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S 2241 98th Congress Senate

Broadcasters Protection Act of 1984

Official title: A bill to clarify the obligations of broadcasters to legally qualified candidates for public office, and for other purposes.

Introduced: February 1, 1984 See on congress.gov
Government Operations and Politics BroadcastingCensorshipCivil Rights and LibertiesCivil actions and liability
More subjectsShow fewer subjects
Communications and BroadcastingCourts and Civil ProcedureCriminal liabilityElection candidatesEqual time ruleFreedom of speechLicensesPolitical advertisingRadio broadcastingTelevisionTelevision broadcastingVoting
This bill died when the 98th Congress ended
It never became law before the 98th Congress (1983–1984) adjourned, and bills don't carry over to the next Congress. It would have to be reintroduced. You can still save it for reference, but it won't receive updates.
 Everywhere this bill has been 2 steps
Introduced
In committee
Reported out
Passed House
Passed Senate
To President
Became law
Feb 1, 1984
Read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce.
Feb 1, 1984
Introduced in Senate
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 Latest action February 1, 1984

Read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce.

 Plain-English summary Congressional Research Service

Broadcasters' Protection Act of 1984 - Amends the Communications Act of 1934 to declare that provisions requiring a broadcast station licensee to provide equal opportunities for station access to political candidates and prohibiting the licensee from censoring a candidate's broadcast do not require the licensee to broadcast any material the broadcast of which the licensee believes would violate any criminal law. Provides that a licensee's refusal to broadcast material based on such belief shall be a defense to any revocation action by the Federal Communications Commission and shall not be used adversely against the licensee in a comparative licensing process.

Permits a broadcaster to petition any appropriate U.S. district court for a determination as to whether the broadcast of such material would violate a criminal law and for declaratory judgment relief. Allows a candidate whose broadcast is denied to petition the court for such a determination and for declaratory judgment relief with respect to such denial.

 Related & companion bills 1
 Committees of jurisdiction 1
Cite this page click to expand
APA
U.S. Congress. (2026). S. 2241: Broadcasters Protection Act of 1984. 98th Congress. Open America. https://openamerica.io/bill/98-S-2241/
MLA
"S. 2241: Broadcasters Protection Act of 1984." 98th Congress, 2026, Open America, https://openamerica.io/bill/98-S-2241/.
Bluebook (legal)
S. 2241, 98th Cong. (2026), https://openamerica.io/bill/98-S-2241/.
Markdown link
[S. 2241: Broadcasters Protection Act of 1984](https://openamerica.io/bill/98-S-2241/)
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