Inside Radio reports that the U.S. House voted Feb. 25 to raise fines on unlicensed radio station broadcasts to as much as $2 million. The Preventing Illegal Radio Abuse Through Enforcement or PIRATE Act, H.R. 583, passed by a voice vote, so the public cannot tell how specific representatives voted. Locally, Rep. Paul Tonko is a co-sponsor of the bill. Tonko received $7,000 during the 2016 campaign from the National Association of Broadcasters. There has not been a major report of any pirate radio stations in the Hudson Valley in many years. The Federal Communication Commission recently cut back its enforcement office, and the bill does not address enforcement funding at the FCC. A representative for Rep. Antonio Delgado did not get back to WGXC in time for this story about his vote on the bill. Delgado did not take any campaign contributions from the National Association of Broadcasters in 2018. Delgado's predecessor John Faso received a $1,000 political donation during the 2018 campaign from the National Association of Broadcasters and supported a similar version of the PIRATE Act. Faso also got $500 from the NAB during the 2016 campaign.