Several important communications-related items could pass Congress this week as it returns for a brief lame- duck session, industry and congressional sources said. The loudest buzz is on the universal service fund (USF) and the controversy over the FCC’s change in accounting mechanisms that could slow some E-rate payments and possibly lead to a rise in contributions, and several sources expected some efforts to push a legislative solution.
Public broadcasters are preparing for “a strong grassroots response” to stave off funding cuts for discretionary programs like CPB because of the tight budgetary situation in Congress. The Assn. of Public TV Stations (APTS) believes that with a strong grassroots response from stations, public broadcasters can “make our case for continued funding,” Pres. John Lawson told us. He said despite the Senate’s new composition, “we expect to maintain strong bipartisan support.”
NAB renewed its push at the FCC to craft emergency alert system (EAS) regulation that would make cable operators better protect local broadcasters’ emergency signals. In comments filed with the FCC on EAS, NAB proposed a selective override in which the FCC mandates that cable operators use a filter system enabling a cable operator to replace certain channels selectively during an EAS interruption.
Wireless carriers told the FCC they shouldn’t be forced to transmit emergency messages through text messages on mobile phones. Led by CTIA, carriers noted that efforts to develop a more effective Emergency Alert System (EAS) were under way and a voluntary approach would work best. The Rural Cellular Assn. said in a white paper filed as a comment in the proceeding that wireless phones may be particularly ill-suited as warning devices.
The Emergency Alert System (EAS) is under the microscope at the FCC, FEMA, the National Weather Service and NOAA, with some complaining that while the system is mandated for national messages, it’s strictly voluntary or “permissive” at the state and local level. Parties also said EAS is antiquated post-9/11. Comments are due today (Fri.) to the FCC on how to overhaul EAS for a digital age.
AT&T Wireless, Cingular, Nextel and T-Mobile have signed on to a digital Emergency Alert System (DEAS) pilot launched jointly by the Assn. of Public TV Stations and the Dept. of Homeland Security (CD Sept 29 p7), APTS Pres. John Lawson said Thurs. At the formal launch of the 6- month pilot in Washington, he said he expected to add other wireless carriers. He said the pilot would demonstrate improved mechanisms for distributing digital emergency alerts and warning messages via digital TV and satellite to an expanded range of retransmission media, including wireless, cable and Internet service providers. The pilot will simulate DHS-generated test messages sent through an access point located at public broadcaster WETA Washington, which would broadcast it to a variety of relay points and end-user devices as well as PBS. In turn, PBS would distribute that message through its satellite interconnection system to Md. PTV, N.J. Network and WHRO Norfolk. Other APTS member stations would receive the test data and could re-broadcast it to test the reception in their own markets, Lawson said. Reynold Hoover, dir. of FEMA’s Office of National Security Coordination, said the agency realized there was no single EAS solution, which is why the public TV project is important to demonstrate that messages reached the greatest number of people. He said EAS also had a valuable local component for the media in amber alerts and hazards and weather warnings.
The office of Senate Majority Leader Frist (R-Tenn.) organized a staff-level meeting last week to build support for HR-1320, the spectrum relocation trust fund. It’s unclear whether resolution is in sight; a Senate source said agreement didn’t seem close. The bill passed the House last year but has stalled in the Senate. Industry sources said staff of the House Commerce Committee and Senate Budget Committee were among the participants. Appropriators raised concerns during House proceedings that the bill usurped their authority. The bill would create a trust fund from auction proceeds to move Defense Dept. users off the 1.7 GHz spectrum band, slated to be used for 3G services. Senate Appropriations Committee Chmn. Stevens (R-Alaska) argues an emergency alert system, as well as E-911 funding, should be added to the legislation, sources said. CTIA and TIA strongly support passage of the legislation. “We've been working very hard on the Hill for the relocation legislation,” T-Mobile Vp Tom Sugrue said Fri. “That’s a big priority. Everything but one or 2 things are sort of lined up but sometimes you get late in the legislative year and it sort of doesn’t happen. It’s important to competition. The Defense Dept. is on board. The Administration is on board. It'd be a shame to let this opportunity pass.”
The Dept. of Homeland Security and the Assn. of Public TV Stations (APTS) signed an agreement under which APTS will oversee the Integrated Public Alert & Warning System (IPAWS) in the D.C. area, APTS officials confirmed Tues. Wireless carrier sources said several are likely to participate in the program, under which the carriers would target geographic areas or even specific groups of customers for text message alerts in national and local emergencies.
Responding to criticisms about not modernizing the Emergency Alert System (EAS), homeland security officials said they've made progress and will launch a pilot project in D.C. in several weeks. Reynold Hoover, national security coordinator, Dept. of Homeland Security, told the House Homeland Security Subcommittee on Emergency Preparedness & Response the 6-month project is aimed at integrating emergency systems to modern digital forms of communications. T-Mobile and Verizon will participate, along with local broadcast stations, Hoover said, and the department is in talks with Nextel: “I don’t think this could have been done any faster. The technology wasn’t available.” He said one challenge is getting to a common alert protocol. The idea is to be able to issue emergency alerts to anyone through cell phones, pagers, Blackberrys and other wireless devices. In Aug., the FCC issued a proposed rulemaking concerning EAS’s effectiveness(CD Aug 5 p8). The FCC isn’t directly involved in the pilot project but is awaiting the outcome, Hoover said.
The FCC refused to let Hull Bcstg. stations share Emergency Alert System (EAS) equipment with another company’s outlets. In May, Hull requested a waiver for Kansas FM stations KBGL and KFIX to use the same emergency equipment with colocated stations owned by Eagle Communications. Hull argued sharing the EAS unit would make emergency monitoring, testing and alerts more efficient. But FCC rules bar stations not commonly owned to share EAS units. The Commission also said it didn’t agree with Hull’s argument that sharing a unit would be more efficient. “On the contrary, the efficient deployment of an EAS message depends to a certain degree on system redundancies,” the FCC said.