[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 159 (Friday, August 20, 2021)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 46783-46791]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-15175]


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FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION

47 CFR Parts 10 and 11

[PS Docket Nos. 15-94 and 15-91; FCC 21-77; FR ID 37637]


Emergency Alert System, Wireless Emergency Alerts; National 
Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2021

AGENCY: Federal Communications Commission.

ACTION: Final rule.

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SUMMARY: In this document, the Federal Communication Commission (the 
FCC or Commission), implements section 9201 of the National Defense 
Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2021, improving the way the public 
receives emergency alerts from the nation's Emergency Alert System 
(EAS) and Wireless Emergency Alerts System (WEA) on their mobile 
phones, televisions, and radios. The Commission adopts rules to ensure 
that more people receive relevant emergency alerts, to enable EAS and 
WEA participants to report false alerts when they occur, and to improve 
the way states plan for emergency alerts.

DATES: Effective September 20, 2021.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Christopher Fedeli, Attorney Advisor, 
Public Safety and Homeland Security Bureau at 202-418-1514 or 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This is a summary of the Commission's Report 
and Order (Order) and Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, in PS 
Docket Nos. 15-94 and 15-91, FCC 21-77, adopted and released on June 
17, 2021. The full text of this document is available at https://www.fcc.gov/document/fcc-further-strengthens-emergency-alerting-0.

Synopsis

    In the Report and Order (Order), the Commission takes measures to 
enhance the efficacy of the EAS and WEA. The nation's EAS and WEA 
ensure that the public is quickly informed about emergency alerts 
issued by federal, state, local, Tribal, and territorial governments 
and delivered over the radio, television, and mobile wireless devices. 
Specifically, and in consultation with the Federal Emergency Management 
Agency (FEMA), the Commission implements Section 9201 of the William M. 
(Mac) Thornberry National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 
2021, Public Law 116-283, 134 Stat. 3388, Sec.  9201 (NDAA21), which 
requires the Commission to complete a rulemaking and adopt rules within 
180 days to (a) ensure mobile devices cannot opt out of receiving WEA 
alerts from the FEMA Administrator; (b) establish a state EAS plan 
checklist for State Emergency Communications Committees (SECCs) and 
amend the requirements for SECCs, to ensure they meet, review, and 
update their EAS plans annually; (c) enable reporting by the FEMA 
Administrator and State, Tribal, or local governments of false EAS and 
WEA alerts; and (d) provide for repeating EAS alerts issued by the 
President, the FEMA Administrator, and any other entity determined 
appropriate by the Commission, in consultation with the FEMA 
Administrator. The Commission believes the rules it adopts today will 
improve the capabilities and efficacy of EAS and WEA as systems for 
distributing vital alert information to all Americans, and will do so 
in a cost-effective manner.
    The Commission implements section 9201(a) of the NDAA21 by adopting 
rules to ensure that mobile devices cannot opt-out of receiving WEA 
alerts from the FEMA Administrator. The Commission implements section 
9201(b) of the NDAA21 by adopting rules to (i) encourage chief 
executives of states and territories to form SECCs if none exist in 
their states, or if the state has an SECC, to review its composition 
and governance criteria; (ii) include as a required element in the 
State EAS Plan, a certification by the SECC Chairperson or Vice-
Chairperson that the SECC met (in person, via teleconference, or via 
other methods of conducting virtual meetings) at least once in the 
twelve months prior to submitting the annual updated plan to review and 
update their State EAS Plan--and incorporate such certification into 
the Alert Reporting System (ARS); (iii) require that the Public Safety 
and Homeland Security Bureau (Bureau) to approve or reject State EAS 
Plans submitted for approval within 60 days of receipt--for those 
instances in which the Bureau finds defects in a submitted plan 
requiring correction by the SECC, that State EAS Plan will be 
considered to be temporarily withdrawn, restarting the 60-day review 
and approval period anew upon resubmission of the corrected plan in 
ARS; (iv) require the Bureau to list the approval dates of State EAS 
Plans submitted on ARS on the Commission's website, and in the event a 
final decision is made to deny a plan, directly notify the chief 
executive of the State to which the plan applies of that determination 
and the reasons for such denial within 30 days of such decision; and 
(v) adopt an EAS Plan Content Checklist composed of the plan content 
requirements set forth in Sec.  11.21 of the Commission's rules, 47 CFR 
11.21, and direct the Bureau to post the checklist on the Commission's 
website and incorporate it as an appendix in the ARS user manual.
    The Commission implements section 9201(c) of the NDAA21 by adopting 
rules to enable the Administrator of FEMA and state, local, Tribal, and 
territorial governments to report false EAS and WEA alerts when they 
occur. The Commission implements section 9201(d) of the NDAA21 by 
adopting a rule specifying how alert originators can repeat their alert 
transmissions. The rules the Commission adopts are intended to 
facilitate the further development of a robust and redundant system for 
distributing vital alert information to all Americans.

