The Vice President of Public Policy at the National Religious Broadcasters (NRB) has provided a formal Letter for the Record to a key House Subcommittee that outlines the impacts of a potential permanent Daylight Saving Time on stations reliant on service in the kHz band.
Nic Anderson offered the commentary in response to a House Energy & Commerce Committee Subcommittee on Commerce, Manufacturing, and Trade hearing conducted on Thursday under the title “Examining Time, Travel, and Tourism,” which includes a focus on permanent DST.
Witnesses included the President/CEO of the American Hotel and Lodging Association; the CEO of the National Golf Course Owners Association; an associate professor of accounting at the University of Kentucky; and the CEO of the International Inbound Travel Association.
While the subcommittee led by Rep. Gus Bilirakis (R-Fla.) did not invite NRB—or anyone else from the broadcast industry—to participate on the witness panel, Anderson responded to a request regarding the impacts on AM radio of a permanent Daylight Saving Time. The letter was submitted on Wednesday night, in time for the Thursday morning meaning on Capitol Hill.
“While the submission was made on behalf of NRB, I was holding my ‘Salem hat’ as well, given my dual role and the fact that Salem and NRB are aligned on this issue,” Anderson tells RBR+TVBR and Radio Ink.
In short, if DST were made permanent, “this would force AM broadcasters to remain on low power (or completely off-air for ‘daytimer’ stations) during much of the winter morning drive—the single most important programming and revenue window in radio.”
Second, Permanent DST “simply undermines the nation’s ability to access it when it matters most.”
Anderson notes, “Even when an issue doesn’t draw headlines, our industry continues the necessary ‘blocking and tackling’ on Capitol Hill and in state legislatures to protect AM radio and the broader broadcasting community.”
In the letter, he shares, “AM radio remains a vital component of America’s media ecosystem, rural communications infrastructure, and faith-based media landscape. Permanent DST would cause widespread disruption to morning AM service, diminish public safety, and impose significant financial harm on local broadcasters who serve their communities faithfully every day. For these reasons, the National Religious Broadcasters respectfully urges the Subcommittee and full Committee to oppose the Sunshine Protection Act of 2025 and reject any effort to implement permanent Daylight Saving Time.”
Speaking with RBR+TVBR and Radio Ink, Anderson points to the “more than 4,000 AM stations serving communities across the country,” and the reality that “AM remains one of the most relied-upon platforms for local news, emergency information, and faith-based programming.”
