II 

Calendar No. 815 

108TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 2644 

To amend the Communications Act of 1934 with respect to the carriage 

of direct broadcast satellite television signals by satellite carriers to 

consumers in rural areas, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

JULY 13, 2004 

Mr. ENSIGN (for himself and Mr. MCCAIN) introduced the following bill; which 

was read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and 

Transportation 

NOVEMBER 19, 2004 

Reported by Mr. MCCAIN, with an amendment 

[Strike all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed in italic] 

A BILL 

To amend the Communications Act of 1934 with respect 

to the carriage of direct broadcast satellite television 

signals by satellite carriers to consumers in rural areas, 

and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
2 

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1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

2 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 

3 ‘‘Satellite Home Viewer Extension and Rural Consumer 

4 Access to Digital Television Act of 2004’’. 

5 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 

6 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

Sec. 2. Extension of retransmission consent exception. 

Sec. 3. Carriage of local stations on a single dish. 

Sec. 4. Unserved digital customers. 

Sec. 5. Bargaining obligations. 

Sec. 6. Reduction of required tests. 

Sec. 7. Privacy rights of satellite subscribers. 

Sec. 8. Sponsorship identification rules for DBS. 

Sec. 9. Certain vessels and aircraft. 

7 SEC. 2. EXTENSION OF RETRANSMISSION CONSENT EXCEP8 TION. 

9 Section 325(b)(2)(C) of the Communications Act of 

10 1934 (47 U.S.C. 325(b)(2)(C)) is amended by striking 

11 ‘‘December 31, 2004,’’ and inserting ‘‘December 31, 

12 2009,’’. 

13 SEC. 3. CARRIAGE OF LOCAL STATIONS ON A SINGLE DISH. 

14 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 338 of the Communica15 tions Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 338) is amended— 

16 (1) by redesignating subsections (g) and (h) as 

17 subsections (h) and (i), respectively; and 

18 (2) by inserting after subsection (f) the fol19 lowing: 

20 ‘‘(g) CARRIAGE OF LOCAL STATIONS ON A SINGLE

21 DISH.— 
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1 ‘‘(1) GENERAL RULE.—A satellite carrier that 

2 retransmits the signals of local television broadcast 

3 stations in a local market shall retransmit the sig4 nals of all local television broadcast stations retrans5 mitted by that carrier to subscribers in that market 

6 by means of a single reception antenna and associ7 ated equipment. 

8 ‘‘(2) EXCEPTION FOR DIGITAL TELEVISION

9 SERVICE.—Notwithstanding paragraph (1), if the 

10 carrier retransmits signals in the digital television 

11 service, the carrier shall retransmit the digital tele12 vision service signals of all the local television broad13 cast stations retransmitted by that carrier to sub14 scribers in that market by means of a single recep15 tion antenna and associated equipment, but the an16 tenna and associated equipment may be separate 

17 from the single reception antenna and associated 

18 equipment used for signals that are not in the dig19 ital television service.’’. 

20 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.— 

21 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para22 graph (2), subsection (g) of section 338 of the Com23 munications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 338), as added 

24 by subsection (a) of this section, takes effect 180 

25 days after the date of enactment of this Act. 
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1 (2) PHASE-IN FOR EXISTING 2-DISH MAR2 KETS.— 

3 (A) SCHEDULE.—In the case of a satellite 

4 carrier that, as of July 1, 2004, is retransmit5 ting local television broadcast signals to sub6 scribers in local markets by means of more than 

7 a single reception antenna and associated 

8 equipment, subsection (g) of section 338 of the 

9 Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 338), 

10 as added by subsection (a) of this section, shall 

11 first apply to that carrier in those local markets 

12 in accordance with the following schedule: 

13 (i) Beginning 180 days after the date 

14 of enactment of this Act, to all but 33 of 

15 those local markets, as selected by the sat16 ellite carrier. 

17 (ii) By December 31, 2005, to all but 

18 28 of those local markets, as selected by 

19 the satellite carrier. 

20 (iii) By December 31, 2006, to all but 

21 14 of those local markets, as selected by 

22 the satellite carrier. 

23 (iv) By December 31, 2007, to all 

24 those local markets. 
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1 (B) ENFORCEMENT.—If a satellite carrier 

2 to which subparagraph (A) applies fails to com3 ply with the implementation schedule set forth 

4 in that subparagraph— 

5 (i) the failure to comply shall be pun6 ishable under section 503(b) of the Com7 munications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 

8 503(b)) to the same extent as if such fail9 ure were a failure to comply with section 

10 338(g) of the Communications Act of 

11 1934; 

12 (ii) each market with respect to which 

13 the satellite carrier fails to comply shall be 

14 considered to be a separate violation; and 

15 (iii) each day of a continuing violation 

16 shall be considered to be a separate viola17 tion. 

18 SEC. 4. UNSERVED DIGITAL CUSTOMERS. 

19 (a) PROVISIONS RELATING TO CARRIAGE OF DIS20 TANT SIGNALS.—Section 339(a)(1) of the Communica21 tions Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 339(a)(1)) is amended to 

22 read as follows: 

23 ‘‘(1) CARRIAGE PERMITTED.— 

24 ‘‘(A) ANALOG SIGNALS.— 
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1 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Subject to section 

2 119 of title 17, United States Code, a sat3 ellite carrier may provide the analog sig4 nals of no more than 2 network stations in 

5 a single day for each television network to 

6 any household not located within the local 

7 markets of those network stations. 

8 ‘‘(ii) ADDITIONAL SERVICE.—To the 

9 extent consistent with sections 119 and 

10 122 of title 17, United States Code, a sat11 ellite carrier may also provide service 

12 under the statutory license of those sec13 tions to the local market within which such 

14 household is located in addition to the sig15 nals provided under clause (i). 

16 ‘‘(B) DIGITAL SIGNALS.—To the extent 

17 consistent with section 119 of title 17, United 

18 States Code, a satellite carrier may provide the 

19 digital signals of no more than 2 network sta20 tions in a single day for each television network 

21 to any household not located within the local 

22 markets of those network stations.’’. 