Accessible Formats

    To request materials in accessible formats for people with 
disabilities (Braille, large print, electronic files, audio format), 
send an email to [email protected] or call the Consumer & Governmental 
Affairs Bureau at 202-418-0530 (voice), 202-418-0432 (tty).

Regulatory Flexibility Analysis

    As required by the Regulatory Flexibility Act of 1980, as amended 
(RFA), an Initial Regulatory Flexibility Analysis (IRFA) was 
incorporated in the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) in PS Docket 
Nos. 15-94 and 15-91, 86 FR 16565 (Mar. 30, 2021). The Commission 
sought written public comment on the proposals in the NPRM, including 
comment on the IRFA. No comments were filed addressing the IRFA. This 
present Final Regulatory Flexibility Analysis (FRFA) conforms to the 
RFA.

A. Need for, and Objectives of, the Final Rules

    In the Order, the Commission adopts rules to improve the way the 
public receives emergency alerts on their mobile phones, televisions, 
and radios via WEA and EAS, in response to the William M. (Mac) 
Thornberry National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2021. WEA 
and EAS ensure that the public is quickly informed about emergency 
alerts issued by federal,

[[Page 46784]]

state, local, Tribal, and territorial governments and delivered over 
the radio, television, and mobile wireless devices. These announcements 
keep the public safe and informed and have increased in importance in 
the wake of the emergencies and disasters experienced by Americans in 
the past few years. Congress has determined that WEA and EAS rule 
changes are necessary to increase oversight over the distribution of 
state and local EAS alerts within states, increase the likelihood that 
the public will receive full alerts pertaining to national security, 
and increase false alert reporting capabilities to help ameliorate 
confusion or other harmful effects resulting from false alerts. 
Consistent with the congressional directives in the NDAA21, the 
Commission amends its WEA and EAS rules to ensure that more people 
receive relevant emergency alerts, to enable EAS and WEA participants 
to report false alerts when they occur, and to improve the way states 
plan for emergency alerts.
    Specifically, the Commission amends its rules to (i) replace WEA's 
existing Presidential Alert class with a National Alert class that 
would ensure that WEA-enabled mobile devices could not opt-out of 
receiving WEA alerts issued by the President (or the President's 
authorized designee) or by the FEMA Administrator; (ii) require 
participating Commercial Mobile Service (CMS) providers that use WEA 
header displays that read ``Presidential Alert'' to change those alert 
headers to read ``National Alert'' or to remove such headers 
altogether; (iii) encourage chief executives of states to form SECCs if 
none exist in their states, or if they do, to review their composition 
and governance, update their State EAS plans annually, and certify that 
they have met (in person, via teleconference, or via other methods of 
conducting virtual meetings) at least once in the twelve months prior 
to submitting the annual updated plan to review and update the plan; 
(iv) incorporate certain processing actions concerning SECCs' and the 
FCC's administration of State EAS Plans; (v) enable false EAS and WEA 
alert reporting by the FEMA Administrator as well as state, local, 
Tribal, and territorial governments; and (vi) provide for repeating EAS 
alerts issued by the President, the Administrator of FEMA and any other 
entity determined appropriate under the circumstances by the 
Commission, in consultation with the Administrator of FEMA.
    The rules adopted in the Order are intended to increase 
participation by state, local, Tribal, and territorial governments in 
the administration of State EAS Plans, enhance administration of EAS 
alerting, hasten corrective action when any false alerts are issued, 
and better enable alert originators to repeat alerts. They will benefit 
the public by strengthening national, state, local, Tribal, and 
territorial alerting activities, minimizing confusion and disruption 
caused by false alerts, increasing the chances for the public to 
receive critical alert messages, and will facilitate the further 
development of a robust and redundant system for distributing vital 
alert information to all Americans.

