Patrick Leahy: “I am very pleased that the other body just passed their version of the Satellite Home Viewer Act under suspension of the…”

“I am very pleased that the other body just passed their version of the Satellite Home Viewer Act under suspension of the rules. H.R. 4518, the W.J. (Billy) Tauzin Satellite Television Act of 2004, is a strong bill. During this process, I have heard from many Vermonters who are concerned about not being able to receive Vermont stations over satellite. Others have been concerned about possibly having their ability to receive certain stations terminated. One reason for these strong concerns is that Vermont has the highest percentage in the Nation of TV owners who receive programming using satellite dishes. One reason for this is our beautiful mountains and valleys which make it more difficult to receive TV signals using regular antennas. The Hatch-Leahy Satellite Homer Viewer Extension Act of 2004 was approved by the Senate Judiciary Committee in June. All the members of the Judiciary Committee supported that bill. In the other body, members of both the Judiciary Committee and the Energy and Commerce Committee worked together in a bipartisan fashion to craft a comprehensive bill which will be good for consumers and for the affected industries. That bill, if enacted, will be a boon to public television, the satellite industry, the movie, music and television industries, and to satellite dish owners throughout America.”