23 (b) DISTANT DIGITAL SIGNAL RETRANSMISSION.— 

24 Section 339 of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 

25 U.S.C. 339) is amended— 
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1 (1) by redesignating subsection (d) as sub2 section (e); 

3 (2) by striking ‘‘(d)(4),’’ in subsection (c)(5) 

4 and inserting ‘‘(e)(4),’’; and 

5 (3) by inserting after subsection (c) the fol6 lowing: 

7 ‘‘(d) ELIGIBILITY FOR RETRANSMISSION OF DISTANT

8 DIGITAL SIGNALS.— 

9 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—For purposes of identifying 

10 an unserved digital household under section 

11 119(d)(10) of title 17, United States Code, within 2 

12 years after the date of enactment of the Satellite 

13 Home Viewer Extension and Rural Consumer Access 

14 to Digital Television Act of 2004, the Commission 

15 shall conclude a proceeding— 

16 ‘‘(A) to determine the appropriate signal 

17 standard for determining eligibility for retrans18 missions of the digital signals of network sta19 tions; 

20 ‘‘(B) to develop and prescribe by rule a 

21 point-to-point predictive model for reliably and 

22 presumptively determining the ability of indi23 vidual locations to receive digital signals in ac24 cordance with the signal standard determined 
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1 under subparagraph (A), and in prescribing 

2 that model, the Commission shall— 

3 ‘‘(i) ensure that it takes into account 

4 terrain, building structures, and other land 

5 cover variations; and 

6 ‘‘(ii) establish procedures for the con7 tinued refinement in the application of the 

8 model by the use of additional data as it 

9 becomes available; and 

10 ‘‘(C) to establish appropriate waiver and 

11 objective verification procedures, similar to the 

12 procedures under paragraphs (2) and (4) of 

13 subsection (c), to apply to unserved digital 

14 household determinations made pursuant to the 

15 model. 

16 ‘‘(2) INTERIM ELIGIBILITY DETERMINATIONS.— 

17 Until the Commission completes the proceeding re18 quired by paragraph (1), an unserved household for 

19 purposes of section 119(d)(10) of title 17, United 

20 States Code, with respect to the digital signals of a 

21 particular network, is a household that— 

22 ‘‘(A) is eligible to receive retransmission of 

23 analog signals pursuant to subsection (c) of this 

24 section and section 119(a) of title 17, United 

25 States Code; or 
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1 ‘‘(B) after December 31, 2004, is deter2 mined, pursuant to the predictive model estab3 lish by subsection (c) not to receive the analog 

4 signal of a network station affiliated with that 

5 network that is licensed by the Commission for 

6 its fully authorized digital facility, and— 

7 ‘‘(i) is located in a local market in 

8 which a network station affiliated with that 

9 network is not broadcasting a digital sig10 nal; or 

11 ‘‘(ii) is located outside the city of li12 cense of a network station that is under a 

13 Commission grant of special temporary au14 thority to operate at less than its author15 ized facility. 

16 ‘‘(3) CIRCUMSTANCES BEYOND NETWORK STA17 TION’S CONTROL.—For purposes of subparagraph 

18 (B) of paragraph (2), a network station that has 

19 been granted an extension of its construction permit 

20 or a special temporary authority to operate at re21 duced facilities due to noneconomic circumstances 

22 beyond its control is deemed to be operating at fully 

23 authorized facilities. 

24 ‘‘(4) NOTICES.— 
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1 ‘‘(A) BY CARRIER TO CUSTOMERS TO

2 WHOM DIGITAL SIGNAL WILL BE PROVIDED.— 

3 A satellite carrier providing a distant digital 

4 signal pursuant to paragraph (2) shall notify its 

5 customers in a clear and conspicuous manner 

6 before offering the distant digital signal that it 

7 will cease providing that digital signal within 

8 120 days after the date on which it is notified 

9 that the household ceases to be an unserved 

10 household with respect to digital signals. 

11 ‘‘(B) BY NETWORK STATION TO SAT12 ELLITE CARRIER.—Within not more than 48 

13 hours after filing with the Commission a license 

14 application for its fully authorized facilities or 

15 filing an application for special temporary au16 thority, a network station shall notify all sat17 ellite carriers of the filing. 

18 ‘‘(C) BY SATELLITE CARRIERS TO NET19 WORK STATIONS.— 

20 ‘‘(i) RESPONSE TO STATION NO21 TICE.—Within 60 days after receiving noti22 fication under subparagraph (B) from a 

23 network station, a satellite carrier shall 

24 transmit a list identifying (by name and 

25 street address, including county and zip 
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1 code) all subscribers to which the satellite 

2 carrier provides a distant digital signal in 

3 the local market of the network station 

4 whose service will be terminated under 

5 paragraph (5). 

6 ‘‘(ii) COMPLETION OF COMMISSION

7 PROCEEDING.—Within 120 days after the 

8 Commission completes the proceeding re9 quired by paragraph (1), each satellite car10 rier shall transmit a comprehensive list to 

11 the network stations that, as a result of 

12 the proceeding, are providing a digital sig13 nal to the satellite carrier’s subscribers, 

14 containing the information required by 

15 clause (i). 

16 ‘‘(D) LIST USED ONLY FOR COMPLI17 ANCE.—It is unlawful for any person to use a 

18 list provided under this paragraph, or informa19 tion derived from such a list, for any purpose 

20 other than compliance with the requirements of 

21 this section. 

22 ‘‘(5) TERMINATION OF CARRIAGE TO HOUSE23 HOLDS THAT LOSE UNSERVED STATUS.—Within 120 

24 days after the date on which a satellite carrier re25 ceives notice under paragraph (4)(B), it shall cease 
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1 providing the distant digital signal to subscribers in 

2 households, determined on the basis of the notice, 

3 that will cease to be unserved households with re4 spect to digital signals. Within 120 days after the 

5 date on which the Commission completes the pro6 ceeding required by paragraph (1) (or on such date 

7 as the Commission in that proceeding may otherwise 

8 specify), a satellite carrier shall cease providing dis9 tant digital signals to households required as a re10 sult of the Commission’s action. 

11 ‘‘(6) ENFORCEMENT.— 

12 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Compliance with this 

13 section shall be enforced under titles IV and V 

14 of this Act. 

15 ‘‘(B) SPECIAL RULE FOR SATELLITE CAR16 RIER LIST REQUIREMENT.—If a satellite carrier 

17 fails to provide a complete list of subscribers in 

18 accordance with the requirements of paragraph 

19 (4)(C)(i), then each household with respect to 

20 which such failure occurs shall constitute a sep21 arate violation. 

22 ‘‘(C) SPECIAL RULE FOR TERMI23 NATIONS.—If a satellite carrier providing a dis24 tant digital signal pursuant to paragraph (2) 
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1 fails to comply with the requirements of para2 graph (5), then— 

3 (A) each household with respect to which 

4 the satellite carrier fails to comply shall be con5 sidered to be a separate violation for purposes 

6 of section 503(b) of this Act; and 

7 (B) each day of a continuing violation shall 

8 be considered to be a separate violation. 

9 ‘‘(7) APPLICATION OF SECTION 338.—Nothing 

10 in this subsection affects the obligations of a sat11 ellite carrier under section 338(a) of this Act.’’. 

12 (c) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 

13 (1) DISTANT ANALOG SIGNAL RETRANS14 MISSION.—Section 339(c) of the Communications 

15 Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 339(c)) is amended by in16 serting ‘‘OF DISTANT ANALOG SIGNALS.—’’ after 

17 ‘‘RETRANSMISSION’’ in the subsection heading. 

