FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
July 15, 2014
TVFreedom Calls on Congress to Pass the Community Access Preservation (CAP) Act To Support Public Access Television
CAP Act Would Preserve Diversity in Local Television Programming Across America
Washington, D.C. – In letters to the respective U.S. Senate and House Commerce Committees, and their respective Subcommittees on Communications and Technology, TVfreedom.org expressed its full support for the Community Access Preservation (CAP) Act (S.1789) and called on Congress to pass this important legislation to help preserve diversity in local television programming across America.
The CAP Act would preserve public, educational and government (PEG) community access channels on Cable TV’s lifeline basic service tier, allow for the expanded use of PEG funding for station operations, and ensure cable companies transmit PEG channels without charge to local governments.
“Passage of the CAP Act is fundamentally critical to the long-term sustainability of more than 5,000 PEG access channels operated by municipalities, educational institutions and nonprofit organizations nationwide,” said TVfreedom.org member, Bunnie Riedel, Executive Director, American Community Television.
TVfreedom.org spokesman Robert C. Kenny stated, “In these challenging economic times in which the budgets of local governments are shrinking and municipalities are being asked to do more with less, it is critical that lawmakers factor this into their legislative agendas as they seek to empower local governments to deliver public service television programming to their local communities.”
Both letters state, “As part of its core mission, TVfreedom.org will continue to fight for the millions of Americans who subscribe to the lifeline basic service tier on cable TV systems, the overwhelming majority who may not be able to afford higher-priced cable programming packages, nor have options for affordable alternatives for service in smaller TV markets.”
To view the congressional letters, please click here: Senate Commerce Letter | House Commerce Letter.
Please visit the TVfreedom.org YouTube web page to watch consumer-friendly videos aimed at pushing back on the pay-TV industry’s gamesmanship in the marketplace and the ongoing abusive billing and business practices hurting consumers.
About Us
TVfreedom.org, is a coalition of local broadcasters, community advocates, network television affiliate associations, multicast networks, manufacturers and other independent broadcaster-related organizations committed to helping protect consumer interests, ensure emergency and weather related programming access, promote the value of broadcast-TV programming, and preserve a fair and free video marketplace. In the coming weeks and months, the coalition will look to add to its charter membership and will work closely with consumer and community groups, as well as public safety and law enforcement organizations.