Preventing Illegal Radio Abuse Through Enforcement Act

Bill: 115-hr-5709
Sponsor: full_name: Rep. Lance, Leonard [R-NJ-7]
Introduced: 2018-05-08
Policy area: Science, Technology, Communications
Subjects: Administrative law and regulatory procedures

Broadcasting, cable, digital technologies

Congressional oversight

Criminal investigation, prosecution, interrogation

Federal Communications Commission (FCC)

Government information and archives

Licensing and registrations
Latest action: action_date: 2018-07-24
text: Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.

Summaries:
action_date: 2018-05-08
action_desc: Introduced in House
text: <p><strong>Preventing Illegal Radio Abuse Through Enforcement Act or the PIRATE Act</strong></p> <p>This bill amends the Communications Act of 1934 to address unlawful radio broadcasting (called "pirating"), including:</p> <ul> <li>making&nbsp;the fine for a pirate radio broadcasting violation&nbsp;up to $100,000 per day (Currently, there is a general penalty&nbsp;of up&nbsp;to&nbsp;$10,000 for any wire&nbsp;and radio communications&nbsp;law violation.); </li> <li>establishing&nbsp;a&nbsp;fine of up to&nbsp;$2,000,000 for any person who facilitates pirate radio broadcasting ("facilitating" includes providing access to property or providing physical goods or services); and </li> <li>requiring the Federal Communications Commission to focus on the top five radio markets&nbsp;twice a year to eliminate pirate radio broadcasting.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</li></ul>

action_date: 2018-07-18
action_desc: Reported to House with amendment(s)
text: <p><strong>Preventing Illegal Radio Abuse Through Enforcement Act or the PIRATE Act</strong></p> <p>This bill amends the Communications Act of 1934 to address unlicensed radio broadcasting (called "pirating"), including:</p> <ul> <li>increasing the fine for a pirate radio broadcasting violation&nbsp;to not more than $2 million, </li> <li>imposing a fine of up to $100,000 per day for pirating violations subject to the $2 million limit, and </li> <li>establishing&nbsp;a&nbsp;fine of up to&nbsp;$2 million for any person who facilitates pirate radio broadcasting ("facilitating" includes providing access to property or providing physical goods or services).&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </li></ul> <p>The FCC must: (1) annually report to Congress summarizing implementation of this bill and associated enforcement activities for the previous fiscal year; and (2) at least once a year, assign appropriate enforcement personnel to focus specific and sustained attention on the elimination of pirate radio broadcasting within the top five radio markets.</p> <p>The FCC may not preempt any state or local law prohibiting pirate radio broadcasting.</p> <p>The FCC shall: (1) revise its rules to require that, absent good cause, in any case alleging a violation, it shall proceed directly to issue a Notice of Apparent Liability without first issuing a Notice of Unlicensed Operations; and (2) publish a database of all licensed radio stations operating in the AM and FM bands, which shall be easily accessible from the FCC home page, identifying each licensed station and all entities that have received a Notice of Unlicensed Operation, Notice of Apparent Liability, or Forfeiture Order by the FCC.</p>

action_date: 2018-07-23
action_desc: Passed House amended
text: <p><strong>Preventing Illegal Radio Abuse Through Enforcement Act or the PIRATE Act</strong></p> <p>(Sec. 2) This bill amends the Communications Act of 1934 to address unlicensed radio broadcasting (called "pirating"), including:</p> <ul> <li>increasing the fine for a pirate radio broadcasting violation&nbsp;to not more than $2 million, </li> <li>imposing a fine of up to $100,000 per day for pirating violations subject to the $2 million limit, and </li> <li>establishing&nbsp;a&nbsp;fine of up to&nbsp;$2 million&nbsp;for any person who facilitates pirate radio broadcasting ("facilitating" includes providing access to property or providing physical goods or services).&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </li></ul> <p>The FCC must: (1) annually report to Congress summarizing implementation of this bill and associated enforcement activities for the previous fiscal year; and (2) at least once a year, assign appropriate enforcement personnel to focus specific and sustained attention on the elimination of pirate radio broadcasting within the top five radio markets.</p> <p>The FCC may not preempt any state or local law prohibiting pirate radio broadcasting.</p> <p>The FCC shall: (1) revise its rules to require that, absent good cause, in any case alleging a violation, it shall proceed directly to issue a Notice of Apparent Liability without first issuing a Notice of Unlicensed Operations; and (2) publish a database of all licensed radio stations operating in the AM and FM bands, which shall be easily accessible from the FCC home page, identifying each licensed station and all entities that have received a Notice of Unlicensed Operation, Notice of Apparent Liability, or Forfeiture Order by the FCC.</p> <p>(Sec. 3) No additional funds are authorized to carry out this bill.</p>

