Broadcast Decency Enforcement Act of 2005
BROADCAST DECENCY ENFORCEMENT ACT OF 2005 -- (House of Representatives - February 16, 2005)
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Mr. DINGELL. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 310, the Broadcast Decency Enforcement Act of 2005.
I commend my full committee and subcommittee chairmen, Representatives BARTON and UPTON, and Subcommittee Ranking Member MARKEY for their work and efforts to bring this ever-improving bill to the House floor so quickly. H.R. 310 is strong, bipartisan legislation worthy of support. This legislation is nearly identical to the bill passed by the House almost 1 year ago by a vote of 391 to 22. That bill failed to become law.
The need for this legislation, however, has not diminished in the past year. For too long, the Federal Communications Commission, FCC, has been asleep at the wheel when it came to incidents of public broadcast indecency and the ensuing complaints. Congress's attention to the issue of broadcast indecency last year awakened the commission from its years of slumber. We finally saw an FCC that more properly understood the need to enforce laws against indecency over the public airwaves.
Unfortunately, consumer complaints continue to receive haphazard treatment at the commission. Moreover, there continues to be a betrayal of the public trust. Some broadcasters persist in crossing the line, putting their own drive for ratings and profits ahead of their responsibilities to the public. This is regrettable behavior. Most broadcasters are decent and proper stewards of the public airwaves, but the poor judgment of a select few casts a dark shadow on the entire industry. Perhaps these wayward broadcasters mistakenly thought that the kickoff of a new Super Bowl would see this issue recede and lawmakers would ``let it be.'' Let me be clear, the need to enforce the indecency laws is greater than any one malfunction.
It is important for Congress to ensure that the FCC not only maintains its newfound alertness, but that it also has the right tools to ensure proper enforcement against indecency over the public airwaves.
H.R. 310 will ensure that the FCC has such tools. First, the bill responds to the overriding need to raise the maximum indecency fine to a level that will deter even the largest companies. Second, the bill compels the FCC to use the license renewal and revocation processes to examine more closely the fitness of certain licensees, particularly broadcasters that repeatedly violate the FCC's rules. Third, needed attention is also paid to the consumer complaint process by compelling the FCC to act on complaints within a specific time-frame. Fourth, this bill will make the FCC more accountable by requiring regular reports to Congress on its enforcement activities. This reporting requirement should encourage any new FCC chairman to carry on the moral virtue that came rather late to the outgoing chairman.
Our constituents have made it clear that they are fed up with the level of sex and violence on television and radio. They deserve to be able to turn on their television or radio at appropriate times without being bombarded by filth and smut. The increased oversight and penalties contained in H.R. 310 should provide the proper incentive to broadcasters to keep it clean. Accordingly, I urge my colleagues to support this sensible bill.
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