200th House Member Becomes LRFA Co-Sponsor

RADIO ONLINE | Thursday, July 9, 2015

The 200th member of Congress on went on record Thursday in support of local radio. Rep. Randy Weber (TX-14) has been added as a co-sponsor of the Local Radio Freedom Act, a resolution that opposes "any new performance fee, tax, royalty, or other charge" on local broadcast radio stations. The resolution now has 200 co-sponsors in the House of Representatives and 19 in the Senate.

Reps. Michael Conaway (R-TX) and Gene Green (D-TX) are the principal sponsors of the Local Radio Freedom Act (H. Con. Res. 17) in the House of Representatives. Sens. John Barrasso (R-WY) and Heidi Heitkamp (D-ND) are the principal sponsors of the companion resolution (S. Con. Res. 4) in the Senate.

Free Radio Alliance (FRA) spokesperson Peggy Binzel issued the following statement, "With the addition of Rep. Randy Weber (R-TX) to the list of co-sponsors of the Local Radio Freedom Act, another milestone has been reached in support of free, local radio and against the imposition of a performance tax. The Free Radio Alliance thanks Rep. Weber and the other 199 members of Congress who are standing up for local radio stations and the communities they serve.

"The big three record labels want to return to the days when they had a lock on how consumers accessed music and the revenue stream that went with that. The Free Radio Alliance is delighted that more members of Congress every day are recognizing the value radio provides to local communities.

"In a world that is being pushed rapidly toward pay-only music, entertainment and news options, local radio stands out as the industry whose business model is to provide local listeners the best in music, news and information-all for free."