tv_txt: I 115th CONGRESS 2d Session H. R. 5709 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES May 8, 2018 Mr. Lance (for himself, Mr. Tonko , Mr. Collins of New York , Mr. Gene Green of Texas , Mr. Bilirakis , Mr. Moulton , Mr. Flores , Mrs. Dingell , Mr. King of New York , Mrs. Carolyn B. Maloney of New York , Ms. Velázquez , Mr. Faso , Miss Rice of New York , and Mr. Sean Patrick Maloney of New York ) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce A BILL To amend the Communications Act of 1934 to provide for enhanced penalties for pirate radio, and for other purposes.

1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Preventing Illegal Radio Abuse Through Enforcement Act or the PIRATE Act . 2. Pirate Radio Enforcement Enhancements Title V of the Communications Act of 1934 ( 47 U.S.C. 501 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following new section: 511. Enhanced penalties for pirate radio broadcasting; seizure of illegal equipment; enforcement sweeps (a) Increased general penalty Any person who willfully and knowingly does or causes or suffers to be done any pirate radio broadcasting shall be subject to a fine of not more than $2,000,000. (b) Violation of this Act, rules, or regulations Any person who willfully and knowingly violates this Act or any rule, regulation, restriction, or condition made or imposed by the Commission under authority of this Act, or any rule, regulation, restriction, or condition made or imposed by any international radio or wire communications treaty or convention, or regulations annexed thereto, to which the United States is or may hereafter become party, relating to pirate radio broadcasting shall, in addition to any other penalties provided by law, be subject to a fine of not more than $100,000 for each day during which such offense occurs, in accordance with the limit described in subsection (a). (c) Live pirate radio broadcasting Section 503(b)(4) does not apply for a forfeiture penalty imposed on a person if the Commission has direct evidence that the person is responsible for a pirate radio broadcast and such broadcast is occurring in real time. (d) Facilitation Any person who knowingly and intentionally facilitates pirate radio broadcasting shall be subject to a fine of not more than $2,000,000. (e) Enforcement sweeps (1) Biannual sweeps Not less than twice each year, the Commission shall assign appropriate enforcement personal to focus specific and sustained attention on the elimination of pirate radio broadcasting within the top five radio markets identified as prevalent for such broadcasts. Such effort shall include identifying, locating, and terminating such operations and seizing related equipment under subsection (e). (2) No effect on remaining enforcement Notwithstanding paragraph (1), the Commission shall not decrease or diminish the regular enforcement efforts targeted to pirate radio broadcast stations for other times of the year. (f) State and local government authority (1) Statutes or ordinances permitted A State or local government may enact a statute or ordinance that imposes civil or criminal penalties for pirate radio broadcasting, or for knowingly and intentionally facilitating pirate radio broadcasting, provided that the determination whether a radio station is engaged in pirate radio broadcasting shall be made exclusively by the Commission. (2) Commission authority preserved Enforcement by a State or local government of a statute or ordinance under this section shall not preclude the Commission or Federal law enforcement authority from concurrently enforcing this section and section 301 of this Act, any other Federal law, or any regulation of the Commission thereunder. (g) Definitions In this section: (1) Pirate radio broadcasting The term pirate radio broadcasting means the transmission of communications on spectrum frequencies between 535 to 1705 kHz or 87.7 to 108 MHz without a license issued by the Federal Communications Commission, but does not include unlicensed operations in compliance with part 15 of title 47, Code of Federal Regulations. (2) Facilitates The term facilitates means providing access to property (and improvements thereon) or providing physical goods or services, including providing housing, facilities, or financing, that directly aid pirate radio broadcasting. (3) Knowingly and intentionally The term knowingly and intentionally means the person was previously served by the Commission with a notice of unlicensed operations, notice of apparent liability, or citation for efforts to facilitate pirate radio broadcasting. .

tv_txt: IIB 115th CONGRESS 2d Session H. R. 5709 IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES July 24, 2018 Received; read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation AN ACT To amend the Communications Act of 1934 to provide for enhanced penalties for pirate radio, and for other purposes.

