Additional DTV Money for Fiscal 2009 at Risk
The FCC’s request for an additional $20 million for consumer education on DTV may be dropped when Congress puts together a continuing resolution at the end of the session, said Hill aides and lobbyists familiar with the appropriations process. The desire to pass a “clean” bill that includes only the money needed to keep the government running could put the commission’s request on hold until the next Congress. Although the House and Senate appropriations committees easily approved the FCC request this year, congressional leaders may be reluctant to make an exception for fear of opening the door to requests for other programs that aren’t essential, aides said.
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“We won’t know until we're back in session,” said a Senate Appropriations Committee spokesman. Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., said in July that appropriations bills wouldn’t be finished in time. But he hasn’t offered details yet on how many months the resolution would cover or who would draft the bill. It’s unclear whether a deal could be struck allowing the FCC advance funding, which many members view as crucial to a successful transition. Since the $20 million was to span a year, the advance funds would need to cover only the months included in the resolution and could be “paid back” from money approved later, a source said.
Meanwhile, the FCC is moving forward with its Wilmington DTV transition test and plans visits to 80 or more cities where at least 15 percent of households rely solely on over- the-air signals. Members of Congress are keeping a close watch on the test Monday, when Wilmington broadcasters have agreed to turn off their analog signals. Weather reports warning of a possible hurricane there have some nervous, and any problems that surface in the switch-over probably would create pressure for congressional hearings, though nothing is planned yet, said Hill aides following the issue.
Wilmington’s test will let policymakers see how grassroots education efforts are working. For example, city, county and volunteer fire fighters are on standby to go into homes where people need help with converter box setups while also checking on residents’ smoke detectors, according to Wilmington’s Web site on the DTV pilot. It’s one of several volunteer efforts throughout the country aimed at helping consumers understand what they need to do, an FCC spokeswoman said.
The transition will be one of the first issues the new Congress faces in 2009. Many members worry that people will put off dealing with converter boxes until the end, raising the stakes in transition. But most agree that any effort to halt the transition or change the date at this point could cause more confusion for TV viewers. But several members have called additional spending needed to ensure a successful transition, though time is short.
The NTIA said Wednesday that more than 36,000 Wilmington households have asked for 67,000 coupons for converter boxes, and 25,000 have been redeemed. More than 17,000 of applicants’ households rely on TVs that use antennas, according to the coupon applications, the agency said. “I encourage households nationwide that need to order and redeem coupons to do it now,” said acting NTIA Administrator Meredith Baker. Nationwide, 13.75 million households have redeemed 9.5 million coupons, the agency said.