I 
110TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 2738 
To empower parents to protect children from increasing depictions of indecent 
material on television. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
JUNE 15, 2007 
Mr. LIPINSKI (for himself, Mr. FORTENBERRY, Mr. SHULER, and Mr. 
ADERHOLT) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Com-
mittee on Energy and Commerce 
A BILL 
To empower parents to protect children from increasing 
depictions of indecent material on television. 
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 ‘‘Family and Consumer 
Choice Act of 2007’’. 
SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 
Congress finds the following: 
(1) Subscription television services have estab-
lished a pervasive presence in the lives of Americans, 
including American children. Over 80 percent of 
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American households subscribe to multi-channel 
video programming. Approximately 58 percent of all 
households subscribe to cable television service, and 
approximately 25 percent subscribe to direct broad-
cast satellite (in this section referred to as ‘‘DBS’’) 
service. Of those subscribing to cable service, 88 per-
cent subscribe to expanded basic service, while just 
12 percent subscribe only to basic service. Approxi-
mately fewer than half of American households sub-
scribing to cable receive digital cable service. 
(2) The substantial majority of American chil-
dren have access to multi-channel video program-
ming in their home. Approximately 74 percent of 
children from ages 2 through 18 live in homes with 
cable or DBS service, and 78 percent of children 
under the age of 7 live in homes with such service. 
Of those homes with children subscribing to cable 
service, the vast majority subscribe to expanded 
basic cable service. Approximately 20,900,000 house-
holds with children subscribe to expanded basic cable 
service, while just 2,900,000 households with chil-
dren subscribe only to basic cable service. 
(3) American children, on average, spend a sig-
nificant part of their day watching television, includ-
ing cable programming. According to Nielsen Media 
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Research, children ages 2 through 11 watch an aver-
age of 3 hours and 15 minutes of television per day, 
and children ages 12 through 17 watch an average 
of 3 hours, 7 minutes of television per day. Children 
in homes with subscriptions to multi-channel video 
programming watch, on average, about 67 percent 
more television than children in homes with only 
broadcast television service. 
(4) Many adults and most children do not dis-
tinguish between broadcast channels and cable chan-
nels. Rather, they view them as interchangeable and 
regularly switch between these types of channels. 
(5) Children often watch television in the ab-
sence of parental supervision. For example, many 
children watch television when they are home alone 
after school while their parents are still at work, and 
many children watch television at friends’ houses 
when their own parents are not present. A Kaiser 
Family Foundation report in March 2005 found that 
68 percent of children ages 8 through 18 have a tel-
evision set in their bedroom, and 37 percent have 
subscription multi-channel video service in their bed-
rooms. Furthermore, according to the Department 
of Education, 81 percent of children ages 2 through 
7 sometimes watch television without adult super-
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vision. Additionally, a 2003 Kaiser Family Founda-
tion White Paper found that 91 percent of children 
ages 4 through 6 have turned on the television by 
themselves. 
(6) Multichannel video programming distribu-
tors, such as cable and DBS operators, are critical 
sources of video programming, such as public affairs 
programming, news programming and educational 
programming, which is not duplicated by broadcast 
television. Cable operators on average offer 25 chan-
nels in their basic tier of programming and approxi-
mately 45 additional channels in their expanded 
basic tier. Cable channels offering educational, infor-
mational, or entertainment programming that is ap-
propriate for or attractive to children are generally 
included on the same expanded basic tier as chan-
nels offering programming that is sexually explicit. 
Parents are generally not given the choice of only 
purchasing channels that carry programming that is 
appropriate for children. 
(7) Indecent programming on channels carried 
on extended basic cable service is pervasive. Sexually 
explicit material is shown more than twice as often 
in original cable programming than in broadcast 
programming. 
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(8) Complaints about indecent cable program-
ming have increased exponentially in recent years. In 
2004, the Federal Communications Commission re-
ceived 700 percent more cable indecency complaints 
than it received in 2003. 
