More Support For ‘Local Radio Freedom Act’

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Here’s a story that the musicFIRST Coalition won’t like reading.


Nine Members of the House of Representatives and one Senator have added their co-sponsorship to a resolution opposing “any new performance fee, tax, royalty, or other charge” on local broadcast radio stations.

The Local Radio Freedom Act (LRFA), which signals Members of Congress’s opposition to any potential legislation that imposes new performance royalties on broadcast radio stations for music airplay, now has 175 cosponsors in the House and 22 in the Senate.

Adding their support recently for the Local Radio Freedom Act in the House are Reps. James Baird (R-IN-4), Troy Balderston (R-OH-12), Anthony Gonzalez (R-OH-16), Mike Johnson (R-LA-4), Daniel Meuser (R-PA-9), Denver Riggleman (R-VA-5), Mac Thornberry (R-TX-13),William Timmons (R-SC-4) and Rob Wittman (R-VA-1).

Adding her support for the companion resolution in the Senate are Sen. Joni Ernst (R-IA).

Reps. Kathy Castor (D-FL-14) and Michael Conaway (R-TX-11) are the principal cosponsors of the Local Radio Freedom Act in the House of Representatives (H. Con. Res. 20).

Sens. John Barrasso (R-WY) and Martin Heinrich (D-NM) are the lead cosponsors of a companion resolution in the Senate (S. Con. Res. 5).

“Congress should not impose any new performance fee, tax, royalty, or other charge relating to the public performance of sound recordings on a local radio station for broadcasting sound recordings over the air, or on any business for the public performance of sound recordings on a local radio station broadcast over the air,” reads the Local Radio Freedom Act.


FROM THE RBR+TVBR ARCHIVES:

‘Big Broadcasters’ Bashed In musicFIRST Call To Action

There’s a lobbying group out there that works “to ensure music creators get fair pay for their work on all platforms and wherever and however it is played.” They’re not particularly fond of “big broadcasters” and wish “to end the broken status quo that allows AM/FM to use any song ever recorded without paying its performers a dime.” Here’s what musicFIRST is up to now.

RBR + TVBR INFOCUS: Why Is musicFIRST Pushing Now?

Thanks to the efforts of music rights coalition musicFIRST, the NAB is at war with groups such as the RIAA on Capitol Hill over any new fees or royalty payments for the airplay of recorded music on the nation’s AM and FM stations. Why is musicFIRST pushing so hard in the early months of the Trump Administration? Here’s the NAB’s take on that.

‘Big Corporate Radio’ Attacked By MusicFirst

Coalition of artist rep groups seeks royalties from AMs, FMs via Congress