Providing for Consideration of S. 352, DTV Delay Act

Floor Speech

PROVIDING FOR CONSIDERATION OF S. 352, DTV DELAY ACT -- (House of Representatives - February 4, 2009)

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Ms. WATERS. Madam Speaker and Members, can you imagine February 18, when millions of households will have their TVs go dark, and not understand why? Yes, it would be great if everyone had received their coupons, if everybody understood the transition to digital. But they don't.

I cannot understand why the Members of Congress would not be generous enough to have an appreciation for the fact that people are going to be terribly inconvenienced. Seniors who depend on their friend, the TV, let alone all of those televisions that will go dark without people understanding why. We could have a national emergency and our first responders would not have the opportunity to have an interoperative system where they could talk to each other.

I don't care about whether or not amendments have not been heard by either side. This bill has been debated ad nauseam in committee over a long period of time. And so, Members of Congress, if you want your telephones ringing off the hook, if you want 911 tied up, if you want people knocking on the door of their neighbors and others, trying to find out what is wrong, you act irresponsibly and not support this legislation, and let all hell break loose, because we will have a crisis on our hands.

I would ask the Members: be responsible. Don't nickel and dime this legislation. Don't create an unnecessary bureaucracy. Just vote the bill out so that we can support the average American in having their television not go on dark on February 18.

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