18 (2) 2-NETWORK STATION RULE APPLIES WITH19 OUT REGARD TO TYPE OF SIGNALS.—Section 119 of 

20 title 17, United States Code, is amended— 

21 (A) by striking the first sentence of clause 

22 (i) of subsection (a)(2)(B) and inserting ‘‘The 

23 statutory license provided for in subparagraph 

24 (A) shall be limited to secondary transmissions 

25 of the analog and digital signals of no more 
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1 than 2 network stations in a single day for each 

2 television network to persons who reside in 

3 unserved households.’’; 

4 (B) by striking ‘‘(d)(10)(A),’’ in subclauses 

5 (I) and (II) of subsection (a)(2)(B)(ii) and in6 serting (d)(10),’’; 

7 (C) by striking ‘‘339(c)(3)’’ in subclause 

8 (I) of subsection (a)(2)(B)(ii) and inserting 

9 ‘‘339’’; 

10 (D) by striking ‘‘339(c)(4)’’ in subclause 

11 (II) of subsection (a)(2)(B)(ii) and inserting 

12 ‘‘339’’; and 

13 (E) by striking subsection (d)(10) and in14 serting the following: 

15 ‘‘(10) UNSERVED HOUSEHOLD.— 

16 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘unserved 

17 household’, with respect to a particular tele18 vision network, means an unserved analog 

19 household or an unserved digital household. 

20 ‘‘(B) UNSERVED ANALOG HOUSEHOLD.— 

21 In this paragraph, the term ‘unserved analog 

22 household’ means, with respect to an analog 

23 signal, a household that— 

24 ‘‘(i) cannot receive, through the use of 

25 a conventional, stationary, outdoor rooftop 
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1 receiving antenna, an over-the-air signal of 

2 a primary network station affiliated with 

3 that network of Grade B intensity as de4 fined by the Federal Communications 

5 Commission under section 73.683(a) of 

6 title 47 of the Code of Federal Regula7 tions, as in effect on January 1, 1999; 

8 ‘‘(ii) is subject to a waiver granted 

9 under regulations established under section 

10 339(c)(2) of the Communications Act of 

11 1934; 

12 ‘‘(iii) is a subscriber to whom sub13 section (e) applies; 

14 ‘‘(iv) is a subscriber to whom sub15 section (a)(11) applies; or 

16 ‘‘(v) is a subscriber to whom the ex17 emption under subsection (a)(2)(B)(iii) ap18 plies. 

19 ‘‘(C) UNSERVED DIGITAL HOUSEHOLD.— 

20 In this paragraph, the term ‘unserved digital 

21 household’ means, with respect to a digital sig22 nal, a household that is eligible to receive dis23 tant digital signals pursuant to section 339(d) 

24 of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 

25 339(d)).’’. 
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1 SEC. 5. BARGAINING OBLIGATIONS. 

2 (a) AMENDMENTS.—Section 325(b)(3)(C) of the 

3 Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 325(b)(3)(C)) is 

4 amended— 

5 (1) by striking ‘‘Within 45 days’’ and all that 

6 follows through ‘‘1999, the’’ and inserting ‘‘The’’; 

7 (2) by striking the second sentence; 

8 (3) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of clause (i); 

9 (4) by striking ‘‘January 1, 2006,’’ in clause 

10 (ii) and inserting ‘‘January 1, 2010,’’; 

11 (5) by striking ‘‘considerations.’’ in clause (ii) 

12 and inserting ‘‘considerations; and’’; and 

13 (6) by adding at the end the following: 

14 ‘‘(iii) until January 1, 2010, prohibit 

15 a multichannel video programming dis16 tributor from failing to negotiate in good 

17 faith for retransmission consent under this 

18 section, and it shall not be a failure to ne19 gotiate in good faith if the distributor en20 ters into retransmission consent agree21 ments containing different terms and con22 ditions, including price terms, with dif23 ferent broadcast stations if such different 

24 terms and conditions are based on com25 petitive marketplace considerations.’’. 
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1 (b) DEADLINE.—The Federal Communications Com2 mission shall prescribe regulations to implement the 

3 amendment made by subsection (a)(6) within 180 days 

4 after the date of enactment of this Act. 

5 SEC. 6. REDUCTION OF REQUIRED TESTS. 

6 Section 339(c)(4) of the Communications Act of 1934 

7 (47 U.S.C. 339(c)(4) is amended by inserting after sub8 paragraph (C) the following new subparagraphs: 

9 ‘‘(D) REDUCTION OF VERIFICATION BUR10 DENS.—Within one year after the date of enact11 ment of the Satellite Home Viewer Extension 

12 and Rural Consumer Access to Digital Tele13 vision Act of 2004, the Commission shall by 

14 rule exempt from the verification requirements 

15 of subparagraph (A) any request for a test 

16 made by a subscriber to a satellite carrier— 

17 ‘‘(i) to whom the retransmission of 

18 the signals of local broadcast stations is 

19 available under section 122 of title 17, 

20 United States Code, from such carrier; or 

21 ‘‘(ii) for whom the predictive model 

22 required by paragraph (3) predicts a signal 

23 intensity that exceeds the signal intensity 

24 standard in effect under section 

25 119(d)(11)(A) of such title by such num-
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1 ber of decibels as the Commission specifies 

2 in such rule. 

3 ‘‘(E) EXCEPTION.—Notwithstanding any 

4 provision of this Act, this section does not pro5 hibit a subscriber who is predicted to receive a 

6 signal that meets or exceeds such signal inten7 sity standard from conducting a signal strength 

8 test at the subscriber’s own expense for the 

9 purpose of determining their eligibility for dis10 tant signals under this section.’’. 

11 SEC. 7. PRIVACY RIGHTS OF SATELLITE SUBSCRIBERS. 

12 Section 631 of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 

13 U.S.C. 551) is amended by adding at the end the fol14 lowing: 

15 ‘‘(i) APPLICATION TO DBS PROVIDERS.— 

16 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The provisions of this sec17 tion shall apply to satellite carriers in the same way 

18 and to the same extent as they apply to cable opera19 tors. 

20 ‘‘(2) SPECIAL RULE.—For the purpose of ap21 plying the last sentence of subsection (a)(1) to a sat22 ellite carrier, the phrase ‘the date of enactment of 

23 the Satellite Home Viewer Extension and Rural 

24 Consumer Access to Digital Television Act of 2004,’ 
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1 shall be substituted for the phrase ‘the effective date 

2 of this section,’. 

3 ‘‘(3) SATELLITE CARRIER.—In this subsection, 

4 the term ‘satellite carrier’ means any person using 

5 the facilities of a satellite or satellite service licensed 

6 by the Federal Communications Commission and op7 erating in the Fixed-Satellite Service, or the Direct 

8 Broadcast Satellite Service, under part 25 of title 47 

9 of the Code of Federal Regulations to establish and 

10 operate a channel of communications for distribution 

11 of signals, and owning or leasing a capacity or serv12 ice on a satellite in order to provide such distribu13 tion.’’. 

