Go Pack Go Act of 2025

Summary#

This bill, the Go Pack Go Act of 2025, adds rules to the Communications Act of 1934 and to parts of Title 17 of the U.S. Code about TV signal carriage and copyright. It creates a new Section 346 that says a cable operator or satellite carrier must allow a subscriber in a listed "covered county" to choose, for each TV network, to receive:

  • the local network station signal that the operator already must carry; or
  • an "in-State, adjacent-market network station retransmission" (a network station whose community of license is in the subscriber's State and in a market adjacent to the subscriber's market); or
  • both.

The bill lists specific covered counties in the State of Wisconsin. For satellite carriers, the requirement applies only to the extent it is technically feasible, as decided by the Federal Communications Commission. The bill also changes other federal rules: it says cable operators do not need retransmission consent for these in-State adjacent-market retransmissions and that those signals are "deemed significantly viewed" in the covered counties. It amends several provisions of Title 17 (including sections 119 and 122) and section 339 of the Communications Act so that these in-State, adjacent-market retransmissions to subscribers in the covered counties do not count toward certain statutory limits or affect certain qualified-carrier statuses.

What it means for you#

  • If you are a cable or satellite TV subscriber living in one of the listed covered counties, you could choose to get an in‑State adjacent‑market network station instead of the local affiliate for a given network.
  • Cable operators must provide this choice. Satellite carriers must provide it when it is technically feasible, as determined by the FCC.
  • The change affects how those retransmissions are treated under federal carriage and copyright rules (for example, they are treated as significantly viewed and are excluded from some statutory limits).

Expenses#

No publicly available information.

Proponents' View#

The bill's stated purpose is to provide greater access to in-State television broadcast programming for cable and satellite subscribers in certain counties.

Opponents' View#

No publicly available information.