The U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation has passed the Digital Transition and Public Safety Act of 2005, which now goes to the Senate Budget Committee for inclusion in the reconciliation bill that will be voted on next week.
The bill would require television stations to stop airing analog signals, and air only digital signals by April 7, 2009, according to the Reuters news service. Most of the airwaves to be freed up would be sold to commercial wireless companies, a move that would raise billions of dollars for the government. The Senate draft calls for the auction to start Jan. 28, 2008.
Current law only requires television stations to give up their analog signals by Dec. 31, 2006 or when 85 percent of the national television audience can see the new digital signals, whichever comes later, Reuters reported.
The Telecommunications Industry Association (TIA) today praised the Senate committee for approving the bill.
“TIA strongly supports provisions of the legislation that establish a hard deadline for completion of the DTV transition,” said TIA President Matthew J. Flanigan in a news release. “We are encouraged that revenue raised during the auction of recovered broadcast spectrum will be allocated to fund the needs of first responders for interoperable wireless communications systems. Once it is completed, the DTV transition will dramatically increase the availability of additional spectrum, which will allow for the emergence of innovative products and services, improve wireless communications for public safety agencies, and stimulate jobs and the U.S. economy.”
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