What are retransmission fees?
The fees that local broadcast stations charge cable operators and other multichannel video programming distributors (MVPDs) customers to show their programming.
Retransmission consent is a provision of the 1992 United States Cable Television Consumer Protection and Competition Act that requires cable operators and other multichannel video programming distributors (MVPDs) to obtain permission from commercial broadcasters before carrying their programming. Under the provision, a broadcast station (or its affiliated/parent broadcast network) can ask for monetary payment or other compensation, such as carriage of an additional channel. If the cable operator rejects the broadcaster’s proposal, the station can prohibit the cable operator from retransmitting its signal.

Additional information:
https://www.fcc.gov/media/cable-carriage-broadcast-stations
https://www.fcc.gov/media/policy/retransmission-consent

If you are unhappy with paying these fees given they are transmitted free over the air, we would suggest you contact the folks listed below. Please ask to have this provision removed the Communications Act of 1934 Also Known As the 1992 Cable Act; Cable Television Protection and Competition Act:
https://www.fcc.gov/media
https://www.cruz.senate.gov/ – Ted Cruz resides on the Committee on Commerce, Science, & Transportation with the Subcommittee on Communications, Media, and Broadband.

Your local broadcast channel General Managers.
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Regional Sports Fee
To transmit the Houston Astro’s and Rockets we must retransmit AT&T Sportsnet. AT&T charges RTA this fee to rebroadcast this station.