1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Preventing Illegal Radio Abuse Through Enforcement Act or the PIRATE Act . 2. Pirate Radio Enforcement Enhancements Title V of the Communications Act of 1934 ( 47 U.S.C. 501 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following new section: 511. Enhanced penalties for pirate radio broadcasting; enforcement sweeps; reporting (a) Increased general penalty Any person who willfully and knowingly does or causes or suffers to be done any pirate radio broadcasting shall be subject to a fine of not more than $2,000,000. (b) Violation of this Act, rules, or regulations Any person who willfully and knowingly violates this Act or any rule, regulation, restriction, or condition made or imposed by the Commission under authority of this Act, or any rule, regulation, restriction, or condition made or imposed by any international radio or wire communications treaty or convention, or regulations annexed thereto, to which the United States is or may hereafter become party, relating to pirate radio broadcasting shall, in addition to any other penalties provided by law, be subject to a fine of not more than $100,000 for each day during which such offense occurs, in accordance with the limit described in subsection (a). (c) Facilitation Any person who knowingly and intentionally facilitates pirate radio broadcasting shall be subject to a fine of not more than $2,000,000. (d) Annual report Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of the PIRATE Act , and annually thereafter, the Commission shall submit to the House Committee on Energy and Commerce and the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation a report summarizing the implementation of this section and associated enforcement activities for the previous fiscal year, which may include the efforts by the Commission to enlist the cooperation of Federal, State, and local law enforcement personnel (including United States Attorneys and the United States Marshals Service) for service of process, collection of fines or forfeitures, seizures of equipment, and enforcement of orders. (e) Enforcement sweeps (1) Annual sweeps Not less than once each year, the Commission shall assign appropriate enforcement personnel to focus specific and sustained attention on the elimination of pirate radio broadcasting within the top five radio markets identified as prevalent for such broadcasts. Such effort shall include identifying, locating, and taking enforcement actions designed to terminate such operations. (2) Additional monitoring Within 6 months after conducting the enforcement sweeps required by paragraph (1), the Commission shall conduct monitoring sweeps to ascertain whether the pirate radio broadcasting identified by enforcement sweeps is continuing to broadcast and whether additional pirate radio broadcasting is occurring. (3) No effect on remaining enforcement Notwithstanding paragraph (1), the Commission shall not decrease or diminish the regular enforcement efforts targeted to pirate radio broadcast stations for other times of the year. (f) State and local government authority The Commission may not preempt any State or local law prohibiting pirate radio broadcasting. (g) Revision of Commission rules required The Commission shall revise its rules to require that, absent good cause, in any case alleging a violation of subsection (a) or (b), the Commission shall proceed directly to issue a Notice of Apparent Liability without first issuing a Notice of Unlicensed Operations . (h) Pirate radio broadcasting database (1) In general Not later than 90 days after the date of the enactment of this section, and semi-annually thereafter, the Commission shall publish a database in a clear and legible format of all licensed radio stations operating in the AM and FM bands. The database shall be easily accessible from the Commission home page through a direct link. The database shall include the following information: (A) Each licensed station, listed by the assigned frequency, channel number, or Commission call letters. (B) All entities that have received a Notice of Unlicensed Operation, Notice of Apparent Liability, or Forfeiture Order by the Commission. (2) Clear identification The Commission shall clearly identify in the database— (A) each licensed station as a station licensed by the Commission; and (B) each entity described in paragraph (1)(B) as operating without a Commission license or authorization. (i) Definitions In this section: (1) Pirate radio broadcasting The term pirate radio broadcasting means the transmission of communications on spectrum frequencies between 535 to 1705 kHz or 87.7 to 108 MHz without a license issued by the Federal Communications Commission, but does not include unlicensed operations in compliance with part 15 of title 47, Code of Federal Regulations. (2) Facilitates The term facilitates means providing access to property (and improvements thereon) or providing physical goods or services, including providing housing, facilities, or financing, that directly aid pirate radio broadcasting. (3) Knowingly and intentionally The term knowingly and intentionally means the person was previously served by the Commission with a notice of unlicensed operations, notice of apparent liability, or citation for efforts to facilitate pirate radio broadcasting. . 3. No additional funds authorized No additional funds are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this Act or the amendment made by this Act. This Act and the amendment made by this Act shall be carried out using amounts otherwise authorized.

Passed the House of Representatives July 23, 2018. Karen L. Haas, Clerk.

tv_txt: I 115th CONGRESS 2d Session H. R. 5709 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES AN ACT To amend the Communications Act of 1934 to provide for enhanced penalties for pirate radio, and for other purposes.