(9) Parents are concerned that indecent pro-
gramming is being aired on cable channels viewed by 
children. A Kaiser Family Foundation White Paper 
has found that most parents believe cable program-
ming should be subject to the same indecency rules 
as broadcast television. In addition, during the first 
half of 2005, the Federal Communications Commis-
sion received 10 or more complaints about alleged 
indecency or obscenity on 20 different cable net-
works. Of these 20 cable networks, 15 rank in the 
top 25 cable networks watched by children ages 2 
through 11 during prime time, and 17 rank in the 
top 25 networks watched by children ages 12 
through 17 during prime time. Most of the cable 
programs about which indecency complaints have 
been filed with the Federal Communications Com-
mission aired during hours when many children are 
watching television. 
(10) Because subscribers to multichannel video 
programming and their children often ‘‘channel- 
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surf’’ to find out what is on television, they are sus-
ceptible to unexpected exposure to unwanted con-
tent. Cable subscribers on average use their remote 
control to sample more channels before choosing a 
program than do those viewers who only receive 
over-the-air broadcasting, thus making cable sub-
scribers more susceptible to being confronted by un-
wanted material. According to a study conducted in 
2002 by the Cable Television Administration & Mar-
keting Society, over 60 percent of cable subscribers 
use their remote controls to ‘‘channel-surf,’’ that is, 
to find out what is on television. Moreover, approxi-
mately 75 percent of children of ages 4 through 6 
have changed channels using a remote control ac-
cording to a 2003 Kaiser Family Foundation White 
Paper. 
(11) The ‘‘v-chip’’ does not effectively protect 
children from indecent programming carried by mul-
tichannel video programming distributors. According 
to a 2004 Survey by Knowledge Networks SRI, most 
of the television sets currently in use in the United 
States are not equipped with a v-chip, and of the 
280,000,000 sets currently in United States house-
holds, approximately 161,000,000 are not equipped 
with a v-chip. Households that have a television set 
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with a v-chip are also likely to have 1 or more sets 
that are not equipped with a v-chip, as found in a 
2005 Broadcasting & Cable TVFAX article. 
(12) The ability to block channels pursuant to 
sections 624(d)(2) and 640 of the Communications 
Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 624(d)(2); 640) does not ef-
fectively protect children from indecent program-
ming carried by multichannel video programming 
distributors. 
(13) A host of practical obstacles, including 
long waits and blocking failures, currently frustrate 
parents who attempt to rely on such options. This 
is especially true for those cable subscribers who do 
not have digital cable service. 
(14) Because of the manner in which multi-
channel video programming distributors currently 
bundle channels, most multichannel video program-
ming subscribers currently receive and pay for nu-
merous channels that they do not watch. According 
to Nielsen Media Research, for example, households 
receiving more than 70 networks only watch, on av-
erage, about 17 of these networks. 
(15) While multichannel video programming 
distributors currently provide subscribers with a va-
riety of methods of blocking the audio and video pro-
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gramming of any channel that they do not wish to 
receive, such distributors generally do not offer the 
subscriber a credit on account of such blocked chan-
nel. Thus, subscribers must pay for channels in-
cluded in programming tiers even if they are blocked 
at the request of the subscriber. 
(16) For those adults seeking to view program-
ming for mature audiences, there are many sources 
of such programming on premium tiers currently of-
fered by multichannel video programming distribu-
tors. HBO and Showtime, for example, are offered 
by the vast majority of cable and DBS services, and 
both programmers carry content that is more sexu-
ally explicit than what is available on broadcast 
channels. At least 98 percent of all cable systems 
offer premium channels and 43 percent of cable tele-
vision households subscribe to 1 or more premium 
channels. 
(17) Parents need more effective ways to limit 
the exposure of children to television with harmful 
content by being able to purchase cable program-
ming that only contains programming that is child- 
friendly. 
(18) The efforts to limit the exposure of chil-
dren to harmful television content have not been 
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successful because Federal regulatory agencies have 
not had the authority to require cable and satellite 
providers to offer programming that only contains 
programming that is child-friendly. Therefore, legis-
lation is necessary to give Federal regulatory agen-
cies the authority to combat this problem. 
SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 
Section 602 of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 
U.S.C. 522) is amended— 
(1) by striking ‘‘For purposes of this title—’’ 
and inserting the following: 
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—For purposes of this title—’’; 
and 
(2) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(b) ADDITIONAL DEFINITIONS.—In this title, the 
following definitions shall apply: 
‘‘(1) EXPANDED BASIC TIER.—The term ‘ex-
panded basic tier’— 
‘‘(A) means the tier of channels offered by 
a multichannel video programming distributor 
that is most frequently subscribed to by the 
subscribers of such distributor other than the 
basic service tier; and 
‘‘(B) includes channels offered in such 
basic service tier. 
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‘‘(2) FAMILY TIER OF PROGRAMMING.— 
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘family tier 
of programming’ means a tier of channels of-
fered by a multichannel video programming dis-
tributor that— 
‘‘(i) includes all channels offered on 
the expanded basic tier of such distributor; 
and 
‘‘(ii) does not include those channels 
offered on such expanded basic tier that 
carry programs that are rated TV–14 or 
TV–MA under the TV Parental Guidelines, 
as such ratings were approved by the Com-
mission in implementation of section 551 
of the Telecommunications Act of 1996, 
Video Programming Ratings, Report and 
Order, CS Docket No. 97–55, 13 F.C.C. 
Rcd. 8232 (1998)), between— 
‘‘(I) the hours of 6 a.m. and 10 
p.m., in the Eastern or Pacific Time 
Zones; or 
‘‘(II) the hours of 5 a.m. and 9 
p.m., in the Central or Mountain 
Time Zones. 
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‘‘(B) AUTHORITY OF COMMISSION TO MOD-
IFY
DEFINITION.—The Commission, by rule, 
may modify the definition in subparagraph 
(A)— 
‘‘(i) if the TV Parental Guidelines de-
scribed in subparagraph (A) are modified; 
or 
‘‘(ii) to better effectuate the purposes 
of this Act, including to protect children 
from indecent and profane video program-
ming. 
‘‘(3) MULTICHANNEL
VIDEO
PROGRAMMING 
SERVICE.—The term ‘multichannel video program-
ming service’ means any video programming service 
provided by a multichannel video programming dis-
tributor. 
‘‘(4) THEMED TIER OF CHANNELS.—The term 
‘themed tier of channels’ means a tier of channels— 
‘‘(A) in which each channel in such tier of-
fers programming in the same genre as the 
other channels, such as a package of sports 
channels or premium movie channels; and 
‘‘(B) that are offered by a multichannel 
video programming distributor for subscription 
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separately from other channels or tiers of chan-
nels.’’. 
SEC. 4. PROTECTING CHILDREN FROM INDECENT VIDEO 
PROGRAMMING. 
Part IV of title VI of the Communications Act of 
1934 (47 U.S.C. 551 et seq.) is amended by adding at 
the end the following: 
‘‘SEC. 642. PROVISION OF PROGRAMMING SUITABLE FOR 
CHILDREN BY MULTICHANNEL VIDEO PRO-
GRAMMING DISTRIBUTORS. 
‘‘(a) RULEMAKING.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 270 days 
after the date of enactment of this section, the Com-
mission shall initiate and conclude a rulemaking to 
adopt measures to protect children from indecent 
video programming carried by a multichannel video 
programming distributor. 
‘‘(2) REQUIRED CONTENT.— 
‘‘(A) OBLIGATIONS OF MVPD’S.—The rules 
adopted under paragraph (1) shall require a 
multichannel video programming distributor to 
do one of the following: 
‘‘(i) In accordance with the indecency 
and profanity policies and standards ap-
plied by the Commission to broadcasters, 
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as such policies and standards are modi-
fied from time to time, not transmit any 
material that is indecent or profane on any 
channel in the expanded basic tier of such 
distributor between— 
‘‘(I) the hours of 6 a.m. and 10 
p.m., in the Eastern or Pacific Time 
Zones; or 
‘‘(II) the hours of 5 a.m. and 9 
p.m., in the Central or Mountain 
Time Zones. 
