Wireless Emergency Alerts Report and Order Published in the Federal Register

The Commission’s Report and Order adopting revisions to the Wireless Emergency Alert (WEA) rules was published in the Federal Register, setting effective dates for the following rules:

  •  Removal of the prohibition on the use of embedded references (§ 10.440); rules surrounding periodic C interface, WEA PSAs; and the amendment to the prohibition of false or deceptive EAS transmissions (§§10.350(b), 10.520(d), and 11.45, respectively) are effective December 1, 2016.
  •  Amendments to geographic targeting (§ 10.450) are effective November 1, 2017 for non-nationwide providers; and January 3, 2017 for nationwide providers.
  • Rules requiring supporting embedded references (§ 10.441) are effective November 1, 2017.
  • Rules adding Spanish language support (§ 10.480) are effective November 1, 2018.
  • Rules amending subscribers’ right to opt out of WEA notifications, classification, prioritization, character limits, call preemption prohibition, and state and local WEA testing (§§ 10.280, 10.400, 10.410, 10.430, 10.510, and 10.350(c), respectively) are effective May 1, 2019.
  • Rules amending provider alert logging requirements (§ 10.320(g)) are subject to OMB approval and will be effective 60 days after publication of such approval in the Federal Register for nationwide providers and within two years of approval for non-nationwide providers.

As a reminder, the FCC adopted a Report and Order and Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking in the September Open Meeting seeking to “improve the utility” of Wireless Emergency Alerts (“WEA”) as a life-saving tool.  In the Report and Order, the FCC adopts rules focused on improving WEA, including improving the content and delivery of Alert Messages, and creating a framework that will allow emergency managers to test, exercise and raise public awareness about WEA.  The Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (“FNPRM”) seeks comment on new opportunities to improve WEA’s multimedia, multilingual and geo-targeting capabilities, and to improve consumer choice about WEA and increasing the transparency of the WEA system.  A summary of the item is attached.

The Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking has not yet been published in the Federal Register, and therefore the comment dates are still pending.

Please contact us if you would like any additional information.

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