B. Summary of Significant Issues Raised by Public Comments in Response 
to the IRFA

    There were no comments filed that specifically addressed the 
proposed rules and policies presented in the IRFA.

C. Response to Comments by the Chief Counsel for Advocacy of the Small 
Business Administration

    Pursuant to the Small Business Jobs Act of 2010, which amended the 
RFA, the Commission is required to respond to any comments filed by the 
Chief Counsel for Advocacy of the Small Business Administration (SBA), 
and to provide a detailed statement of any change made to the proposed 
rules as a result of those comments.
    The Chief Counsel did not file any comments in response to the 
proposed rules in this proceeding.

D. Description and Estimate of the Number of Small Entities to Which 
the Rules Will Apply

    The RFA directs agencies to provide a description of and, where 
feasible, an estimate of, the number of small entities that may be 
affected by the rules, adopted herein. The RFA generally defines the 
term ``small entity'' as having the same meaning as the terms ``small 
business,'' ``small organization,'' and ``small governmental 
jurisdiction.'' In addition, the term ``small business'' has the same 
meaning as the term ``small business concern'' under the Small Business 
Act. A ``small business concern'' is one which: (1) Is independently 
owned and operated; (2) is not dominant in its field of operation; and 
(3) satisfies any additional criteria established by the SBA.
    Small Businesses, Small Organizations, and Small Governmental 
Jurisdictions. The Commission's actions may, over time, affect small 
entities that are not easily categorized at present. The Commission 
therefore describes here, at the outset, three broad groups of small 
entities that could be directly affected herein. First, while there are 
industry specific size standards for small businesses that are used in 
the regulatory flexibility analysis, according to data from the SBA's 
Office of Advocacy, in general a small business is an independent 
business having fewer than 500 employees. These types of small 
businesses represent 99.9% of all businesses in the United States which 
translates to 30.7 million businesses.
    Next, the type of small entity described as a ``small 
organization'' is generally ``any not-for-profit enterprise which is 
independently owned and operated and is not dominant in its field.'' 
Internal Revenue Service (IRS) uses a revenue benchmark of $50,000 or 
less to delineate its annual electronic filing requirements for small 
exempt organizations. Nationwide, for tax year 2018, there were 
approximately 571,709 small exempt organizations in the U.S. reporting 
revenues of $50,000 or less according to the registration and tax data 
for exempt organizations available from the IRS.
    Finally, the small entity described as a ``small governmental 
jurisdiction'' is defined generally as ``governments of cities, 
counties, towns, townships, villages, school districts, or special 
districts, with a population of less than fifty thousand.'' U.S. Census 
Bureau data from the 2017 Census of Governments indicate that there 
were 90,056 local governmental jurisdictions consisting of general 
purpose governments and special purpose governments in the United 
States. Of this number there were 36,931 General purpose governments 
(county, municipal and town or township) with populations of less than 
50,000 and 12,040 special purpose governments--independent school 
districts with enrollment of less than 50,000. Accordingly, based on 
the 2017 U.S. Census of Governments data, the Commission estimates that 
at least 48,971 entities fall into the category of ``small governmental 
jurisdictions.''
    Radio Stations. This Economic Census category comprises 
establishments primarily engaged in broadcasting aural programs by 
radio to the public. Programming may originate in their own studio, 
from an affiliated network, or from external sources.'' The SBA has 
established a small business size standard for this category as firms 
having $41.5 million or less in annual receipts. Economic Census data 
for 2012 show that 2,849 radio station firms operated during that year. 
Of that number, 2,806 firms operated with annual receipts of less than 
$25 million per year, 17 with annual receipts

