[Congressional Record Volume 166, Number 166 (Thursday, September 24, 2020)]
[Senate]
[Pages S5881-S5882]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




     RELIABLE EMERGENCY ALERT DISTRIBUTION IMPROVEMENT ACT OF 2019

  Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate 
proceed to the immediate consideration of Calendar No. 492, S. 2693.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report the bill by title.
  The senior assistant legislative clerk read as follows:

       A bill (S. 2693) to improve oversight by the Federal 
     Communications Commission of the wireless and broadcast 
     emergency alert systems.

  There being no objection, the Senate proceeded to consider the bill, 
which had been reported from the Committee on Commerce, Science, and 
Transportation.
  Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, I further ask that the Schatz 
substitute amendment be agreed to, the bill, as amended, be read a 
third time and passed, and the motion to reconsider be considered made 
and laid upon the table with no intervening action or debate.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The amendment (No. 2669) in the nature of a substitute was agreed to, 
as follows

                (Purpose: In the nature of a substitute)

        Strike all after the enacting clause and insert the 
     following:

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

       This Act may be cited as the ``Reliable Emergency Alert 
     Distribution Improvement Act of 2020'' or ``READI Act''.

     SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.

       In this Act--
       (1) the term ``Administrator'' means the Administrator of 
     the Federal Emergency Management Agency;
       (2) the term ``Commission'' means the Federal 
     Communications Commission;
       (3) the term ``Emergency Alert System'' means the national 
     public warning system, the rules for which are set forth in 
     part 11 of title 47, Code of Federal Regulations (or any 
     successor regulation); and
       (4) the term ``Wireless Emergency Alerts System'' means the 
     wireless national public warning system established under the 
     Warning, Alert, and Response Network Act (47 U.S.C. 1201 et 
     seq.), the rules for which are set forth in part 10 of title 
     47, Code of Federal Regulations (or any successor 
     regulation).

     SEC. 3. WIRELESS EMERGENCY ALERTS SYSTEM OFFERINGS.

       (a) Amendment.--Section 602(b)(2)(E) of the Warning, Alert, 
     and Response Network Act (47 U.S.C. 1201(b)(2)(E)) is 
     amended--
       (1) by striking the second and third sentences; and
       (2) by striking ``other than an alert issued by the 
     President.'' and inserting the following: ``other than an 
     alert issued by--
       ``(i) the President; or
       ``(ii) the Administrator of the Federal Emergency 
     Management Agency.''.
       (b) Regulations.--Not later than 180 days after the date of 
     enactment of this Act, the Commission, in consultation with 
     the Administrator, shall adopt regulations to implement the 
     amendment made by subsection (a)(2).

     SEC. 4. STATE EMERGENCY ALERT SYSTEM PLANS AND EMERGENCY 
                   COMMUNICATIONS COMMITTEES.

       (a) Definitions.--In this section--
       (1) the term ``SECC'' means a State Emergency 
     Communications Committee;
       (2) the term ``State'' means any State of the United 
     States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto 
     Rico, the United States Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa, 
     the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and any 
     possession of the United States; and
       (3) the term ``State EAS Plan'' means a State Emergency 
     Alert System Plan, the rules for which are set forth in part 
     11 of title 47, Code of Federal Regulations (or any successor 
     regulation).
       (b) State Emergency Communications Committee.--Not later 
     than 180 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the 
     Commission shall adopt regulations that--
       (1) encourage the chief executive of each State--
       (A) to establish an SECC if the State does not have an 
     SECC; or
       (B) if the State has an SECC, to review the composition and 
     governance of the SECC;
       (2) provide that--
       (A) each SECC, not less frequently than annually, shall--
       (i) meet to review and update its State EAS Plan;
       (ii) certify to the Commission that the SECC has met as 
     required under clause (i); and
       (iii) submit to the Commission an updated State EAS Plan; 
     and
       (B) not later than 60 days after the date on which the 
     Commission receives an updated State EAS Plan under 
     subparagraph (A)(iii), the Commission shall--
       (i) approve or disapprove the updated State EAS Plan; and
       (ii) notify the chief executive of the State of the 
     Commission's findings; and
       (3) establish a State EAS Plan content checklist for SECCs 
     to use when reviewing and updating a State EAS Plan for 
     submission to the Commission under paragraph (2)(A).
       (c) Consultation.--The Commission shall consult with the 
     Administrator regarding the adoption of regulations under 
     subsection (b)(3).

[[Page S5882]]

  


     SEC. 5. FALSE ALERT REPORTING.

       Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of this 
     Act, the Commission, in consultation with the Administrator, 
     shall complete a rulemaking proceeding to establish a system 
     to receive from the Administrator or State, Tribal, or local 
     governments reports of false alerts under the Emergency Alert 
     System or the Wireless Emergency Alerts System for the 
     purpose of recording such false alerts and examining their 
     causes.

     SEC. 6. REPEATING EMERGENCY ALERT SYSTEM MESSAGES FOR 
                   NATIONAL SECURITY.

       (a) In General.--Not later than 180 days after the date of 
     enactment of this Act, the Commission, in consultation with 
     the Administrator, shall complete a rulemaking proceeding to 
     modify the Emergency Alert System to provide for repeating 
     Emergency Alert System messages while an alert remains 
     pending that is issued by--
       (1) the President;
       (2) the Administrator; or
       (3) any other entity under specified circumstances as 
     determined by the Commission, in consultation with the 
     Administrator.
       (b) Scope of Rulemaking.--Subsection (a)--
       (1) shall apply to warnings of national security events, 
     meaning emergencies of national significance, such as a 
     missile threat, terror attack, or other act of war; and
       (2) shall not apply to more typical warnings, such as a 
     weather alert, AMBER Alert, or disaster alert.

     SEC. 7. INTERNET AND ONLINE STREAMING SERVICES EMERGENCY 
                   ALERT EXAMINATION.

       (a) Study.--Not later than 180 days after the date of 
     enactment of this Act, and after providing public notice and 
     opportunity for comment, the Commission shall complete an 
     inquiry to examine the feasibility of updating the Emergency 
     Alert System to enable or improve alerts to consumers 
     provided through the internet, including through streaming 
     services.
       (b) Report.--Not later than 90 days after completing the 
     inquiry under subsection (a), the Commission shall submit a 
     report on the findings and conclusions of the inquiry to--
       (1) the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation 
     of the Senate; and
       (2) the Committee on Energy and Commerce of the House of 
     Representatives.
  The bill (S. 2693), as amended, was ordered to be engrossed for a 
third reading, was read the third time, and passed.

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