Rep. Chris Smith (R-NJ) introduced legislation on Wednesday, with Rep. Donald Payne, Jr. (D-NJ) as the lead cosponsor, that would promptly set up a common local broadcast channel specifically for citizens of New Jersey, so they can receive potentially life-saving news, information, and emergency programming.

“New Jersey is one of only two states without a common broadcast channel specific to the state. This means that in times of emergency—like we saw in Superstorm Sandy—many residents may not be receiving potentially life-saving news and information,” Smith said. “This legislation—the Local Television Service and Emergency Preparedness Act—aims to correct this long-standing problem.”

“The Local Television Service and Emergency Preparedness Act is an essential step in correcting a critical imbalance,” Payne said. “Our constituents deserve New Jersey focused access to life saving emergency preparedness alerts and reliable local channel access. I am proud to support this legislation.”

Among other actions, Smith’s bill would:

• Provide a consistent local channel that the citizens of New Jersey could turn to for important and potentially life-saving news and information, such as alerts from the Emergency Alert System (EAS), updates from the National Weather Center, and AMBER alerts

• Designate the channel as an LP-1 EAS station, so it could better disseminate EAS warnings to TV and radio stations around the state.

• Ensure that the channel would provide local and state news and a nightly newscast specific to the state.

• Require that a New Jersey commercial newscast would begin within 90 days of passage.

While many New Jersey residents are served by New York and Philadelphia broadcast stations for daily news, during times of crisis and emergencies those stations will provide information relevant to those specific geographic regions.

For example, when Superstorm Sandy ravaged the Northeast region in October, 2012, New York broadcast stations concentrated coverage on Long Island, Queens, Brooklyn, the subways and City Hall with limited mention of New Jersey areas.

The New Jersey Broadcasters Association has expressed its unanimous support for Smith’s legislation. “The Smith/Payne bill would remedy a problematic situation in New Jersey,” the association stated in a letter. “H.R. 6416 provides for an elegantly simple solution to New Jersey’s lack of local television coverage, while simultaneously augmenting the EAS. As the most densely populated state in the nation, New Jersey’s residents deserve this relief.”