14 SEC. 8. SPONSORSHIP IDENTIFICATION RULES FOR DBS. 

15 Within 180 days after the date of enactment of this 

16 Act, the Federal Communications Commission shall mod17 ify section 76.1615 of its rules (47 C.F.R. 76.1615) to 

18 apply the requirements of section 317 of the Communica19 tions Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 317) to all multichannel 

20 video program distributors. 

21 SEC. 9. CERTAIN VESSELS AND AIRCRAFT. 

22 Section 119(a)(11) of title 17, United States Code, 

23 is amended— 

24 (1) by striking ‘‘RECREATIONAL VEHICLES AND

25 COMMERCIAL TRUCKS.—’’ in the heading and insert-
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1 ing ‘‘RECREATIONAL VEHICLES, VESSELS, AIRCRAFT, 

2 AND COMMERCIAL TRUCKS.—’’; 

3 (2) by striking ‘‘and’’ after the semicolon in 

4 subparagraph (A)(i)(I); 

5 (3) by striking ‘‘Regulations.’’ in subparagraph 

6 (A)(i)(II) and inserting ‘‘Regulations;’’; 

7 (4) by inserting after subclause (II) of subpara8 graph (A)(i) the following: 

9 ‘‘(III) recreational vessels (as de10 fined in section 2101(25) of title 46, 

11 United States Code, documented in 

12 accordance with section 12101 of title 

13 46 or State law; and 

14 ‘‘(IV) aircraft registered under 

15 section 44103 of title 49.’’; 

16 (5) by striking ‘‘vehicle or’’ each place it ap17 pears in subparagraph (A)(ii), and inserting ‘‘vehi18 cle, vessel, aircraft, or’’; 

19 (6) by striking ‘‘vehicle’ ’’ in subparagraph 

20 (A)(iii) and inserting ‘‘vehicle, recreational vessel, 

21 aircraft’ ’’; 

22 (7) by striking ‘‘vehicle or’’ each place it ap23 pears in subparagraph (B), other than in clause (ii), 

24 and inserting ‘‘vehicle, recreational vessel, aircraft, 

25 or’’; 
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1 (6) by inserting after ‘‘vehicle.’’ in clause (ii) of 

2 subparagraph (B) the following:‘‘In the case of a 

3 recreational vessel, a copy of the current certificate 

4 of documentation issued under section 12103 of title 

5 46 for the vessel or the State certificate of registra6 tion. In the case of an aircraft, a copy of the certifi7 cate of registration for the aircraft issued under sec8 tion 44103 of title 49.’’; and 

9 (7) by striking ‘‘vehicle or’’ in subparagraph 

10 (C) and inserting ‘‘vehicle, recreational vessel, air11 craft, or’’. 

12 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

13 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Sat14 ellite Home Viewer Extension and Rural Consumer Access 

15 to Digital Television Act of 2004’’. 

16 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 

17 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

Sec. 2. Extension of retransmission consent exception. 

Sec. 3. Carriage of local stations on a single dish. 

Sec. 4. Carriage of distant digital signals; unserved digital customers. 

Sec. 5. Bargaining obligations. 

Sec. 6. Reduction of required tests. 

Sec. 7. Privacy rights of satellite subscribers. 

Sec. 8. Sponsorship identification rules for DBS. 

Sec. 9. Certain vessels and aircraft. 

Sec. 10. Carriage of local television signals by certain satellite carriers. 

Sec. 11. Retransmission of signals into adjacent local market comprising only 

part of a county. 

Sec. 12. Carriage of television signals to certain subscribers. 

Sec. 13. Satellite carriage of Alaska television stations in areas of Alaska outside 

any DMA. 
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1 SEC. 2. EXTENSION OF RETRANSMISSION CONSENT EXCEP2 TION. 

3 Section 325(b)(2)(C) of the Communications Act of 

4 1934 (47 U.S.C. 325(b)(2)(C)) is amended by striking ‘‘De5 cember 31, 2004,’’ and inserting ‘‘December 31, 2009,’’. 

6 SEC. 3. CARRIAGE OF LOCAL STATIONS ON A SINGLE DISH. 

7 Section 338 of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 

8 U.S.C. 338) is amended— 

9 (1) by redesignating subsections (g) and (h) as 

10 subsections (h) and (i), respectively; and 

11 (2) by inserting after subsection (f) the following: 

12 ‘‘(g) CARRIAGE OF LOCAL STATIONS ON A SINGLE

13 DISH.— 

14 ‘‘(1) GENERAL RULE.—A satellite carrier that 

15 retransmits the signals of local television broadcast 

16 stations in a local market shall retransmit the signals 

17 of all local television broadcast stations retransmitted 

18 by that carrier to subscribers in that market by 

19 means of a single reception antenna and associated 

20 equipment. 

21 ‘‘(2) EXCEPTION FOR DIGITAL TELEVISION SERV22 ICE.—Notwithstanding paragraph (1), if the carrier 

23 retransmits signals in the digital television service, 

24 the carrier shall retransmit the digital television serv25 ice signals of all the local television broadcast stations 

26 retransmitted by that carrier to subscribers in that 
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1 market by means of a single reception antenna and 

2 associated equipment, but the antenna and associated 

3 equipment may be separate from the single reception 

4 antenna and associated equipment used for signals 

5 that are not in the digital television service. 

6 ‘‘(3) 18-MONTH TRANSITION PERIOD FOR EXIST7 ING 2-DISH MARKETS.—In the case of a satellite car8 rier that, as of July 1, 2004, is retransmitting local 

9 television broadcast signals to subscribers in local 

10 markets by means of more than a single reception an11 tenna and associated equipment, the requirements of 

12 paragraphs (1) and (2) shall first apply to that car13 rier in those local markets 18 months after the date 

14 of enactment of the Satellite Home Viewer Extension 

15 and Rural Consumer Access to Digital Television Act 

16 of 2004. 

17 ‘‘(4) ENFORCEMENT.—If a satellite carrier fails 

18 to comply with the requirements of this subsection— 

19 ‘‘(A) the failure to comply shall be punish20 able under titles IV and V of this Act; 

21 ‘‘(B) each market with respect to which the 

22 satellite carrier fails to comply shall be consid23 ered to be a separate violation; and 

24 ‘‘(C) each day of a continuing violation 

25 shall be considered to be a separate violation.’’. 
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1 SEC. 4. CARRIAGE OF DISTANT DIGITAL SIGNALS; 

2 UNSERVED DIGITAL CUSTOMERS. 

3 (a) PROVISIONS RELATING TO CARRIAGE OF DISTANT

4 SIGNALS.—Section 339(a)(1) of the Communications Act of 

5 1934 (47 U.S.C. 339(a)(1)) is amended to read as follows: 

6 ‘‘(1) CARRIAGE PERMITTED.— 

7 ‘‘(A) ANALOG SIGNALS.— 

8 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Subject to section 

9 119 of title 17, United States Code, a sat10 ellite carrier may provide the analog signals 

11 of no more than 2 network stations in a 

12 single day for each television network to 

13 any household not located within the local 

14 markets of those network stations. 

