The emergency alert system test reporting system (ETRS) is now accepting Form One filings from EAS participants, said an FCC Public Safety Bureau public notice Tuesday. The forms are due Feb. 28. “EAS Participants must renew their identifying information required by ETRS Form One on a yearly basis,” said the PN.
Marcus Spectrum Solutions called for random testing of wireless emergency alerts and other parts of the emergency alert system. “The Commission and its partners in other agencies must start planning in a careful and deliberate way to implement a small fraction of EAS and WEA testing at times that happen throughout the day and are not precisely announced with the exact date and time,” Marcus said in comments posted Wednesday in docket 15-94: “At present all such tests have the time and date announced with typically 2 months advanced notice.” Marcus noted the EAS became operational Jan. 1, 1997, and 25 years “should have been enough time to allow some random testing at odd hours to verify that no industry changes have resulted in unanticipated issues that are hidden by having only preannounced tests during the prime shift.”
Broadcasters and wireless carriers urged the FCC not to impose proposed new rules designed to make the emergency alert system and wireless emergency alerts more secure. Industry said cybersecurity requirements would be difficult to implement and are unnecessary. FCC commissioners approved an NPRM 4-0 in October (see 2210270058). Comments were posted Tuesday in docket 15-94.
The FCC Public Safety Bureau directed entities subject to emergency alert system rules to submit their annual form one filings for calendar year 2022 in the online EAS test reporting system no later than Feb. 28. The FCC said Thursday it plans to open the reporting window Jan. 3.
The FCC’s Communications Security, Reliability and Interoperability Council approved three working group reports Thursday on making networks more secure, including open radio access networks, at its final meeting of the year. CSRIC approved two other reports in September (see 2209210074). The meeting was supposed to be partially in-person, for the first time since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, but the FCC made it virtual because of an expected ice storm.
Senate Appropriations Financial Services Subcommittee Chairman Chris Van Hollen, D-Md., urged the FCC to “seriously consider the concerns raised by respondents about a GeoBroadcast Solutions’ proposal to modify the commission’s FM booster rules to allow geotargeted ZoneCasting radio broadcasts “and work to address and resolve them to the satisfaction of all parties before any modification” occurs. A dozen House Commerce Committee members (see 2210050058) and Sens. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., and Ben Cardin, D-Md., also wrote the FCC with concerns about the ZoneCasting proposal. ZoneCasting “would allow radio stations to geotarget programming, including emergency alerts, news, and advertising, to different areas and communities,” Van Hollen said in a letter to FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel that NAB released Wednesday. “Because radio stations operate under licenses that require them to broadcast to a specific geographic area, ZoneCasting would create a new regime where advertisers and stations could pick and choose who hears different types of information and solicitations. And because most radio play occurs while listeners are traveling by car, with ZoneCasting, listeners could hear varying content as they drove around a single region, for example, through Maryland, Washington, D.C., and Virginia, as many do regularly during a single trip.” Opponents have warned the FCC in comments “that the hyper-targeted messaging ZoneCasting enables could reduce the effectiveness of emergency alert systems, exacerbate racial inequity by restricting content and advertising, and undermine the overall economic ecosystem of the broadcast industry, specifically disadvantaging small and minority-owned radio stations,” Van Hollen said: “The limited testing of the technology, which has led to uncertainty about the degree of disruption to listeners and stations from signal interference, is also noteworthy. Despite the voluntary nature of the proposed change, this new technology would be an added expense for radio stations to acquire and maintain.” The FCC didn’t comment.
Comments are due Dec. 23, replies Jan. 23, on an NPRM FCC commissioners approved in October proposing new rules to make the emergency alert system and wireless emergency alerts more secure (see 2210270058). The comment dates followed publication of a summary of the notice Wednesday in the Federal Register.
Ten years after the launch of wireless emergency alerts, WEAs have become a critical part of providing warnings to the public, officials said Thursday during an FCBA webinar. Speakers said WEAs have made progress since the false missile alert that created panic in Hawaii in early 2018 (see 1801160054 and 1803160042). Last month, FCC commissioners approved 4-0 an NPRM proposing new rules to make the emergency alert system and WEAs more secure (see 2210270058).
Changes to improve the accessibility and clarity of emergency alert system messages will take effect Dec. 12, said a notice for Thursday's Federal Register. The rule prioritizes internet-based common alerting protocol versions of EAS, which provide more fulsome alert text (see 2209290017).
The FCC activated the disaster information reporting system for 34 counties in Florida for Tropical Storm Nicole, said a public notice Wednesday. Reports are due starting Thursday. The alert includes Miami-Dade, Broward, and Palm Beach counties, the state’s three most populated. The agency also issued public notices on emergency contact procedures for licensees that need special temporary authority, priority communications services, and on 24-hour availability of FCC staff. The Public Safety Bureau sent a reminder to entities working to clear debris and repair utilities to avoid damaging communications infrastructure.