Norton Applauds Digital Transition Delay, Brings FCC to Help Residents Prepare (2/4/09)

Norton Applauds Digital Transition Delay, Brings FCC to Help Residents Prepare

February 4, 2009

Washington, DC - Efforts by Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC) to prepare residents for the conversion to digital television paid off today when the House voted 264-158 to delay the switch by four months to allow more time for residents to prepare and for Congress to allocate sufficient funds to help residents afford the converter boxes needed. Representatives from the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) will be available at Norton's annual tax fair next week, Sat., Feb. 14, 10 a.m. - 1 p.m., at the Washington Convention Center, to provide information and a demonstration to help residents prepare for the digital switch.

Norton last year engaged in several efforts to inform residents of the District of the changes and how to prepare. Her efforts included bringing hundreds of seniors together with representatives from the FCC to learn about the digital transition and taking Best Buy associates to an event for Hispanic residents to ensure that language barriers would not interfere with their readiness for the digital transition. At the events, residents also were offered vouchers for the $40 coupons that were supposed to be made available to every household.

In recent weeks, as the initial Feb. 17 deadline approached, the Congresswoman's office received many calls from D.C. residents concerned because they had not received coupons for the digital converters, and they feared no coupons would be available in time since funds for the converter program reportedly had run out. Norton was pleased that her residents remained informed and called her office to ask questions.

Norton said, "Despite our efforts and the efforts of residents to get the coupons, some D.C. residents would have seen their televisions go dark without today's bill. The government did not carry its side of this bargain. The only fair thing to do was to delay the transition."

The new deadline is likely to be June 12. The bill passed in the Senate last week, and Obama, who raised concerns about insufficient funds for coupons, is expected to sign it.