[[Page 46785]]

between $25 million and $49,999,999 million and 26 with annual receipts 
of $50 million or more. Therefore, based on the SBA's size standard the 
majority of such entities are small entities.
    In addition to the U.S. Census Bureau's data, based on Commission 
data the Commission estimates that there are 4,560 licensed AM radio 
stations, 6,704 commercial FM radio stations and 8,339 FM translator 
and booster stations. The Commission has also determined that there are 
4,196 noncommercial educational (NCE) FM radio stations. The Commission 
however does not compile and does not otherwise have access to 
information on the revenue of NCE stations that would permit it to 
determine how many such stations would qualify as small entities under 
the SBA size standard.
    The Commission also notes that in assessing whether a business 
entity qualifies as small under the above definition, business control 
affiliations must be included. The Commission's estimate therefore 
likely overstates the number of small entities that might be affected 
by its action, because the revenue figure on which it is based does not 
include or aggregate revenues from affiliated companies. In addition, 
to be determined a ``small business,'' an entity may not be dominant in 
its field of operation. The Commission further notes that it is 
difficult at times to assess these criteria in the context of media 
entities, and the estimate of small businesses to which these rules may 
apply does not exclude any radio station from the definition of a small 
business on these bases, thus the Commission's estimate of small 
businesses may therefore be over-inclusive. Also, as noted above, an 
additional element of the definition of ``small business'' is that the 
entity must be independently owned and operated. The Commission notes 
that it is difficult at times to assess these criteria in the context 
of media entities and the estimates of small businesses to which they 
apply may be over-inclusive to this extent.
    FM Translator Stations and Low-Power FM Stations. FM translators 
and Low Power FM Stations are classified in the category of Radio 
Stations and are assigned the same NAICS Code as licensees of radio 
stations. This U.S. industry, Radio Stations, comprises establishments 
primarily engaged in broadcasting aural programs by radio to the 
public. Programming may originate in their own studio, from an 
affiliated network, or from external sources. The SBA has established a 
small business size standard which consists of all radio stations whose 
annual receipts are $38.5 million dollars or less. U.S. Census Bureau 
data for 2012 indicate that 2,849 radio station firms operated during 
that year. Of that number, 2,806 operated with annual receipts of less 
than $25 million per year, 17 with annual receipts between $25 million 
and $49,999,999 million and 26 with annual receipts of $50 million or 
more. Therefore, based on the SBA's size standard the Commission 
concludes that the majority of FM Translator Stations and Low Power FM 
Stations are small.
    The Commission notes again, however, that in assessing whether a 
business concern qualifies as ``small'' under the above definition, 
business (control) affiliations must be included. Because the 
Commission does not include or aggregate revenues from affiliated 
companies in determining whether an entity meets the applicable revenue 
threshold, its estimate of the number of small radio broadcast stations 
affected is likely overstated. In addition, as noted above, one element 
of the definition of ``small business'' is that an entity would not be 
dominant in its field of operation. The Commission is unable at this 
time to define or quantify the criteria that would establish whether a 
specific radio broadcast station is dominant in its field of operation. 
Accordingly, the Commission's estimate of small radio stations 
potentially affected by the rule revisions discussed in the NPRM 
includes those that could be dominant in their field of operation. For 
this reason, such estimate likely is over-inclusive.
    Television Broadcasting. This Economic Census category ``comprises 
establishments primarily engaged in broadcasting images together with 
sound.'' These establishments operate television broadcast studios and 
facilities for the programming and transmission of programs to the 
public. These establishments also produce or transmit visual 
programming to affiliated broadcast television stations, which in turn 
broadcast the programs to the public on a predetermined schedule. 
Programming may originate in their own studio, from an affiliated 
network, or from external sources. The SBA has created the following 
small business size standard for such businesses: Those having $41.5 
million or less in annual receipts. The 2012 Economic Census reports 
that 751 firms in this category operated in that year. Of that number, 
656 had annual receipts of $25,000,000 or less, and 25 had annual 
receipts between $25,000,000 and $49,999,999. Based on this data the 
Commission therefore estimates that the majority of commercial 
television broadcasters are small entities under the applicable SBA 
size standard.
    The Commission has estimated the number of licensed commercial 
television stations to be 1,368. According to Commission staff review 
of the BIA Kelsey Inc. Media Access Pro Television Database (BIA) on 
November 16, 2017, 1,258 stations (or about 91 percent) had revenues of 
$38.5 million or less, and therefore these licensees qualified as small 
entities under the SBA definition. In addition, the Commission has 
estimated the number of licensed noncommercial educational television 
stations to be 390. Notwithstanding, the Commission does not compile 
and otherwise does not have access to information on the revenue of NCE 
stations that would permit it to determine how many such stations would 
qualify as small entities. There are also 2,246 low power television 
stations, including Class A stations (LPTV), and 3,543 TV translator 
stations. Given the nature of these services, the Commission will 
presume that all of these entities qualify as small entities under the 
above SBA small business size standard.
    The Commission notes, however, that in assessing whether a business 
concern qualifies as ``small'' under the above definition, business 
(control) affiliations must be included. The Commission's estimate, 
therefore, likely overstates the number of small entities that might be 
affected by its action, because the revenue figure on which it is based 
does not include or aggregate revenues from affiliated companies. In 
addition, another element of the definition of ``small business'' 
requires that an entity not be dominant in its field of operation. The 
Commission is unable at this time to define or quantify the criteria 
that would establish whether a specific television broadcast station is 
dominant in its field of operation. Accordingly, the estimate of small 
businesses to which rules may apply does not exclude any television 
station from the definition of a small business on this basis and is 
therefore possibly over-inclusive. Also, as noted above, an additional 
element of the definition of ``small business'' is that the entity must 
be independently owned and operated. The Commission notes that it is 
difficult at times to assess these criteria in the context of media 
entities and its estimates of small businesses to which they apply may 
be over-inclusive to this extent.
    Cable and Other Subscription Programming. The U.S. Census Bureau 
defines this industry as establishments primarily engaged in operating 
studios and facilities for the broadcasting of

