"We are very concerned about the language in the proposed legislation! 

It would guarantee the demise of the few remaining 

minority owned and focused television stations."

from a top-5 DMA LPTV owner and new national network owner

"First time Congress would explicitly say the FCC can execute LPTV.  Bad!"

from a new top-20 DMA LPTV investor

"Get any reference to the incentive auction stricken

from the Barton LPTV legislation!"

from a newly built LPTV station owner

"Here is the issue, the Bill really says nothing."

from a major multi-station group owner

"The Bill is hardly helpful to the cause and is counter 

to the relief that is needed."

from a communications attorney representing over 75 LPTV stations

"The Bill is dangerous in that amendments made to it could actually 

take away from the privileges already afforded to LPTV."

from a fast growing multi-station group owner faith broadcaster

"The Bill was either written by an idiot or by someone who wants to harm LPTV. What it asks for is already in the rules and/or plans, and therefore it implies that LPTV can and should get no more than that in any future NPRM. We were surely expecting a lot more. 

I say we have smart enemies."

from a top-10 DMA station owner who has been involved in LPTV since the beginning

"For this Bill to work, it must GUARANTEE that LPTV licenses will 

not be terminated in the auction process."

an LPTV licensee who says he "just wants to be left alone to be a broadcaster"

"The only substantially helpful "Bill" for LPTV is to change the original legislation that established the auction, so that it includes LPTV in the legal definition of "Television Station." Anything other than that means LPTV is at the mercy of some other service."

from one of the leading faith broadcasters and largest LPTV spectrum holders

"Any legislation which is written by a few industry insiders behind closed doors with no widespread buy-in of that industry before being introduced will find itself DOA in today's toxic Congress."

from a VERY experienced Capitol Hill staffer with major communications chops

"Stop confusing what secondary truly means."

from a major faith network executive

"The Barton LPTV Bill verifies in writing that Congress will allow the FCC to take any LPTV license it wants in the auction process."

from a very savvy LPTV investor

"It appears the new section was added to give Congress/FCC greater flexibility to steamroll over LPTV if and where necessary."

from a top-20 market LPTV station owner in Texas

If these are the comments coming in after only 6 hrs. of polling of the industry, imagine how the rest of the 1825+ LPTV licensees who are operating and building the 10,000 LPTV stations actually feel about this Bill!  Congressman Barton would not allow the Coalition to provide any commentary about the Bill before it was released.  This Bill was bought and paid for by the Advanced Television Broadcasting Alliance, a shadowy group backed by ultra-conservative TV station group Sinclair Broadcasting, the largest NAB station group owner.  

So who do you think this Bill benefits?  NAB has prevented LPTV from getting must-carry cable carriage, no mandatory retrans negotiations, prevented LPTV from participating in the auction, and would not let LPTV get relocation funding, which is a $1 billion unfunded mandate on LPTV licensees.  Congressman Barton and Sinclair Broadcasting did not want the input from independent LPTV licensees, and especially not the women and minority owned stations the Coalition represents because they just did not want these diverse small businesses to survive. They want to "cull the herd" and have the remaining LPTV spectrum for themselves.  

"This Bill is the biggest single erosion of LPTV spectrum usage 

rights 

in the 30-year history of the LPTV industry!"

 former FCC Media Bureau official

The National Translator Association has not approved this Bill!

The National Religious Broadcasters Association has not approved this Bill!

APTS/CPB/PBS has not approved this Bill!

Our Coalition opposes this Bill and the process that was used to draft it.

STOP BARTON, WALDEN, and SINCLAIR

FROM KILLING LPTV!

They will say that is not their intent...but the proof is in the Bill! 

The industry experts and stakeholders disagree, and so do we! 

Remember, these are the same Congressman which gave us the Spectrum Incentive Auction, and we know how costly that idea has proven to be to our industry, our small businesses, and our investments.  

They tried to kill off LPTV in 2012, and now they are back to finish us off!