Switched has a new home! Huffpost Tech.

Click here to visit the new home of Switched!

Hot on HuffPost Tech:

See More Stories
AOL Tech

Congress Passes CALM Act, Puts Limits on Commercial Volume Levels

by Amar Toor on December 3, 2010 at 12:40 PM

rep. anna eshoo Don't adjust your TV sets. Democrats and Republicans really did just find a solution to one of the world's biggest problems: commercial decibel levels. After having already breezed through the Senate in October, the Commercial Advertisement Loudness Mitigation (CALM) Act received a final stamp of approval yesterday from the House of Representatives. It's now headed to the White House, where it will await President Obama's signature.

Sponsored by California Democratic Representative Anna Eshoo, the bill requires all commercials to be broadcast at the same decibel level as the programs they interrupt. Advertisers will have one year to adjust their commercials to meet the required sound levels, and the FCC will be charged with regulating and enforcing the policy.

"Consumers have been asking for a solution to this problem for decades, and today they finally have it," Eshoo said in a statement. Once the CALM Act is signed, "consumers will no longer have to experience being blasted at -- it's a simple fix to a huge nuisance." And with this major item off of its to-do list, we're sure Congress will move on to finding equally simple fixes for the rest of America's "nuisances."

Tags: CalmAct, commercial, congress, FCC, HouseOfRepresentatives, media, obama, politics, Senate, top, tv, volume

HuffPost AOL Social News Most Popular