15 ‘‘(ii) ADDITIONAL SERVICE.—To the 

16 extent consistent with sections 119 and 122 

17 of title 17, United States Code, a satellite 

18 carrier may also provide service under the 

19 statutory license of those sections to the 

20 local market within which such household is 

21 located in addition to the signals provided 

22 under clause (i). 

23 ‘‘(B) DIGITAL SIGNALS.—To the extent con24 sistent with section 119 of title 17, United States 

25 Code, a satellite carrier may provide the digital 

26 signals of no more than 2 network stations in a 
25 

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1 single day for each television network to any 

2 household not located within the local markets of 

3 those network stations. Nothing in this subpara4 graph creates a statutory license under section 

5 119(a) or (b) of title 17, United States Code.’’. 

6 (b) DISTANT DIGITAL SIGNAL RETRANSMISSION.— 

7 Section 339 of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 

8 339) is amended— 

9 (1) by redesignating subsection (d) as subsection 

10 (e); 

11 (2) by striking ‘‘(d)(4),’’ in subsection (c)(5) and 

12 inserting ‘‘(e)(4),’’; and 

13 (3) by inserting after subsection (c) the fol14 lowing: 

15 ‘‘(d) ELIGIBILITY FOR RETRANSMISSION OF DISTANT

16 DIGITAL SIGNALS.— 

17 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—For purposes of identifying 

18 an unserved digital household under section 

19 119(d)(10) of title 17, United States Code, within 2 

20 years after the date of enactment of the Satellite 

21 Home Viewer Extension and Rural Consumer Access 

22 to Digital Television Act of 2004, the Commission 

23 shall conclude a proceeding— 

24 ‘‘(A) to determine the appropriate signal 

25 standard for determining eligibility for retrans-
26 

•S 2644 RS 

1 missions of the digital signals of network sta2 tions; 

3 ‘‘(B) to develop and prescribe by rule a 

4 point-to-point predictive model for reliably and 

5 presumptively determining the ability of indi6 vidual locations to receive digital signals in ac7 cordance with the signal standard determined 

8 under subparagraph (A), and in prescribing that 

9 model, the Commission shall— 

10 ‘‘(i) ensure that it takes into account 

11 terrain, building structures, and other land 

12 cover variations; 

13 ‘‘(ii) establish procedures for the con14 tinued refinement in the application of the 

15 model by the use of additional data as it be16 comes available; and 

17 ‘‘(iii) provide that any network station 

18 that would be expected to serve a household 

19 but is not serving that household due to 

20 noneconomic circumstances beyond its con21 trol will be deemed to be serving such a 

22 household; and 

23 ‘‘(C) to establish appropriate waiver and 

24 objective verification procedures, similar to the 

25 procedures under paragraphs (2) and (4) of sub-
27 

•S 2644 RS 

1 section (c), to apply to unserved digital house2 hold determinations made pursuant to the model. 

3 ‘‘(2) PRESERVATION OF EXISTING ELIGIBILITY.— 

4 Until the Commission completes the proceeding re5 quired by paragraph (1), an unserved household for 

6 purposes of section 119(d)(10) of title 17, United 

7 States Code, with respect to the digital signals of a 

8 particular network, is a household that is eligible to 

9 receive retransmission of analog signals pursuant to 

10 subsection (c) of this section and section 119(a) of 

11 title 17, United States Code. 

12 ‘‘(3) LOCAL-TO-LOCAL MARKET REQUIREMENT.— 

13 For purposes of applying the rule prescribed by the 

14 Commission under paragraph (1) only, a satellite 

15 carrier may not retransmit the digital signals of a 

16 network station in any local market in which it does 

17 not provide secondary transmission to subscribers lo18 cated within that local market of the analog signals 

19 of television broadcast stations located within that 

20 local market under section 338(a)(1) of this Act. 

21 ‘‘(4) NOTICES.— 

22 ‘‘(A) BY CARRIER TO CUSTOMERS TO WHOM

23 DIGITAL SIGNAL WILL BE PROVIDED.—A satellite 

24 carrier providing a distant digital signal pursu25 ant to this section shall notify its customers in 
28 

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1 a clear and conspicuous manner before offering 

2 the distant digital signal that it will cease pro3 viding that digital signal within 120 days after 

4 the date on which it is notified that the house5 hold ceases to be an unserved household with re6 spect to digital signals. 

7 ‘‘(B) BY NETWORK STATION TO SATELLITE

8 CARRIER.—Within not more than 48 hours after 

9 filing with the Commission any license applica10 tion that will result in any household ceasing to 

11 be an unserved digital household, a network sta12 tion shall notify all satellite carriers of the filing. 

13 ‘‘(C) BY SATELLITE CARRIERS TO NETWORK

14 STATIONS.— 

15 ‘‘(i) RESPONSE TO STATION NOTICE.— 

16 Within 60 days after receiving notification 

17 under subparagraph (B) from a network 

18 station, a satellite carrier shall transmit a 

19 list identifying (by name and street address, 

20 including county and zip code) all sub21 scribers to which the satellite carrier pro22 vides a distant digital signal in the local 

23 market of the network station whose service 

24 will be terminated under paragraph (5). 
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•S 2644 RS 

1 ‘‘(ii) COMPLETION OF COMMISSION

2 PROCEEDING.—Within 120 days after the 

3 Commission completes the proceeding re4 quired by paragraph (1), each satellite car5 rier shall transmit a comprehensive list to 

6 the network stations that, as a result of the 

7 proceeding, are providing a digital signal to 

8 the satellite carrier’s subscribers, containing 

9 the information required by clause (i). 

10 ‘‘(D) LIST USED ONLY FOR COMPLIANCE.— 

11 It is unlawful for any person to use a list pro12 vided under this paragraph, or information de13 rived from such a list, for any purpose other 

14 than compliance with the requirements of this 

15 section. 

16 ‘‘(5) TERMINATION OF CARRIAGE TO HOUSE17 HOLDS THAT LOSE UNSERVED STATUS.—Within 120 

18 days after the date on which a satellite carrier re19 ceives notice under paragraph (4)(B), it shall cease 

20 providing the distant digital signal to subscribers in 

21 households, determined on the basis of the notice, that 

22 will cease to be unserved households with respect to 

23 digital signals. Within 120 days after the date on 

24 which the Commission completes the proceeding re25 quired by paragraph (1) (or on such date as the Com-
30 

•S 2644 RS 

1 mission in that proceeding may otherwise specify), a 

2 satellite carrier shall cease providing distant digital 

3 signals to households required as a result of the Com4 mission’s action. 

5 ‘‘(6) ENFORCEMENT.— 

6 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Compliance with this 

7 section shall be enforced under titles IV and V of 

8 this Act. 

