President Bush yesterday signed into law an act containing legislation for finalizing the country’s move to new, higher-quality digital television by early 2009.
Congress in December moved the date back from April 7, 2009, to Feb. 17, 2009, changing current statutes, which aim to get stations to switch to digital-only signals by Dec. 31, 2006, or when 85 percent of the country can receive such transmissions.
The act – part of the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005 – also allocates at least $990 million of the projected $10 billion analog spectrum auction proceeds toward a digital-to-analog converter box program. It further sets aside $1 billion for a grant program to help public safety agencies buy interoperable communications systems. That money will be raised by auctioning recovered broadcast spectrum.
The Telecommunications Industry Association (TIA), which represents information and communications technologies companies, praised the act’s signing.
"We applaud the leadership of the Administration and Congress and greatly appreciate the president's signature on this legislation that allocates a portion of the revenue raised during the auction of recovered broadcast spectrum to fund the needs of our first responders for interoperable communications systems," said TIA President Matthew J. Flanigan.
Telecommunications Industry Association www.tiaonline.org
