Republican Blocks Senate Push to Require Automakers to Keep AM Radio in New Cars

Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) speaks in Washington on Dec. 20, 2022. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) on Wednesday blocked a bipartisan bill that would require automakers to keep AM radio in vehicles.

“This bill would have passed today were it not for two words from the senator from Kentucky—I object,” Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) said on the Senate floor on Dec. 5, after his request for unanimous consent for legislation known as the AM For Every Vehicle Act was rejected.

Unanimous consent is used to waive certain procedures in order to expedite proceedings. However, if a single senator objects, the request is rejected.

The AM For Every Vehicle Act, if passed, would guarantee consumers’ continued access to AM radio in new cars and trucks. It also states that the consumer cannot be charged for listening to AM radio.

Federal, state, and local agencies use AM broadcasts to issue weather and disaster alerts along with other types of emergency communication, including power outages. About 90 percent of the American population has access to AM station signals, according to the National Association of Broadcasters.

“During times of disaster, AM radio is consistently the most resilient form of communication,” Mr. Cruz said in a 9-minute speech.

AM radio is also a popular broadcast platform for conservative talk shows, religious programming, sports, and local news.

“I would note that one aspect of AM radio is particularly important to Texans and to the citizens of Kentucky and to people all across this country, which is that AM radio is a haven for free speech,” the Texas senator told his fellow lawmakers. “AM radio is a haven for people to speak, even if their views are disfavored by the political ruling class.”

Responding to Automakers

The bill, led by Mr. Cruz and Sen. Ed Markey (D-Mass.), was triggered after eight of 20 leading automakers opted to stop providing AM radios in new vehicles.

“Carmakers shouldn’t tune out AM radio in new vehicles or put it behind a costly digital paywall,” Mr. Markey said in a statement introducing the bill earlier this year. He added that the goal is to “ensure that this resilient and popular communication tool does not become a relic of the past.”

Tesla, Mazda, BMW, Polestar, Rivian, Volvo, and Volkswagen have already stopped including AM radios in their vehicles.

Initially, Ford was among the group of manufacturers that planned to stop installing AM radios in new vehicles, but days after lawmakers introduced the AM radio legislation, the company reversed course citing concerns regarding the government’s emergency alert system.

Mr. Cruz asserted that removing AM radios from new vehicles is also a form of censorship by automakers to silence conservative voices.

“I believe these automakers stood up to remove AM radio as part of a broader pattern we see of censoring views that are disfavored by Big Business,” he stated. “I think this is consistent with what Big Tech has done—silencing views they disagree with.”

Others say rural America depends on the platform for news and local information.

“If you allow the manufacturers to not put AM on cars, then you’re killing off an essential part of the media landscape in the United States,” Al Cross, director of the Institute for Rural Journalism and Community Issues, told the Texas Tribune.

Lawmakers Are Not ‘Central Planners’

Mr. Paul told his Republican colleagues that placing mandates on business does not align with conservative values.

“Reserving the right to object, there is a certain amount of irony in seeing Republicans come to the floor proposing mandates on business,” he said. “To Republicans, picking winners and losers, mandating that all cars have AM radio is antithetical to any notion of limited government.”

“The debate over free speech, as listed in the First Amendment, is that government shall pass no law. It has nothing to do with forcing your manufacturers to have AM radio. This legislation attempts to insert Congress’ judgment into a question best decided by American consumers.”

Mr. Paul said that while he has a “great deal of sympathy for AM radio,” he does not support creating a mandate.

“I love AM radio, but I don’t want to give up on our philosophy and just say: Well, because it is something we like, we are going to mandate it,” he said in a 6-minute speech on the Senate floor.

The measure would require manufacturers to install special equipment in electric vehicles to “counteract the electromagnetic interference between the battery and the AM radio waves,” Mr. Paul explained, adding that the cost would be passed down to car buyers who are already strapped for cash.

“At some point, we have to remember that we are Members of Congress, not the central planners of the automobile industry,” he said.

The Kentucky senator introduced a modification to replace the language of Mr. Cruz’s bill with text that repeals the subsidies for electric vehicles. Mr. Paul said taxpayers are being forced to pay for the “few who own electric cars,” adding that blocking electric car subsidies would solve the root of the problem.

“So, I ask unanimous consent to strike the mandate imposed by this legislation and empower car buyers by modifying the request forward to replace the text with my language that would repeal the electric vehicle car tax,” Mr. Paul said.

Mr. Cruz argued that the bill’s overwhelming bipartisan support in the Senate, with 22 Republican and 22 Democrat co-sponsors, was proof that it was the “right thing to do for the American people.”

Since the bill was blocked, it will now have to follow regular legislative procedure.