[[Page 46786]]

programs on a subscription or fee basis. The broadcast programming is 
typically narrowcast in nature (e.g., limited format, such as news, 
sports, education, or youth-oriented). These establishments produce 
programming in their own facilities or acquire programming from 
external sources. The programming material is usually delivered to a 
third party, such as cable systems or direct-to-home satellite systems, 
for transmission to viewers. The SBA size standard for this industry 
establishes as small, any company in this category which receives 
annual receipts of $41.5 million or less. According to 2012 U.S. Census 
Bureau data, 367 firms operated for the entire year. Of that number, 
319 operated with annual receipts of less than $25 million a year and 
48 firms operated with annual receipts of $25 million or more. Based on 
this data, the Commission estimates that the majority of firms 
operating in this industry are small.
    Cable System Operators (Rate Regulation Standard). The Commission 
has developed its own small business size standards for the purpose of 
cable rate regulation. Under the Commission's rules, a ``small cable 
company'' is one serving 400,000 or fewer subscribers nationwide. 
Industry data indicate that there are 4,600 active cable systems in the 
United States. Of this total, all but five cable operators nationwide 
are small under the 400,000-subscriber size standard. In addition, 
under the Commission's rate regulation rules, a ``small system'' is a 
cable system serving 15,000 or fewer subscribers. Commission records 
show 4,600 cable systems nationwide. Of this total, 3,900 cable systems 
have fewer than 15,000 subscribers, and 700 systems have 15,000 or more 
subscribers, based on the same records. Thus, under this standard as 
well, the Commission estimates that most cable systems are small 
entities.
    Cable System Operators (Telecom Act Standard). The Communications 
Act of 1934, as amended, also contains a size standard for small cable 
system operators, which is ``a cable operator that, directly or through 
an affiliate, serves in the aggregate fewer than one percent of all 
subscribers in the United States and is not affiliated with any entity 
or entities whose gross annual revenues in the aggregate exceed 
$250,000,000.'' As of 2019, there were approximately 48,646,056 basic 
cable video subscribers in the United States. Accordingly, an operator 
serving fewer than 524,037 subscribers shall be deemed a small operator 
if its annual revenues, when combined with the total annual revenues of 
all its affiliates, do not exceed $250 million in the aggregate. Based 
on available data, the Commission finds that all but nine incumbent 
cable operators are small entities under this size standard. The 
Commission notes that it neither requests nor collects information on 
whether cable system operators are affiliated with entities whose gross 
annual revenues exceed $250 million. Although it seems certain that 
some of these cable system operators are affiliated with entities whose 
gross annual revenues exceed $250 million, the Commission is unable at 
this time to estimate with greater precision the number of cable system 
operators that would qualify as small cable operators under the 
definition in the Communications Act.
    Satellite Telecommunications. This category comprises firms 
``primarily engaged in providing telecommunications services to other 
establishments in the telecommunications and broadcasting industries by 
forwarding and receiving communications signals via a system of 
satellites or reselling satellite telecommunications.'' Satellite 
telecommunications service providers include satellite and earth 
station operators. The category has a small business size standard of 