9 ‘‘(B) SPECIAL RULE FOR SATELLITE CAR10 RIER LIST REQUIREMENT.—If a satellite carrier 

11 fails to provide a complete list of subscribers in 

12 accordance with the requirements of paragraph 

13 (4)(C)(i), then each household with respect to 

14 which such failure occurs shall constitute a sepa15 rate violation. 

16 ‘‘(C) SPECIAL RULE FOR TERMINATIONS.— 

17 If a satellite carrier providing a distant digital 

18 signal pursuant to this section fails to comply 

19 with the requirements of paragraph (5), then— 

20 ‘‘(i) each household with respect to 

21 which the satellite carrier fails to comply 

22 shall be considered to be a separate viola23 tion for purposes of section 503(b) of this 

24 Act; and 
31 

•S 2644 RS 

1 ‘‘(ii) each day of a continuing viola2 tion shall be considered to be a separate vio3 lation. 

4 ‘‘(7) APPLICATION OF SECTION 338.—Nothing in 

5 this subsection affects the obligations of a satellite car6 rier under section 338(a) of this Act.’’. 

7 (c) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 

8 (1) DISTANT ANALOG SIGNAL RETRANS9 MISSION.—Section 339(c) of the Communications Act 

10 of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 339(c)) is amended by inserting 

11 ‘‘OF DISTANT ANALOG SIGNALS.—’’ after ‘‘RETRANS12 MISSION’’ in the subsection heading. 

13 (2) 2-NETWORK STATION RULE APPLIES WITH14 OUT REGARD TO TYPE OF SIGNALS.—Section 119 of 

15 title 17, United States Code, is amended— 

16 (A) by striking ‘‘(d)(10)(A)’’ in subclauses 

17 (I) and (II) of subsection (a)(2)(B)(ii) and in18 serting (d)(10)’’; 

19 (B) by striking ‘‘339(c)(3)’’ in subclause (I) 

20 of subsection (a)(2)(B)(ii) and inserting ‘‘339’’; 

21 (C) by striking ‘‘339(c)(4)’’ in subclause 

22 (II) of subsection (a)(2)(B)(ii) and inserting 

23 ‘‘339’’; and 

24 (D) by striking subsection (d)(10) and in25 serting the following: 
32 

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1 ‘‘(10) UNSERVED HOUSEHOLD.— 

2 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘unserved 

3 household’, with respect to a particular television 

4 network, means an unserved analog household or 

5 an unserved digital household. 

6 ‘‘(B) UNSERVED ANALOG HOUSEHOLD.—In 

7 this paragraph, the term ‘unserved analog house8 hold’ means, with respect to an analog signal, a 

9 household that— 

10 ‘‘(i) cannot receive, through the use of 

11 a conventional, stationary, outdoor rooftop 

12 receiving antenna, an over-the-air signal of 

13 a primary network station affiliated with 

14 that network of Grade B intensity as de15 fined by the Federal Communications Com16 mission under section 73.683(a) of title 47 

17 of the Code of Federal Regulations, as in ef18 fect on January 1, 1999; 

19 ‘‘(ii) is subject to a waiver granted 

20 under regulations established under section 

21 339(c)(2) of the Communications Act of 

22 1934; 

23 ‘‘(iii) is a subscriber to whom sub24 section (e) applies; 
33 

•S 2644 RS 

1 ‘‘(iv) is a subscriber to whom sub2 section (a)(11) applies; or 

3 ‘‘(v) is a subscriber to whom the ex4 emption under subsection (a)(2)(B)(iii) ap5 plies. 

6 ‘‘(C) UNSERVED DIGITAL HOUSEHOLD.—In 

7 this paragraph, the term ‘unserved digital house8 hold’ means, with respect to a digital signal, a 

9 household that is eligible to receive distant dig10 ital signals pursuant to section 339(d) of the 

11 Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 

12 339(d)).’’. 

13 (d) COMPLETION OF FCC DIGITAL TRANSLATOR RUL14 ING.—Within 6 months after the date of enactment of this 

15 Act, the Federal Communications Commission shall com16 plete its rulemaking entitled ‘‘Amendments to Parts 73 and 

17 74 of the Commission’s rules to Establish Rules for Digital 

18 Low Power Television, Television Translator, and Tele19 vision Booster Stations and to Amend Rules for Digital 

20 Class A Television Stations,’’ MB Docket No. 03–185, 18 

21 F.C.C. Recd 18365 (rel. Aug. 29, 2003). 

22 SEC. 5. BARGAINING OBLIGATIONS. 

23 (a) AMENDMENTS.—Section 325(b)(3)(C) of the Com24 munications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 325(b)(3)(C)) is 

25 amended— 
34 

•S 2644 RS 

1 (1) by striking ‘‘Within 45 days’’ and all that 

2 follows through ‘‘1999, the’’ and inserting ‘‘The’’; 

3 (2) by striking the second sentence; 

4 (3) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of clause (i); 

5 (4) in clause (ii)— 

6 (A) by striking ‘‘January 1, 2006’’ and in7 serting ‘‘January 1, 2010’’; 

8 (B) by striking the period at the end and 

9 inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

10 (5) by adding at the end the following new 

11 clauses: 

12 ‘‘(iii) until January 1, 2010, prohibit 

13 a multichannel video programming dis14 tributor from failing to negotiate in good 

15 faith for retransmission consent under this 

16 section, and it shall not be a failure to ne17 gotiate in good faith if the distributor enters 

18 into retransmission consent agreements con19 taining different terms and conditions, in20 cluding price terms, with different broad21 cast stations if such different terms and 

22 conditions are based on competitive market23 place considerations.’’. 

24 (b) DEADLINE.—The Federal Communications Com25 mission shall prescribe regulations to implement the amend-
35 

•S 2644 RS 

1 ments made by subsection (a)(5) within 180 days after the 

2 date of enactment of this Act. 

3 SEC. 6. REDUCTION OF REQUIRED TESTS. 

4 Section 339(c)(4) of the Communications Act of 1934 

5 (47 U.S.C. 339(c)(4) is amended by inserting after subpara6 graph (C) the following: 

7 ‘‘(D) REDUCTION OF VERIFICATION BUR8 DENS.—Within one year after the date of enact9 ment of the Satellite Home Viewer Extension 

10 and Rural Consumer Access to Digital Television 

11 Act of 2004, the Commission shall by rule ex12 empt from the verification requirements of sub13 paragraph (A) any request for a test made by a 

14 subscriber to a satellite carrier— 

15 ‘‘(i) to whom the retransmission of the 

16 signals of local broadcast stations is avail17 able under section 122 of title 17, United 

18 States Code, from such carrier; or 

19 ‘‘(ii) for whom the predictive model re20 quired by paragraph (3) predicts a signal 

21 intensity that exceeds the signal intensity 

22 standard in effect under section 

23 119(d)(11)(A) of such title by such number 

24 of decibels as the Commission specifies in 

25 such rule. 
36 

•S 2644 RS 

1 ‘‘(E) EXCEPTION.—Notwithstanding any 

2 provision of this Act, this section does not pro3 hibit a subscriber who is predicted to receive a 

4 signal that meets or exceeds such signal intensity 

5 standard from conducting a signal strength test 

6 at the subscriber’s own expense for the purpose of 

7 determining their eligibility for distant signals 

8 under this section.’’. 

