A bill to authorize the Federal Communications Commission to specify additional sources from which a radio station licensee must obtain information to enable the licensee to announce that a foreign governmental entity has paid for a broadcast.

Bill: 117-s-4713
Sponsor: full_name: Sen. Schatz, Brian [D-HI]
Introduced: 2022-08-02
Policy area: Science, Technology, Communications
Latest action: action_date: 2022-08-02
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.

Summaries:
action_date: 2022-08-02
action_desc: Introduced in Senate
text: <p>This bill requires radio station licensees to obtain information from additional sources designated by the Federal Communications Commission when verifying (for purposes of announcing) if a foreign governmental entity paid for or furnished radio programming. The bill also specifies when licensees must obtain information and sets out related recordkeeping requirements.</p>

tv_txt: II 117th CONGRESS 2d Session S. 4713 IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES August 2, 2022 Mr. Schatz (for himself and Mrs. Blackburn ) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation A BILL To authorize the Federal Communications Commission to specify additional sources from which a radio station licensee must obtain information to enable the licensee to announce that a foreign governmental entity has paid for a broadcast.

1. Announcement of payment for broadcast Section 317(c) of the Communications Act of 1934 ( 47 U.S.C. 317(c) ) is amended to read as follows: (c) (1) The licensee of each radio station shall exercise reasonable diligence to obtain information to enable such licensee to make the announcement required by this section. (2) In carrying out paragraph (1), the licensee of a radio station shall consult— (A) its employees; (B) other persons with whom it deals directly in connection with any program or program matter for broadcast; and (C) any additional source of information the Commission designates that may enable the licensee to verify whether the matter broadcast by the radio station was paid for or furnished by a foreign governmental entity. (3) The licensee of a radio station shall— (A) obtain the information required under paragraph (1)— (i) when the licensee enters into an agreement to lease time on the radio station; and (ii) when the licensee renews any agreement described in clause (i); and (B) keep a record of the information required under paragraph (1). (4) For purposes of this subsection— (A) the term agent of a foreign principal means an agent of a foreign principal, as defined in section 1(c) of the Foreign Agents Registration Act of 1938, as amended ( 22 U.S.C. 611(c) )— (i) that is registered as such with the Attorney General under section 2 of that Act ( 22 U.S.C. 612 ); (ii) if the agent's foreign principal— (I) is a government of a foreign country or a foreign political party; or (II) is directly or indirectly operated, supervised, directed, owned, controlled, financed, or subsidized by the government of a foreign country or a foreign political party; and (iii) that is acting in its capacity as an agent of such foreign principal described in clause (ii); (B) the term foreign governmental entity includes— (i) the government of a foreign country; (ii) a foreign political party; (iii) an agent of a foreign principal; and (iv) a United States-based foreign media outlet (as defined in section 624); (C) the term foreign political party has the meaning given the term in section 1(f) of the Foreign Agents Registration Act of 1938, as amended ( 22 U.S.C. 611(f) ); and (D) the term government of a foreign country has the meaning given the term in section 1(e) of the Foreign Agents Registration Act of 1938, as amended ( 22 U.S.C. 611(e) ). .