$35 million or less in average annual receipts, under SBA rules. For 
this category, U.S. Census Bureau data for 2012 show that there was a 
total of 333 firms that operated for the entire year. Of this total, 
299 firms had annual receipts of less than $25 million. Consequently, 
the Commission estimates that the majority of satellite 
telecommunications providers are small entities.
    All Other Telecommunications. The ``All Other Telecommunications'' 
category is comprised of establishments that are primarily engaged in 
providing specialized telecommunications services, such as satellite 
tracking, communications telemetry, and radar station operation. This 
industry also includes establishments primarily engaged in providing 
satellite terminal stations and associated facilities connected with 
one or more terrestrial systems and capable of transmitting 
telecommunications to, and receiving telecommunications from, satellite 
systems. Establishments providing internet services or voice over 
internet protocol (VoIP) services via client-supplied 
telecommunications connections are also included in this industry. The 
SBA has developed a small business size standard for ``All Other 
Telecommunications,'' which consists of all such firms with gross 
annual receipts of $32.5 million or less. For this category, U.S. 
Census data for 2012 show that there were 1,442 firms that operated for 
the entire year. Of these firms, a total of 1,400 had gross annual 
receipts of less than $25 million. Thus, the Commission estimates that 
the majority of ``All Other Telecommunications'' firms potentially 
affected by the Commission's action can be considered small.
    Broadband Radio Service and Educational Broadband Service. 
Broadband Radio Service systems, previously referred to as Multipoint 
Distribution Service (MDS) and Multichannel Multipoint Distribution 
Service (MMDS) systems, and ``wireless cable,'' transmit video 
programming to subscribers and provide two-way high speed data 
operations using the microwave frequencies of the Broadband Radio 
Service (BRS) and Educational Broadband Service (EBS) (previously 
referred to as the Instructional Television Fixed Service (ITFS)).
    BRS--In connection with the 1996 BRS auction, the Commission 
established a small business size standard as an entity that had annual 
average gross revenues of no more than $40 million in the previous 
three calendar years. The BRS auctions resulted in 67 successful 
bidders obtaining licensing opportunities for 493 Basic Trading Areas 
(BTAs). Of the 67 auction winners, 61 met the definition of a small 
business. BRS also includes licensees of stations authorized prior to 
the auction. At this time, the Commission estimates that of the 61 
small business BRS auction winners, 48 remain small business licensees. 
In addition to the 48 small businesses that hold BTA authorizations, 
there are approximately 86 incumbent BRS licensees that are considered 
small entities (18 incumbent BRS licensees do not meet the small 
business size standard). After adding the number of small business 
auction licensees to the number of incumbent licensees not already 
counted, there are currently approximately 133 BRS licensees that are 
defined as small businesses under either the SBA or the Commission's 
rules.
    In 2009, the Commission conducted Auction 86, the sale of 78 
licenses in the BRS areas. The Commission offered three levels of 
bidding credits: (i) A bidder with attributed average annual gross 
revenues that exceed $15 million and do not exceed $40 million for the 
preceding three years (small business) received a 15 percent discount 
on its winning bid; (ii) a bidder with attributed average annual gross 
revenues that exceed $3 million and do not exceed $15 million for the 
preceding

