US automakers could soon be forced to include AM radio for free

It turns out that the one thing that can apparently bridge Washington’s partisan divide is AM radio. U.S. automakers may be forced to build AM radio into new vehicles within the next year.

The House of Representatives, in a rare instance of bipartisan support, overwhelmingly approved legislation on Wednesday that would require new cars, trucks, and SUVs to be built with AM radio at no additional charge to consumers. The AM Radio for Every Vehicle Act, which would direct the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to require automakers to include AM radio in new passenger vehicles as standard equipment, will now head to the Senate.

Until recently, proponents of AM radio have waged an unsuccessful lobbying effort for a mandate, arguing that it offers critical information during emergencies because its signal can travel long distances. But a groundswell of support from Democrats and Republicans, the broadcast industry, emergency responder organizations and even former administrators of the Federal Emergency Management Agency is pushing this legislation closer to becoming law.

And there is reason to believe the Senate will follow the House’s lead on the bill, which was co-sponsored by Sens. Ed Markey (D-Mass.) and Ted Cruz (R-Texas). Earlier this year, the senators secured 60 co-sponsors for their version of the bill, a critical threshold to overcoming a filibuster.

Cruz, who chairs the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee, and Markey hailed the decision in a joint statement Wednesday.

“This vote sends a clear message to car manufacturers that AM Radio is a lifeline that must be protected in new vehicles. From emergency response to sports, entertainment, and news, AM radio is an essential communication tool for tens of millions of Americans. It is now time for the Senate to pass the AM Radio for Every Vehicle Act and for this legislation to become law so AM radio remains a trusted and essential resource for commuters and communities across the country.”

A growing number of automakers have moved away from the century-old broadcast band in favor of software-defined vehicles that offer streaming services like TuneIn and SiriusXM. EV makers have led the charge because the electromagnetic interference generated by electric motors can affect the frequencies used by AM radio. Automakers have argued that this interference degrades the AM signal and audio quality.

A growing number of automakers no longer have traditional AM receivers, including BMW, Rivian, Tesla, and Volvo. Ford had also removed AM radio from some vehicles but has since reversed course. Tesla couldn’t be reached for comment; Rivian declined to comment for this story.

Tesla doesn’t have AM receivers in the base versions of its Model 3 and Model Y vehicles. Rivian’s new R2 SUV doesn’t have an FM or AM receiver, however, the vehicle model offers AM/FM radio through the digital radio platform iHeartRadio for free. The Rivian R1S and R1T models allow customers to access FM content digitally or via built‐in receiver.

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Kirsten Korosec is a reporter and editor who has covered the future of transportation from EVs and autonomous vehicles to urban air mobility and in-car tech for more than a decade. She is currently the transportation editor at TechCrunch and co-host of TechCrunch’s Equity podcast. She is also co-founder and co-host of the podcast, “The Autonocast.” She previously wrote for Fortune, The Verge, Bloomberg, MIT Technology Review and CBS Interactive.

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