Statements on Introduced Bills and Joint Resolutions

Floor Speech

STATEMENTS ON INTRODUCTED BILLS AND JOINT RESOLUTIONS -- (Senate - December 08, 2009)

By Mr. WHITEHOUSE (for himself and Mr. Schumer):

S. 2847. A bill to regulate the volume of audio on commercials; to the Committee on commerce, Science, and Transportation.

Mr. WHITEHOUSE. Mr. President, I rise today to introduce the Commercial Advertisement Loudness Mitigation Act of 2009--the CALM Act. I want to thank my original cosponsor Senator Schumer for his support of this straightforward and commonsense legislation, which would require the Federal Communications Commission, FCC, to limit the volume of television advertisements to a level no louder than the average volume level of the programs during which the advertisements appear. This time for this Act is overdue. All too often over the years, Americans, sitting down after a long workday or workweek to enjoy their favorite television shows, have been assaulted by commercials at volumes that are degrees of magnitude louder than the shows themselves. The FCC first received enough complaints from viewers to look into the problem in the 1960s--when television was in its earliest stages--but technology did not exist to fix the problem. Each decade, as consumer complaints piled up, the FCC had to reexamine the loudness issue. Unfortunately, it took no action even with the technology improved. The complaints continue to this day; in the 25 quarterly reports on consumer complaints released by the FCC since 2002, 21 have listed as a top complaint the loudness of television commercials.

But now, with the digital transition complete and new broadcast technology available, we can finally take this long-overdue action. We now have a common digital platform used by all broadcasters, which presents a terrific opportunity to standardize the loudness of the ads broadcast into our living rooms. As Consumers Union, the nonprofit organization that publishes Consumers Report has stated, in testimony before the House of Representatives, ``the CALM Act provides an elegant and commonsense solution to finally ending a forty-five year consumer complaint in the United States.''

The House has already begun its consideration of companion legislation, and I applaud the leadership of Representative Eshoo on this issue. The television industry has been deeply involved in the drafting of this legislation, and the standards it adopts are practicable, affordable, and effective. I hope my Senate colleagues will act quickly to pass the CALM Act and finally put an end to this longstanding irritation.

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