Feinstein, Harris Press Pai to Execute on Revised WEA Alert Rules
Sens. Dianne Feinstein and Kamala Harris, both D-Calif., pressed FCC Chairman Ajit Pai Tuesday to execute revised rules for wireless emergency alerts that the commission approved last year. More than a year ago, the FCC voted 4-1 to adopt the…
Sign up for a free preview to unlock the rest of this article
Export Compliance Daily combines U.S. export control news, foreign border import regulation and policy developments into a single daily information service that reliably informs its trade professional readers about important current issues affecting their operations.
revised rules, which increase the maximum length of WEA messages from 90 to 360 characters for 4G LTE and future networks and require participating wireless providers to support inclusion of embedded phone numbers and URLs in all WEA alerts (see 1609290060). “We are heartened that you and your colleagues voted in favor of that proposal,” Harris and Feinstein said in a letter to Pai. “You even wrote separately in a concurring opinion, emphasizing the importance of geotargeted alerts. We are disappointed, though, that under your leadership the FCC has not executed on its proposal with a final rule. We are also concerned that the FCC has granted a temporary waiver of the existing, imprecise geotargeting requirements for certain carriers.” The FCC granted the waiver in September in response to a petition from the Competitive Carriers Association (see 1709050053). Feinstein and Harris invoked recent fatal wildfires in California, saying “emergency services in Northern California were not able to transmit lifesaving WEA messages, because of significant technical deficiencies in the WEA system.” Without the geotargeting requirement in place for all carriers, “emergency services cannot send an evacuation message without reaching a large number of unaffected residents,” the senators said. “These emergency services are caught in a bind between notifying individuals in imminent danger and risking mass panic. As a result, these services are compelled to rely on emergency messaging systems with far less reach and far less capacity.” Feinstein and Harris asked Pai to tell them whether he plans to move forward with the WEA rulemaking. They asked Pai if he solicited feedback from emergency services in California and areas affected by Hurricanes Harvey, Irma and Jose to determine whether the WEA system “is meeting their needs and what improvements are necessary.” They gave Pai until Tuesday to respond. Commissioner Jessica Rosenworcel lauded Feinstein and Harris, tweeting that the California wildfires show how current rules for WEA alerts "can fall short." The agency didn't comment.