[[Page 46787]]

three years (very small business) received a 25 percent discount on its 
winning bid; and (iii) a bidder with attributed average annual gross 
revenues that do not exceed $3 million for the preceding three years 
(entrepreneur) received a 35 percent discount on its winning bid. 
Auction 86 concluded in 2009 with the sale of 61 licenses. Of the ten 
winning bidders, two bidders that claimed small business status won 4 
licenses; one bidder that claimed very small business status won three 
licenses; and two bidders that claimed entrepreneur status won six 
licenses.
    EBS--Educational Broadband Service has been included within the 
broad economic census category and SBA size standard for Wired 
Telecommunications Carriers since 2007. Wired Telecommunications 
Carriers are comprised of establishments primarily engaged in operating 
and/or providing access to transmission facilities and infrastructure 
that they own and/or lease for the transmission of voice, data, text, 
sound, and video using wired telecommunications networks. Transmission 
facilities may be based on a single technology or a combination of 
technologies.'' The SBA's small business size standard for this 
category is all such firms having 1,500 or fewer employees. U.S. Census 
Bureau data for 2012 show that there were 3,117 firms that operated 
that year. Of this total, 3,083 operated with fewer than 1,000 
employees. Thus, under this size standard, the majority of firms in 
this industry can be considered small. In addition to Census data, the 
Commission's Universal Licensing System indicates that as of October 
2014, there are 2,206 active EBS licenses. The Commission estimates 
that of these 2,206 licenses, the majority are held by non-profit 
educational institutions and school districts, which are by statute 
defined as small businesses.
    Direct Broadcast Satellite (``DBS'') Service. DBS service is a 
nationally distributed subscription service that delivers video and 
audio programming via satellite to a small parabolic ``dish'' antenna 
at the subscriber's location. DBS is included in the category of 
``Wired Telecommunications Carriers.'' The Wired Telecommunications 
Carriers industry comprises establishments primarily engaged in 
operating and/or providing access to transmission facilities and 
infrastructure that they own and/or lease for the transmission of 
voice, data, text, sound, and video using wired telecommunications 
networks. Transmission facilities may be based on a single technology 
or combination of technologies. Establishments in this industry use the 
wired telecommunications network facilities that they operate to 
provide a variety of services, such as wired telephony services, 
including VoIP services, wired (cable) audio and video programming 
distribution; and wired broadband internet services. By exception, 
establishments providing satellite television distribution services 
using facilities and infrastructure that they operate are included in 
this industry. The SBA size standard considers a wireline business is 
small if it has fewer than 1,500 employees. U.S. Census Bureau data for 
2012 indicates that 3,117 wireline companies were operational during 
that year. Of that number, 3,083 operated with fewer than 1,000 
employees. Based on that data, the Commission concludes that the 
majority of wireline firms are small under the applicable SBA standard. 
Currently, however, only two entities provide DBS service, which 
requires a great deal of capital for operation: DIRECTV (owned by AT&T) 
and DISH Network. DIRECTV and DISH Network each report annual revenues 
that are in excess of the threshold for a small business. Accordingly, 
the Commission must conclude that internally developed FCC data are 
persuasive that, in general, DBS service is provided only by large 
firms.
    Wireless Telecommunications Carriers (except Satellite). This 
industry comprises establishments engaged in operating and maintaining 
switching and transmission facilities to provide communications via the 
airwaves. Establishments in this industry have spectrum licenses and 
