[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 4968 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
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119th CONGRESS
2d Session
S. 4968
To provide for the transmission of emergency alerts by satellite, and
for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
July 14, 2026
Mr. Cornyn (for himself and Mr. Ossoff) introduced the following bill;
which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce,
Science, and Transportation
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To provide for the transmission of emergency alerts by satellite, and
for other purposes.
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 ``Mystic Alerts Act''.
SEC. 2. TRANSMISSION OF EMERGENCY ALERTS BY SATELLITE.
(a) Service Provider Election.--
(1) Required filing.--Not later than 60 days after the
effective date of the final rule required to be issued under
subsection (b), each covered service provider shall file an
election with the Federal Communications Commission (in this
section referred to as the ``Commission'') with respect to
whether the provider intends to transmit emergency alerts by
satellite to the subscribers of the commercial mobile service
of the provider who receive such service on devices capable of
receiving such alerts, in addition to the transmission of
emergency alerts under the Warning, Alert, and Response Network
Act (47 U.S.C. 1201 et seq.).
(2) Notification; agreement.--If a provider elects to
transmit emergency alerts to subscribers by satellite under
paragraph (1), the provider shall--
(A) notify the Commission of that election; and
(B) agree to transmit such alerts in a manner
consistent with the technical standards, protocols,
procedures, and other technical requirements
implemented by the Commission.
(3) Election not to transmit.--If a provider elects not to
transmit emergency alerts by satellite under paragraph (1), the
provider shall provide notice to new and existing subscribers
described in such paragraph of that election in the same manner
that is required under subparagraphs (B) and (C) of section
602(b)(1) of the Warning, Alert, and Response Network Act (42
U.S.C. 1201(b)(1)).
(4) Consumer choice to opt out.--If a provider elects to
transmit emergency alerts to subscribers by satellite under
paragraph (1), the provider shall prevent the device of any
such subscriber that opts out of receiving emergency alerts
pursuant to section 602(b)(2)(E) of the Warning, Alert, and
Response Network Act (42 U.S.C. 1201(b)(2)(E)), or classes of
such alerts, from receiving such alerts by satellite.
(5) No fee for service.--If a provider elects to transmit
emergency alerts to subscribers by satellite under paragraph
(1), the provider may not impose a separate or additional
charge for such transmission or capability.
(b) Satellite Alert Regulations.--
(1) Notice of proposed rulemaking.--Not later than 6 months
after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Commission
shall publish a notice of proposed rulemaking to establish any
requirements necessary to facilitate the satellite alerting
capability of covered service providers.
(2) Requirements.--The requirements described under
paragraph (1) shall--
(A) take into account the capability of--
(i) satellites to transmit emergency
alerts; and
(ii) mobile devices to receive and display
such alerts; and
(B) minimize the impact of emergency alerting on
other voice and data communications, including 9-1-1
communications.
(3) Final rule.--Not later than 18 months after the date of
the enactment of this Act, the Commission shall, in
consultation with the Secretary of Homeland Security and the
Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, issue
a final rule establishing the requirements described under
paragraph (1).
(4) Effective date of rule.--
(A) Date.--The effective date of the final rule
described under paragraph (3) shall be the later of--
(i) 36 months after publication of the
final rule in the Federal Register; or
(ii) 12 months after the Secretary of
Homeland Security and the Administrator of the
Federal Emergency Management Agency implement
any standards, protocols, or procedures
necessary to support the transmission of
emergency alerts from alert originators to
covered service providers.
(B) Notification.--The Secretary of Homeland
Security and the Administrator of the Federal Emergency
Management Agency shall notify the Commission of the
implementation of any standards, protocols, or
procedures described under subparagraph (A)(ii) for the
purpose of determining the effective date of the final
rule described under paragraph (3).
(c) Limitation of Liability.--
(1) In general.--Any covered service provider (including
its officers, directors, employees, vendors, and agents) that
transmits emergency alerts by satellite and meets its
obligations under this Act shall not be liable to any
subscriber to, or user of, such person's service or equipment
for--
(A) any act or omission related to or any harm
resulting from the transmission of, or failure to
transmit, an emergency alert by satellite; or
(B) the release to a government agency or entity,
public safety official, fire service, law enforcement
official, emergency medical service, or emergency
facility of subscriber information used in connection
with delivering such an alert.
(2) Election not to transmit alerts by satellite.--The
election by a covered service provider under subsection (a)(3)
not to transmit emergency alerts by satellite shall not, by
itself, provide a basis for liability against the provider
(including its officers, directors, employees, vendors, and
agents).
(d) Definitions.--In this Act:
(1) Commercial mobile service.--The term ``commercial
mobile service'' has the meaning given the term in section
332(d) of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 332(d)).
(2) Covered service provider.--The term ``covered service
provider'' means a provider of commercial mobile service that--
(A) voluntarily elects to transmit emergency alerts
under section 602(b) of the Warning, Alert, and
Response Network Act (42 U.S.C. 1201(b)); and
(B) makes satellite voice and data communications
service available to subscribers of the commercial
mobile service of the provider.
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