Senate version carries 60 co-sponsors and bipartisan support
The House on Tuesday passed the AM Radio for Every Vehicle Act, sending to the Senate a bipartisan bill that would require automakers to include AM radio tuners in new vehicles. The bill would direct the Transportation Department to issue a rule requiring AM radio within one year of enactment, and the authority to enforce the provision would expire after eight years.
Advocates including broadcasters and former federal emergency officials have pressed lawmakers for years to mandate AM radio after automakers such as Tesla, Volvo and BMW stopped providing those tuners in new models. Supporters argue the technology remains a vital piece of the federal emergency communication system and that many Americans continue to depend on it.
“As much as our technology continues to evolve, nothing has changed that fact that if you don’t have cell networks and you don’t have power, radio is your lifeline,” Curtis LeGeyt, president and chief executive of the National Association of Broadcasters, said.
The bill lands as the auto industry contends with tariffs, higher fuel prices and the prospect of Chinese automakers entering the U.S. market. The industry’s shift away from incorporating AM radio began a decade ago, as more car companies developed electric vehicles for the U.S. market.
Many carmakers have said currents from EV motors can interfere with AM broadcast signals and have removed radio receivers from newer models as a result. A study funded by the industry and conducted by the Center for Automotive Research estimated it would cost automakers $3.8 billion to mitigate interference between EVs and AM radio.
Ford Motor was among the companies that initially dropped AM radio but reversed course after Chief Executive Jim Farley said he spoke with policy leaders “about the importance of AM broadcast radio as a part of the emergency alert system.” A Ford spokesman did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Industry lobbyists have long opposed an AM radio mandate, arguing that the broadcast band is no longer widely used and that it can interfere with the growing array of electronics in modern vehicles. John Bozzella, president and chief executive of the Alliance for Automotive Innovation, told lawmakers in 2024 that analog AM radio does not contribute to motor vehicle safety.
“Unlike lifesaving, and mandated, technologies like air bags, seat belts, electronic stability control and headlights, analog AM radio does not contribute to motor vehicle safety,” Bozzella said.
The Senate version of the legislation has 60 co-sponsors and bipartisan support.
“What makes this piece of legislation really stand out, and has shaped the advocacy around it, is the broad bipartisan support,” LeGeyt said, “in a moment where Republicans and Democrats can’t agree on just about anything.”
AM radio, which dates back more than 100 years, is used by more than 4,000 stations in the United States. Its audience has shrunk as FM radio audiences have grown over time.