9 SEC. 7. PRIVACY RIGHTS OF SATELLITE SUBSCRIBERS. 

10 Section 631 of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 

11 U.S.C. 551) is amended by adding at the end the following: 

12 ‘‘(i) APPLICATION TO DBS PROVIDERS.— 

13 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The provisions of this section 

14 shall apply to satellite carriers in the same way and 

15 to the same extent as they apply to cable operators. 

16 ‘‘(2) SPECIAL RULE.—For the purpose of apply17 ing the last sentence of subsection (a)(1) to a satellite 

18 carrier, the phrase ‘the date of enactment of the Sat19 ellite Home Viewer Extension and Rural Consumer 

20 Access to Digital Television Act of 2004,’ shall be sub21 stituted for the phrase ‘the effective date of this sec22 tion,’. 

23 ‘‘(3) SATELLITE CARRIER.—In this subsection, 

24 the term ‘satellite carrier’ means any person using the 

25 facilities of a satellite or satellite service licensed by 
37 

•S 2644 RS 

1 the Federal Communications Commission and oper2 ating in the Fixed-Satellite Service, or the Direct 

3 Broadcast Satellite Service, under part 25 of title 47 

4 of the Code of Federal Regulations to establish and 

5 operate a channel of communications for distribution 

6 of signals, and owning or leasing a capacity or serv7 ice on a satellite in order to provide such distribu8 tion.’’. 

9 SEC. 8. SPONSORSHIP IDENTIFICATION RULES FOR DBS. 

10 Within 180 days after the date of enactment of this 

11 Act, the Federal Communications Commission shall modify 

12 section 76.1615 of its rules (47 C.F.R. 76.1615) to apply 

13 the requirements of section 317 of the Communications Act 

14 of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 317) to all multichannel video program 

15 distributors. 

16 SEC. 9. CERTAIN VESSELS AND AIRCRAFT. 

17 Section 119(a)(11) of title 17, United States Code, is 

18 amended— 

19 (1) by striking ‘‘RECREATIONAL VEHICLES AND

20 COMMERCIAL TRUCKS.—’’ in the heading and insert21 ing ‘‘RECREATIONAL VEHICLES, VESSELS, AIRCRAFT, 

22 AND COMMERCIAL TRUCKS.—’’; 

23 (2) by striking ‘‘and’’ after the semicolon in sub24 paragraph (A)(i)(I); 
38 

•S 2644 RS 

1 (3) by striking ‘‘Regulations.’’ in subparagraph 

2 (A)(i)(II) and inserting ‘‘Regulations;’’; 

3 (4) by inserting after subclause (II) of subpara4 graph (A)(i) the following: 

5 ‘‘(III) recreational vessels (as de6 fined in section 2101(25) of title 46, 

7 United States Code, documented in ac8 cordance with section 12101 of title 46 

9 or State law; and 

10 ‘‘(IV) aircraft registered under 

11 section 44103 of title 49.’’; 

12 (5) by striking ‘‘vehicle or’’ each place it appears 

13 in subparagraph (A)(ii), and inserting ‘‘vehicle, ves14 sel, aircraft, or’’; 

15 (6) by striking ‘‘vehicle’ ’’ in subparagraph 

16 (A)(iii) and inserting ‘‘vehicle, recreational vessel, 

17 aircraft’ ’’; 

18 (7) by striking ‘‘vehicle or’’ each place it appears 

19 in subparagraph (B), other than in clause (ii), and 

20 inserting ‘‘vehicle, recreational vessel, aircraft, or’’; 

21 (8) by inserting after ‘‘vehicle.’’ in clause (ii) of 

22 subparagraph (B) the following:‘‘In the case of a rec23 reational vessel, a copy of the current certificate of 

24 documentation issued under section 12103 of title 46 

25 for the vessel or the State certificate of registration. 
39 

•S 2644 RS 

1 In the case of an aircraft, a copy of the certificate of 

2 registration for the aircraft issued under section 

3 44103 of title 49.’’; and 

4 (9) by striking ‘‘vehicle or’’ in subparagraph (C) 

5 and inserting ‘‘vehicle, recreational vessel, aircraft, 

6 or’’. 

7 SEC. 10. CARRIAGE OF LOCAL TELEVISION SIGNALS BY CER8 TAIN SATELLITE CARRIERS. 

9 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 338(a) of the Communica10 tions Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 338(a)) is amended— 

11 (1) by striking ‘‘(2),’’ and inserting ‘‘(2) and ex12 cept as provided by paragraph (3),’’; 

13 (2) by striking ‘‘under this subsection’’ in para14 graph (2) and inserting ‘‘under paragraph (1)’’; and 

15 (3) by striking paragraph (3) and inserting the 

16 following: 

17 ‘‘(3) CERTAIN BROADCAST AREAS.— 

18 ‘‘(A) SINGLE NETWORK STATION STATES.— 

19 A satellite carrier may elect to carry also the sig20 nal of a commercial television broadcast station 

21 that was the only network station (as defined in 

22 section 339(d)(3)) in that State as of January 1, 

23 1995, for secondary transmission to subscribers 

24 in any community in that State that is not 

25 within 1 of the first 50 major television markets 
40 

•S 2644 RS 

1 listed in section 76.51(a) of the Commission’s 

2 regulations (47 C.F.R. 76.51(a)), as such regula3 tions were in effect on January 1, 1995, if the 

4 satellite carrier is retransmitting the signal of 

5 the station pursuant to paragraph (1) of this 

6 subsection or section 325(b) of this Act. 

7 ‘‘(B) MULTIPLE NETWORK STATION

8 STATES.—A satellite carrier may elect to carry 

9 also the signals of any network station (as de10 fined in section 339(d)(3)) or superstation (as 

11 defined in section 325(b)(2)) in a State in 

12 which— 

13 ‘‘(i) all network stations and supersta14 tions licensed by the Commission as of Jan15 uary 1, 1995, were assigned to the same 

16 local market, and 

17 ‘‘(ii) that local market does not encom18 pass all counties of that State, 

19 for secondary transmission to subscribers in that 

20 State who reside in one of the first 50 major tele21 vision markets listed in section 76.51(a) of the 

22 Commission’s regulations (47 C.F.R. 76.51(a)), 

23 as such regulations were in effect on January 1, 

24 1995, if the satellite carrier is retransmitting the 
41 

•S 2644 RS 

1 signals pursuant to paragraph (1) of this sub2 section or section 325(b) of this Act.’’. 

