The NAB Small/Medium Market Radio Committee met in Washington, D.C., on January 29 in conjunction with the NAB Board meeting. During the meeting, FCC Commissioner Robert McDowell answered hot button questions on localism; iBiquity Broadcast Sales Manager Paul Dadian described the steps needed to go HD in smaller markets; and NAB Radio Board member and Committee Chair Pete Benedetti urged all small/medium market broadcasters to fight the performance tax by contacting their local congressional representatives as soon as possible.

Members of the committee expressed their views to Commissioner McDowell on whether they needed to have their stations manned 24 hours a day. The committee also explained to the Commissioner how impossible and contrary to the public interest it would be for all stations to locate their main studio within the station's community of license. The committee was responding to a series of proposals released by the FCC. The FCC is considering reinstating several rules that they eliminated as unnecessary more than two decades ago due to marketplace competition.

This Radio Committee was established to advise NAB on issues of importance to smaller markets. Members fly into Washington, D.C., at least once a year to receive updates on legislative and regulatory issues and to meet with other small market broadcasters to discuss what they can do as a committee to support all broadcasters in the smaller markets.