1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Preventing Illegal Radio Abuse Through Enforcement Act or the PIRATE Act . 2. Pirate Radio Enforcement Enhancements Title V of the Communications Act of 1934 ( 47 U.S.C. 501 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following new section: 511. Enhanced penalties for pirate radio broadcasting; enforcement sweeps; reporting (a) Increased general penalty Any person who willfully and knowingly does or causes or suffers to be done any pirate radio broadcasting shall be subject to a fine of not more than $2,000,000. (b) Violation of this Act, rules, or regulations Any person who willfully and knowingly violates this Act or any rule, regulation, restriction, or condition made or imposed by the Commission under authority of this Act, or any rule, regulation, restriction, or condition made or imposed by any international radio or wire communications treaty or convention, or regulations annexed thereto, to which the United States is or may hereafter become party, relating to pirate radio broadcasting shall, in addition to any other penalties provided by law, be subject to a fine of not more than $100,000 for each day during which such offense occurs, in accordance with the limit described in subsection (a). (c) Facilitation Any person who knowingly and intentionally facilitates pirate radio broadcasting shall be subject to a fine of not more than $2,000,000. (d) Annual report Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of the PIRATE Act , and annually thereafter, the Commission shall submit to the House Committee on Energy and Commerce and the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation a report summarizing the implementation of this section and associated enforcement activities for the previous fiscal year, which may include the efforts by the Commission to enlist the cooperation of Federal, State, and local law enforcement personnel (including United States Attorneys and the United States Marshals Service) for service of process, collection of fines or forfeitures, seizures of equipment, and enforcement of orders. (e) Enforcement sweeps (1) Annual sweeps Not less than once each year, the Commission shall assign appropriate enforcement personnel to focus specific and sustained attention on the elimination of pirate radio broadcasting within the top five radio markets identified as prevalent for such broadcasts. Such effort shall include identifying, locating, and taking enforcement actions designed to terminate such operations. (2) Additional monitoring Within 6 months after conducting the enforcement sweeps required by paragraph (1), the Commission shall conduct monitoring sweeps to ascertain whether the pirate radio broadcasting identified by enforcement sweeps is continuing to broadcast and whether additional pirate radio broadcasting is occurring. (3) No effect on remaining enforcement Notwithstanding paragraph (1), the Commission shall not decrease or diminish the regular enforcement efforts targeted to pirate radio broadcast stations for other times of the year. (f) State and local government authority The Commission may not preempt any State or local law prohibiting pirate radio broadcasting. (g) Revision of Commission rules required The Commission shall revise its rules to require that, absent good cause, in any case alleging a violation of subsection (a) or (b), the Commission shall proceed directly to issue a Notice of Apparent Liability without first issuing a Notice of Unlicensed Operations . (h) Pirate radio broadcasting database (1) In general Not later than 90 days after the date of the enactment of this section, and semi-annually thereafter, the Commission shall publish a database in a clear and legible format of all licensed radio stations operating in the AM and FM bands. The database shall be easily accessible from the Commission home page through a direct link. The database shall include the following information: (A) Each licensed station, listed by the assigned frequency, channel number, or Commission call letters. (B) All entities that have received a Notice of Unlicensed Operation, Notice of Apparent Liability, or Forfeiture Order by the Commission. (2) Clear identification The Commission shall clearly identify in the database— (A) each licensed station as a station licensed by the Commission; and (B) each entity described in paragraph (1)(B) as operating without a Commission license or authorization. (i) Definitions In this section: (1) Pirate radio broadcasting The term pirate radio broadcasting means the transmission of communications on spectrum frequencies between 535 to 1705 kHz or 87.7 to 108 MHz without a license issued by the Federal Communications Commission, but does not include unlicensed operations in compliance with part 15 of title 47, Code of Federal Regulations. (2) Facilitates The term facilitates means providing access to property (and improvements thereon) or providing physical goods or services, including providing housing, facilities, or financing, that directly aid pirate radio broadcasting. (3) Knowingly and intentionally The term knowingly and intentionally means the person was previously served by the Commission with a notice of unlicensed operations, notice of apparent liability, or citation for efforts to facilitate pirate radio broadcasting. . 3. No additional funds authorized No additional funds are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this Act or the amendment made by this Act. This Act and the amendment made by this Act shall be carried out using amounts otherwise authorized.

Passed the House of Representatives July 23, 2018. Karen L. Haas, Clerk.

tv_txt: IB Union Calendar No. 652 115th CONGRESS 2d Session H. R. 5709 [Report No. 115–843] IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES May 8, 2018 Mr. Lance (for himself, Mr. Tonko , Mr. Collins of New York , Mr. Gene Green of Texas , Mr. Bilirakis , Mr. Moulton , Mr. Flores , Mrs. Dingell , Mr. King of New York , Mrs. Carolyn B. Maloney of New York , Ms. Velázquez , Mr. Faso , Miss Rice of New York , and Mr. Sean Patrick Maloney of New York ) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce July 18, 2018 Additional sponsor: Mrs. Blackburn July 18, 2018 Reported with an amendment, committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the State of the Union, and ordered to be printed Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed in italic For text of introduced bill, see copy of bill as introduced on May 8, 2018 A BILL To amend the Communications Act of 1934 to provide for enhanced penalties for pirate radio, and for other purposes.

