I
106TH CONGRESS
2D SESSION
H. R. 3615
To amend the Rural Electrification Act of 1936 to ensure improved access
to the signals of local television stations by multichannel video providers
to all households which desire such service in unserved and underserved
rural areas by December 31, 2006.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
FEBRUARY 10, 2000
Mr. GOODLATTE (for himself, Mr. BOUCHER, Mr. BAKER, Mrs. EMERSON,
Mrs. CAPPS, Mrs. BONO, Mr. OBERSTAR, Mr. EWING, Mr. GILCHREST,
Mr. METCALF, Mr. QUINN, Mr. BASS, Mr. LATHAM, Mr. KILDEE, Mr.
PHELPS, Mr. MCINNIS, Mr. RAHALL, Mr. BUYER, Mr. WATKINS, Mr.
FROST, Mr. BALDACCI, Mr. GOODE, Mr. PETERSON of Minnesota, Mr.
HINCHEY, Mr. BOYD, Mr. WALDEN of Oregon, Mr. OLVER, Mr. FLETCH-
ER, Mr. COLLINS, Mr. THORNBERRY, Mrs. CUBIN, Mr. NETHERCUTT,
Mr. WICKER, Mr. LAHOOD, Mr. BOEHLERT, Mr. GOODLING, Mr.
HERGER, Mr. NUSSLE, Mr. RADANOVICH, Mr. EHRLICH, Mr. HASTINGS
of Washington, Mr. THUNE, Mr. COOKSEY, Mr. HILLEARY, Mrs.
FOWLER, Mr. BONILLA, Mr. BALLENGER, Mr. SKEEN, Mr. SHIMKUS,
Mr. PICKERING, Mr. ADERHOLT, Mr. SHERWOOD, Mr. UPTON, Mr.
HAYES, Mr. PETERSON of Pennsylvania, Mr. SMITH of Texas, Mr.
VITTER, Mr. JENKINS, Mr. TAUZIN, Mr. RILEY, Mr. CANADY of Florida,
Mr. BARTLETT of Maryland, Mr. ISAKSON, Mr. CHAMBLISS, Mr. BAR-
RETT of Nebraska, Mr. GANSKE, Mr. BISHOP, Mr. THOMAS, Mr. OXLEY,
Mr. GOSS, Mr. JONES of North Carolina, Mr. DOOLITTLE, Mr. POMBO,
Mr. WAMP, Mr. DUNCAN, Mr. NORWOOD, Mrs. CHENOWETH-HAGE, Mr.
DAVIS of Virginia, Mr. DICKEY, Mr. EHLERS, Mr. LEWIS of Kentucky,
Mr. WELLER, Mr. FOLEY, Mr. HUTCHINSON, Mr. SMITH of Michigan,
Mr. GEKAS, Mr. HOUGHTON, Mr. REYNOLDS, Mr. PORTMAN, Mr. TRAFI-
CANT, Mr. SCHAFFER, Mr. THOMPSON of California, Mr. MINGE, Mrs.
CLAYTON, Mr. SHOWS, Mr. SISISKY, Mr. BRYANT, Mr. WALSH, Mr.
MCHUGH, Mrs. JOHNSON of Connecticut, Mr. BEREUTER, Mr. ROGERS,
Mr. FARR of California, Mr. KIND, and Mr. HILL of Montana) intro-
duced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Agri-
culture, and in addition to the Committees on Commerce, and the Judici-
ary, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each
case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of
the committee concerned
A BILL
To amend the Rural Electrification Act of 1936 to ensure
improved access to the signals of local television stations
by multichannel video providers to all households which
desire such service in unserved and underserved rural
areas by December 31, 2006.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Rural Local Broadcast
Signal Act’’.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress makes the following findings:
(1) In 1936, most of the rural United States
did not have access to electrical service enjoyed by
the rest of the United States, and this lack of elec-
trical service inhibited economic development in the
rural areas of the United States.
