From The DuPage Democrat

Durbin Teams Up With McCain and Feingold to Introduce Campaign Air Time Legislation
September 2003

[WASHINGTON, DC] ­ U.S. Dick Durbin (D-IL) today joined forces with Sens. John McCain (R-AZ), Russell Feingold (D-WI) to launch the next phase of campaign finance reform which is targeted at television and radio advertising. The bill, known as the Our Democracy, Our Airwaves Act, would provide political candidates an opportunity to purchase TV and radio air time at affordable rates and would require broadcasters to air at least two hours per week of candidate or issue-centered programming in the weeks before election day.

"If we truly want to reform political campaigns in America, we cannot have a serious conversation unless we address the role of television. Television used to be a tiny part of political campaigns, but spending on political TV spots has skyrocketed ­ totaling more than $1 billion spent in 2002 by candidates, parties, and issue groups for political ads," said Durbin.

"Our legislation will help reduce the amount of money in politics by making the public airwaves more accessible for political speech. The airwaves belong to the American taxpayers, and the network stations must give time back to challengers and incumbents across the United States if we're going to succeed in putting a stop to the money chase and the millions of dollars being spent on campaigns," noted Durbin.

Although current law requires that in the days preceding an election, candidates are entitled to the lowest unit charge for broadcast media rates, Durbin says television stations have taken this law and have turned it upside down.

"Candidates end up paying dramatically more than the lowest unit rate unless they are content to see their ads run at 3 o'clock in the morning. And as the costs to campaigns balloon, candidates must scramble and plead for people to contribute funds so they can pay the television stations," said Durbin. "As former Senator Bill Bradley observed: Today's political campaigns function as collection agencies for broadcasters. Candidates simply transfer money from contributors to television stations."

Durbin said the Our Democracy, Our Airwaves Act addresses these concerns in three key ways:

First, it requires that television and radio stations, as part of the public interest obligation they incur when they receive a free broadcast license, air at least two hours a week of candidate-centered or issue-centered programming during the period before elections.

Second, it enables qualifying federal candidates and national parties to earn limited ad time by raising funds in small donations. Up to $750 million worth of broadcast vouchers would be made available to be used to place political advertisements on television and radio stations in each two year election cycle.

And third, it closes loopholes in the "lowest unit rate" statute in order to ensure that candidates receive non-preemptible time at the same advertising rates that stations give to their high-volume, year-round advertisers.

"What is often forgotten is that the airwaves belong to the American people. Broadcasting stations are trustees of the lucrative electromagnetic spectrum. Broadcasters pay nothing for their exclusive licenses and are allowed to use the publicly owned airwaves on just one condition: that they serve the public interest," said Durbin. "Our bill will help promote the democratic debate that is so important to our political system and return the radio and television airwaves to the American people."

Despite a 69-31 Senate vote in favor of a similar Durbin-Torricelli-Dorgan-Corzine amendment relating to non-preemptible air time in March 2001, the broadcasters pressured the House of Representatives to remove the language. The campaign finance reform legislation ultimately signed in to law by the President failed to include this element.