1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Preventing Illegal Radio Abuse Through Enforcement Act or the PIRATE Act . 2. Pirate Radio Enforcement Enhancements Title V of the Communications Act of 1934 ( 47 U.S.C. 501 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following new section: 511. Enhanced penalties for pirate radio broadcasting; enforcement sweeps; reporting (a) Increased general penalty Any person who willfully and knowingly does or causes or suffers to be done any pirate radio broadcasting shall be subject to a fine of not more than $2,000,000. (b) Violation of this Act, rules, or regulations Any person who willfully and knowingly violates this Act or any rule, regulation, restriction, or condition made or imposed by the Commission under authority of this Act, or any rule, regulation, restriction, or condition made or imposed by any international radio or wire communications treaty or convention, or regulations annexed thereto, to which the United States is or may hereafter become party, relating to pirate radio broadcasting shall, in addition to any other penalties provided by law, be subject to a fine of not more than $100,000 for each day during which such offense occurs, in accordance with the limit described in subsection (a). (c) Facilitation Any person who knowingly and intentionally facilitates pirate radio broadcasting shall be subject to a fine of not more than $2,000,000. (d) Annual report Not later than one year after the date of enactment of the PIRATE Act , and annually thereafter, the Commission shall submit to the House Committee on Energy and Commerce and the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation a report summarizing the implementation of this section and associated enforcement activities for the previous fiscal year, which may include the efforts by the Commission to enlist the cooperation of Federal, State, and local law enforcement personnel (including United States Attorneys and the United States Marshals Service) for service of process, collection of fines or forfeitures, seizures of equipment, and enforcement of orders. (e) Enforcement sweeps (1) Annual sweeps Not less than once each year, the Commission shall assign appropriate enforcement personnel to focus specific and sustained attention on the elimination of pirate radio broadcasting within the top five radio markets identified as prevalent for such broadcasts. Such effort shall include identifying, locating, and taking enforcement actions designed to terminate such operations. (2) Additional monitoring Within six months after conducting the enforcement sweeps required by paragraph (1), the Commission shall conduct monitoring sweeps to ascertain whether the pirate radio broadcasting identified by enforcement sweeps is continuing to broadcast and whether additional pirate radio broadcasting is occurring. (3) No effect on remaining enforcement Notwithstanding paragraph (1), the Commission shall not decrease or diminish the regular enforcement efforts targeted to pirate radio broadcast stations for other times of the year. (f) State and local government authority The Commission may not preempt any State or local law prohibiting pirate radio broadcasting. (g) Revision of Commission rules required The Commission shall revise its rules to require that, absent good cause, in any case alleging a violation of subsection (a) or (b), the Commission shall proceed directly to issue a Notice of Apparent Liability without first issuing a Notice of Unlicensed Operations . (h) Pirate radio broadcasting database (1) In general Not later than 90 days after the date of the enactment of this section, and semi-annually thereafter, the Commission shall publish a database in a clear and legible format of all licensed radio stations operating in the AM and FM bands. The database shall be easily accessible from the Commission home page through a direct link. The database shall include the following information: (A) Each licensed station, listed by the assigned frequency, channel number, or Commission call letters. (B) All entities that have received a Notice of Unlicensed Operation, Notice of Apparent Liability, or Forfeiture Order by the Commission. (2) Clear identification The Commission shall clearly identify in the database— (A) each licensed station as a station licensed by the Commission; and (B) each entity described in paragraph (1)(B) as operating without a Commission license or authorization. (i) Definitions In this section: (1) Pirate radio broadcasting The term pirate radio broadcasting means the transmission of communications on spectrum frequencies between 535 to 1705 kHz or 87.7 to 108 MHz without a license issued by the Federal Communications Commission, but does not include unlicensed operations in compliance with part 15 of title 47, Code of Federal Regulations. (2) Facilitates The term facilitates means providing access to property (and improvements thereon) or providing physical goods or services, including providing housing, facilities, or financing, that directly aid pirate radio broadcasting. (3) Knowingly and intentionally The term knowingly and intentionally means the person was previously served by the Commission with a notice of unlicensed operations, notice of apparent liability, or citation for efforts to facilitate pirate radio broadcasting. .

July 18, 2018 Reported with an amendment, committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the State of the Union, and ordered to be printed