Why Congress Wants AM Radio in Every Car
Members of the House of Representatives passed legislation to require AM broadcast radio devices in all automobiles on Tuesday, Sept. 15, a move to ensure that Americans have access to information during emergencies.
“Tens of millions of Americans tune into broadcast AM radio every day,” House Energy & Commerce Committee Chairman Brett Guthrie said on the House floor, according to a press release. “Farmers use AM radio for weather forecasts, local information, and crop reports, while older Americans rely on it for local news and programming.
“AM radio is a critical tool for emergency communications. When a disaster hits and a broadband network goes dark, AM radio can continue providing critical emergency information to communities,” said Guthrie, a Kentucky representative.
The AM Radio for Every Vehicle Act of 2025, sponsored by Republican Florida Rep. Gus Bilirakis, directs the Department of Transportation to mandate vehicle makers to maintain the radio devices as “standard equipment in their vehicles in a way that is easily accessible for consumers, and without a separate or additional payment, fee, or surcharge.”
“AM radio remains an important lifeline for millions of Americans — especially during hurricanes, severe weather, and other emergencies when access to reliable information can be critical,” Bilirakis wrote in a social media post. “It also connects communities with local news, sports, agriculture updates, and public safety information.”
Bilirakis celebrated the passage as “a commonsense, bipartisan win for consumers and public safety.” The legislation still needs to be passed in the Senate and signed by President Donald Trump before officially becoming law.
Rural Access and Potential EV Costs
According to a January 2026 Radio World analysis of Federal Communications Commission data, there are 4,342 AM radio stations across the country. The National Association of Broadcasters says that rural and tribal communities specifically rely on AM radio, as internet and cellular connections are “limited or unreliable.”
“AM radio is often used to deliver emergency alerts and news and entertainment programming; some newer vehicles do not include AM equipment,” the legislation notes. The Congressional Budget Office says that the bill would cost the Department of Transportation and Government Accountability Office a total of $1 million over a five-year period from 2026-2031.
The budget office said that the legislation would particularly impact manufacturers of electric vehicles “who have removed, or announced plans to remove, standard AM radio equipment.”
“Based on sales data for EVs, the legislation would require manufacturers to update radio equipment in about 2 to 2.5 million vehicles each year,” the Congressional Budget Office website says. “Since most EVs are already equipped with FM radio, this would likely result in a small increase in production costs to update the media system software and modify other radio components.”
This story is based on reporting from USA TODAY.
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