, favoring the mandate’s opponents. That is a reversal from the first quarter, when pro-AM spending outpaced opposition by more than $2 million.
The bill also carries the president’s backing. Trump has voiced support for the AM Act repeatedly this year, most recently reaffirming it during a Monday radio appearance ahead of a Capitol Hill fly-in, where broadcasters from 31 state associations, alongside AARP, the International Association of Fire Chiefs and local emergency managers, met with lawmakers to press for passage.
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.
