Legislation that would renew for five years a law governing transmission of broadcast television signals via satellite services such as DirecTV and EchoStar moved a step closer to enactment Thursday when the Senate Commerce Committee approved its version of a reauthorization bill. The Satellite Home Viewer Act, which sets the copyright royalty fees for "local-into-local" service and the delivery of distant network signals to customers who can't receive over-the-air broadcasts, needs to be renewed before the law expires Dec. 31. Under "local into local," TV signals are redelivered to their respective markets via satellite. The Commerce and Judiciary committees in both the House and Senate have now approved four bills reauthorizing the law. Floor action is the next step. For further information on the Senate Commerce Committee's action, go to www.congressdaily.com and click on "The Latest Markup Reports" (subscription required).