(2) In response to this lack of service, Congress
enacted the Rural Electrification Act of 1936 (also
known as the Norris-Rayburn Rural Electrification
Act) which established the Rural Electric Adminis-
tration to ensure that all Americans have access to
electrical service and to promote rural development.
(3) The program under the Rural Electrifica-
tion Act of 1936 has successfully brought electricity
to all parts of the rural United States and has stim-
ulated rural development throughout the United
States.
(4) In 1949, most of the rural United States
did not have access to telephone service enjoyed by
the rest of the United States, and this lack of elec-
trical service inhibited economic development in the
rural areas of the United States.
(5) In response to this lack of service, Congress
amended the Rural Electrification Act of 1936 to as-
sure that the rural United States has access to tele-
communications services, including telephone serv-
ices, distance learning, and telemedicine in order to
promote rural development.
(6) The programs under these amendments
have successfully brought telecommunications to all
parts of the United States and has stimulated rural
development throughout the United States.
(7) Public Law 93–32 amended the Rural Elec-
trification Act of 1936 to establish a revolving fund
for insured and guaranteed loans.
(8) The reorganization of the Department of
Agriculture by Public Law 103–354 created the
Rural Utilities Service (RUS) within the Depart-
ment of Agriculture and assigned it the responsi-
bility for administering programs of federally-guar-
anteed loans.
(9) The Rural Utilities Service now manages a
portfolio of federally-guaranteed loans in excess of
$42,000,000,000.
(10) The Rural Utilities Service has granted
loans for the purpose of telecommunications services
to more than 800 borrowers, including telephone and
electricity cooperatives, in all States of the United
States.
(11) Local television coverage is vitally impor-
tant for rural development efforts.
(12) Local television programming broadcasts
crop reports, local news, weather reports, public
service announcements, and advertisements by local
businesses, all of which are important for rural de-
velopment.
(13) In today’s age of modern communications,
rural communities often receive the majority of their
information from satellite platforms.
(14) The rest of the United States, including
most of the rural United States, is not able to re-
ceive local television signals via satellite.
(15) Without access to local television signals,
the development of the rural United States is greatly
inhibited.
(16) Just as important public purposes were
served by bringing electricity to the rural United
States and then by bringing telephone service to the
rural United States, so the United States would be
served by ensuring that the rural United States can
receive local television signals via satellite.
(17) It is in the public interest that the Rural
Utilities Service of the Department of Agriculture
utilize existing and new loan guarantee programs to
promote rural development by ensuring that the
rural United States has access to the signals of local
television stations by multichannel video providers.
SEC. 3. RURAL LOCAL TELEVISION SIGNALS.
The Rural Electrification Act of 1936 (7 U.S.C. 901
et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following:
‘‘TITLE VI—RURAL LOCAL
TELEVISION SIGNALS
‘‘SEC. 501. DEFINITIONS.
‘‘In this title:
‘‘(1) ADMINISTRATOR.—The term ‘Adminis-
trator’ means the Administrator of the Rural Utili-
ties Service.
‘‘(2) AFFILIATE.—The term ‘affiliate’ means
any person or entity that controls, or is controlled
by, or is under common control with, another person
or entity.
‘‘(3) BORROWER.—The term ‘borrower’ means
any person or entity receiving a loan guarantee
under this title.
‘‘(4) COST.—
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘cost’ means
the estimated long-term cost to the Government
of a loan guarantee or modification thereof, cal-
culated on a net present value basis, excluding
administrative costs and any incidental effects
on governmental receipts or outlays.
‘‘(B) LOAN
GUARANTEES.—For purposes
of 
this 
paragraph 
the 
cost 
of 
a 
loan
guarantee—
‘‘(i) shall be the net present value, at
the time when the guaranteed loan is dis-
bursed, of the estimated cash flows of—
‘‘(I) payments by the Govern-
ment to cover defaults and delin-
quencies, interest subsidies, or other
payments; and