‘‘(ii) Fully scramble or otherwise fully 
block, without charge, the audio and video 
programming on any channel that a sub-
scriber does not wish to receive, except 
that such distributor— 
‘‘(I) may not block— 
‘‘(aa) a channel required to 
be on the basic tier of such dis-
tributor 
pursuant 
to 
section 
623(b)(7)(A); or 
‘‘(bb) any equivalent channel 
on a direct broadcast satellite 
service or other type of multi-
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channel video programming serv-
ice. 
‘‘(II) May not be required to 
block— 
‘‘(aa) video programming of-
fered on a per-channel or per- 
program basis; or 
‘‘(bb) video programming on 
a themed tier of channels, unless 
a subscriber does not subscribe to 
such channel, program, or tier. 
‘‘(iii) Allow a subscriber to subscribe 
to a family tier of programming. 
‘‘(B) ELECTION
OF
MVPD’S.—The rules 
adopted under paragraph (1) shall— 
‘‘(i) require a multichannel video pro-
gramming distributor to notify in writing, 
on an annual basis— 
‘‘(I) the Commission as to which 
option described in clauses (i) through 
(iii) of subparagraph (A) such dis-
tributor elects to follow; and 
‘‘(II) the subscribers of such dis-
tributor as to which option described 
in clauses (i) through (iii) of subpara-
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graph (A) such distributor elects to 
follow; 
‘‘(ii) allow, on an annual basis, each 
multichannel 
video 
programming 
dis-
tributor to change the election made by 
such distributor under clause (i). 
‘‘(C) SCRAMBLING OPTIONS.— 
‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—The rules adopted 
under paragraph (1) shall require each 
multichannel 
video 
programming 
dis-
tributor that elects to follow the option de-
scribed in subparagraph (A)(ii) to— 
‘‘(I) give any subscriber who 
elects to block any channel included in 
any service tier to which such sub-
scriber subscribes a credit on the 
monthly bill of such subscriber for 
such blocked channel in an amount 
equal to the amount that such dis-
tributor pays for the right to provide 
such blocked channel to such sub-
scriber, calculated in accordance with 
clause (ii); and 
‘‘(II) provide, at least on an an-
nual basis, to each subscriber com-
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prehensive written information con-
cerning the amount of any credit that 
such subscriber would receive under 
subclause (I), if such subscriber elect-
ed to exercise such subscriber’s right 
to block a particular channel included 
in any service tier to which such sub-
scriber subscribes. 
‘‘(ii) CALCULATION OF CREDIT.—The 
credit described in clause (i)(I) shall be 
calculated as follows: 
‘‘(I) If a multichannel video pro-
gramming distributor pays a fee per 
subscriber for the right to provide a 
channel to the subscribers of such dis-
tributor, then the amount of such 
credit shall be equal to the amount of 
such per subscriber fee. 
‘‘(II) If a multichannel video pro-
gramming distributor pays a fixed 
amount for the right to provide a 
channel to all or a specified number of 
subscribers of such distributor, then 
the amount of such credit shall be 
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equal to an allocable share of such 
fixed amount. 
‘‘(III) If a multichannel video 
programming distributor does not pay 
for the right to provide a channel to 
the subscribers of such distributor, 
then a subscriber shall not be entitled 
to receive a credit under clause (i)(I). 
‘‘(IV) If the subscriber elects to 
block, under clause (i)(I), the channel 
of any nonprofit network, the sub-
scriber shall not be entitled to any 
credit under this subparagraph. 
‘‘(D) FAMILY TIER OPTIONS.—The rules 
adopted under paragraph (1) shall require each 
multichannel video programming distributor 
that elects to follow the option described in sub-
paragraph (A)(iii) to allow a subscriber to the 
digital service offered by such distributor to ob-
tain the family tier of programming for 1 or 
more of the video reception devices of such sub-
scriber, while at the same time obtaining other 
service tiers for other video reception devices of 
such subscriber. 
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‘‘(b) SEVERABILITY.—If any provision of this section, 
or the application thereof to any person or circumstance, 
is held to be unlawful, the remaining portions of this sec-
tion not deemed unlawful shall— 
‘‘(1) not be affected thereby; and 
‘‘(2) remain in effect to the fullest extent per-
mitted by law.’’. 
Æ 
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