As of October 2015[update], the station produced several local programs that aired weekdays, including news blocks during drive time and in the noon hour, along with an evening talk show hosted by Mary Jane Popp.

On March 17, 1997, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) announced that 88 stations had been given permission to move to newly available "Expanded Band" transmitting frequencies, from 1610 to 1700 kHz.

KAHI was authorized to move to 1620 kHz,[5] and in 1998 the expanded band station began broadcasting as KSMH.

The FCC's initial plan provided that both the original station and its expanded band counterpart could optionally operate simultaneously for up to five years, after which owners would have to turn in one of the two licenses, depending on whether they preferred the new assignment or elected to remain on the original frequency.

One restriction is that the FCC has generally required paired original and expanded band stations to remain under common ownership.