3 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 122(j)(2) of 

4 title 17, United States Code, is amended by adding at the 

5 end the following: 

6 ‘‘(D) CERTAIN STATES.—If a satellite carrier 

7 elects, under section 338(a)(3)(A) or (B) of the Com8 munications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 338(a)(3)(A) or 

9 (B)), to carry the signal of a network station or 

10 superstation then, in addition to the area described in 

11 subparagraph (A) of this paragraph, the local market 

12 of that station includes, solely for the purposes of the 

13 secondary transmission of that signal by the satellite 

14 carrier, all households within the geographic borders 

15 of the State in which that station is licensed.’’. 

16 SEC. 11. RETRANSMISSION OF SIGNALS INTO ADJACENT 

17 LOCAL MARKET COMPRISING ONLY PART OF 

18 A COUNTY. 

19 Section 339 of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 

20 U.S.C. 339), as amended by section 4 of this Act, is amend21 ed by adding at the end the following: 

22 ‘‘(8) CERTAIN MARKETS.—Notwithstanding any 

23 other provision of law, a satellite carrier may not 

24 carry the signal of a television station into an adja25 cent local market that is comprised of only a portion 
42 

•S 2644 RS 

1 of a county, other than to unserved households located 

2 in that county.’’. 

3 SEC. 12. CARRIAGE OF TELEVISION SIGNALS TO CERTAIN 

4 SUBSCRIBERS. 

5 Part I of title III of the Communications Act of 1934 

6 (47 U.S.C. 301 et seq.) is amended by inserting after section 

7 339 the following: 

8 ‘‘SEC. 340. CARRIAGE OF TELEVISION SIGNALS TO CERTAIN 

9 SUBSCRIBERS. 

10 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—A multichannel video program11 ming distributor may elect to retransmit, to subscribers in 

12 an eligible county— 

13 ‘‘(1) any television broadcast stations that are 

14 located in the State in which the county is located 

15 and that any multichannel video programming dis16 tributor was retransmitting to subscribers in the 

17 county on January 1, 2004; or 

18 ‘‘(2) up to 2 television broadcast stations located 

19 in the State in which the county is located, if the 

20 number of television broadcast stations that the multi21 channel video programming distributor is authorized 

22 to carry under paragraph (1) is less than 3. 

23 ‘‘(b) DEEMED SIGNIFICANTLY VIEWED.—Any station 

24 described in subsection (a) is deemed to be significantly 
43 

•S 2644 RS 

1 viewed in the eligible county within the meaning of section 

2 76.54 of the Commission’s regulations (47 C.F.R. 76.54). 

3 ‘‘(c) DEFINITION OF ELIGIBLE COUNTY.—For pur4 poses of this subsection, the term ‘eligible county’ means any 

5 1 of 4 counties that— 

6 ‘‘(1) are in a single State; 

7 ‘‘(2) on January 1, 2004, were in local markets 

8 principally comprised of counties in another State; 

9 and 

10 ‘‘(3) had a combined total of 41,340 television 

11 households according to the U.S. Television Household 

12 Estimates by Nielsen Media Research for 2003–2004. 

13 ‘‘(d) LIMITATION.—Carriage of a station under this 

14 section shall be at the option of the multichannel video pro15 gramming distributor.’’. 

16 SEC. 13. SATELLITE CARRIAGE OF ALASKA TELEVISION STA17 TIONS IN AREAS OF ALASKA OUTSIDE ANY 

18 DMA. 

19 (a) CARRIAGE OBLIGATIONS.—Section 338(a) of the 

20 Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 338(a)), as amend21 ed by section 10 of this Act, is amended by adding at the 

22 end thereof the following: 

23 ‘‘(4) CARRIAGE OF SIGNALS OF LOCAL STATIONS

24 IN CERTAIN MARKETS.—A satellite carrier that offers 

25 multichannel video programming distribution service 
44 

•S 2644 RS 

1 in the United States to more than 5,000,000 sub2 scribers shall, within 2 years after the date of enact3 ment of the Satellite Home Viewer Extension and 

4 Rural Consumer Access to Digital Television Act of 

5 2004, retransmit the analog and digital signals of 

6 each television broadcast station located in any local 

7 market within a State that is not part of the contig8 uous United States and that contains more than one 

9 television market. The retransmissions of such sta10 tions shall be made available to substantially all of 

11 the satellite carrier’s subscribers in each station’s 

12 local market, and the retransmissions of the stations 

13 in at least one market in the state shall be made 

14 available to substantially all of the satellite carrier’s 

15 subscribers in areas of the State that are not within 

16 a designated market area. The cost to subscribers of 

17 such retransmissions shall not exceed the cost of re18 transmissions of local television stations in other 

19 States. Within 1 year after the date of enactment of 

20 that Act, the Commission shall promulgate regula21 tions concerning elections by television stations in 

22 such State between mandatory carriage pursuant to 

23 this section and retransmission consent pursuant to 

24 section 325(b), which shall take into account the 
45 

•S 2644 RS 

1 schedule on which local television stations are made 

2 available to viewers in such State.’’. 

3 (b) NO IMPORTATION OF DISTANT TELEVISION STA4 TIONS IN ALASKA AFTER LOCAL-TO-LOCAL IS AVAIL5 ABLE.—Section 119(a) of title 17, United States Code, is 

6 amended by adding at the end thereof the following: 

7 ‘‘(13) NO IMPORTATION OF DISTANT SIGNALS

8 INTO CERTAIN MARKETS.—Notwithstanding any other 

9 provision of this title, the statutory license in this 

10 subsection and subsection (b) shall not apply to any 

11 secondary transmission of a television station located 

12 outside of the State of Alaska to any subscriber in 

13 that State to whom secondary transmissions of tele14 vision stations located in that State are made avail15 able by the satellite carrier pursuant to section 122.’’. 

16 (c) EXTRA-DMA DEEMED LOCAL.—Section 122(j)(2) 

17 of title 17, United States Code, as amended by section 10(b) 

18 of this Act, is further amended by adding at the end thereof 

19 the following: 

20 ‘‘(E) CERTAIN AREAS OUTSIDE OF ANY DES21 IGNATED MARKET AREA.—Any census area, bor22 ough, or other area in the State of Alaska that 

23 is outside of a designated market area, as deter24 mined by Nielsen Media Research, shall be 

25 deemed to be part of one of the local markets in 
46 

•S 2644 RS 

1 the State of Alaska. A satellite carrier may de2 termine which local market in the State of Alas3 ka will be deemed to be the relevant local market 

4 in connection with each subscriber in such census 

5 area, borough, or other area.’’. 

Calendar No. 815 

108TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 2644 

A BILL 

To amend the Communications Act of 1934 with 

respect to the carriage of direct broadcast satellite television signals by satellite carriers to consumers in rural areas, and for other purposes. 

NOVEMBER 19, 2004 

Reported with an amendment