[Congressional Bills 110th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 3663 Enrolled Bill (ENR)]

        S.3663

                       One Hundred Tenth Congress

                                 of the

                        United States of America


                          AT THE SECOND SESSION

          Begun and held at the City of Washington on Thursday,
            the third day of January, two thousand and eight


                                 An Act


 
To require the Federal Communications Commission to provide for a short-
 term extension of the analog television broadcasting authority so that 
essential public safety announcements and digital television transition 
 information may be provided for a short time during the transition to 
                    digital television broadcasting.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Short-term Analog Flash and 
Emergency Readiness Act''.

SEC. 2. COMMISSION ACTION REQUIRED.

    (a) Program Required.--Notwithstanding any other provision of law, 
the Federal Communications Commission shall, not later than January 15, 
2009, develop and implement a program to encourage and permit, to the 
extent technically feasible and subject to such limitations as the 
Commission finds to be consistent with the public interest and the 
requirements of this Act, the broadcasting in the analog television 
service of only the public safety information and digital transition 
information specified in subsection (b) during the 30-day period 
beginning on the day after the date established by law under section 
3002(b) of the Digital Television Transition and Public Safety Act of 
2005 for termination of all licenses for full-power television stations 
in the analog television service and the cessation of broadcasting by 
full-power stations in the analog television service.
    (b) Information required.--The program required by subsection (a) 
shall provide for the broadcast of--
        (1) emergency information, including critical details regarding 
    the emergency, as broadcast or required to be broadcast by full-
    power stations in the digital television service;
        (2) information, in both English and Spanish, and accessible to 
    persons with disabilities, concerning--
            (A) the digital television transition, including the fact 
        that a transition has taken place and that additional action is 
        required to continue receiving television service, including 
        emergency notifications; and
            (B) the steps required to enable viewers to receive such 
        emergency information via the digital television service and to 
        convert to receiving digital television service, including a 
        phone number and Internet address by which help with such 
        transition may be obtained in both English and Spanish; and
        (3) such other information related to consumer education about 
    the digital television transition or public health and safety or 
    emergencies as the Commission may find to be consistent with the 
    public interest.

SEC. 3. LIMITATIONS.

    In designing the program required by this Act, the Commission 
shall--
        (1) take into account market-by-market needs, based upon 
    factors such as channel and transmitter availability;
        (2) ensure that broadcasting of the program specified in 
    section 2(b) will not cause harmful interference with signals in 
    the digital television service;
        (3) not require the analog television service signals broadcast 
    under this Act to be retransmitted or otherwise carried pursuant to 
    section 325(b), 338, 339, 340, 614, or 615 of the Communications 
    Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 325(b), 338, 339, 340, 614, or 615);
        (4) take into consideration broadcasters' digital power levels 
    and transition and coordination plans that already have been 
    adopted with respect to cable systems and satellite carriers' 
    systems;
        (5) prohibit any broadcast of analog television service signals 
    under section 2(b) on any spectrum that is approved or pending 
    approval by the Commission to be used for public safety radio 
    services, including television channels 14-20; and
        (6) not include the analog spectrum between channels 52 and 69, 
    inclusive (between frequencies 698 and 806 megahertz, inclusive) 
    reclaimed from analog television broadcasting pursuant to section 
    309(j) of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 309(j)).

SEC. 4. DEFINITIONS.

    As used in this Act, the term ``emergency information'' has the 
meaning such term has under part 79 of the regulations of the Federal 
Communications Commission (47 C.F.R. part 79).

                               Speaker of the House of Representatives.

                            Vice President of the United States and    
                                               President of the Senate.