provide services using that spectrum, such as cellular services, paging 
services, wireless internet access, and wireless video services. The 
appropriate size standard under SBA rules is that such a business is 
small if it has 1,500 or fewer employees. For this industry, U.S. 
Census Bureau data for 2012 show that there were 967 firms that 
operated for the entire year. Of this total, 955 firms had employment 
of 999 or fewer employees, and 12 firms had employment of 1,000 
employees or more. Thus, under this category and the associated size 
standard, the Commission estimates that the majority of wireless 
telecommunications carriers (except satellite) are small entities.
    AWS Services (1710-1755 MHz and 2110-2155 MHz bands (AWS-1); 1915-
1920 MHz, 1995-2000 MHz, 2020-2025 MHz and 2175-2180 MHz bands (AWS-2); 
2155-2175 MHz band (AWS-3)). For the AWS-1 bands, the Commission has 
defined a ``small business'' as an entity with average annual gross 
revenues for the preceding three years not exceeding $40 million, and a 
``very small business'' as an entity with average annual gross revenues 
for the preceding three years not exceeding $15 million. For AWS-2 and 
AWS-3, although the Commission does not know for certain which entities 
are likely to apply for these frequencies, it notes that the AWS-1 
bands are comparable to those used for cellular service and personal 
communications service. The Commission has not yet adopted size 
standards for the AWS-2 or AWS-3 bands but proposes to treat both AWS-2 
and AWS-3 similarly to broadband PCS service and AWS-1 service due to 
the comparable capital requirements and other factors, such as issues 
involved in relocating incumbents and developing markets, technologies, 
and services.
    Narrowband Personal Communications Services. Two auctions of 
narrowband personal communications services (PCS) licenses have been 
conducted. To ensure meaningful participation of small business 
entities in future auctions, the Commission has adopted a two-tiered 
small business size standard in the Narrowband PCS Second Report and 
Order. Through these auctions, the Commission has awarded a total of 41 
licenses, out of which 11 were obtained by small businesses. A ``small 
business'' is an entity that, together with affiliates and controlling 
interests, has average gross revenues for the three preceding years of 
not more than $40 million. A ``very small business'' is an entity that, 
together with affiliates and controlling interests, has average gross 
revenues for the three preceding years of not more than $15 million. 
The SBA has approved these small business size standards.
    Broadband Personal Communications Service. The broadband personal 
communications service (PCS) spectrum is divided into six frequency 
blocks designated A through F, and the Commission has held auctions for 
each block. The Commission initially defined a ``small business'' for 
C- and F-Block licenses as an entity that has average gross revenues of 
$40 million or less in the three previous calendar years. For F-Block 
licenses, an additional small business size standard for ``very small 
business'' was added and is defined as an entity that, together with 
its affiliates, has average gross revenues of not more than $15 million 
for the preceding three calendar years. These standards defining 
``small entity'', in the context of broadband PCS auctions, have been 
approved by the SBA. No small businesses within the SBA-approved

[[Page 46788]]

small business size standards bid successfully for licenses in Blocks A 
and B. There were 90 winning bidders that claimed small business status 
in the first two C-Block auctions. A total of 93 bidders that claimed 
small business status won approximately 40 percent of the 1,479 
licenses in the first auction for the D-, E-, and F-Blocks. On April 
15, 1999, the Commission completed the reauction of 347 C-, D-, E-, and 
F-Block licenses in Auction No. 22. Of the 57 winning bidders in that 
auction, 48 claimed small business status and won 277 licenses.
    On January 26, 2001, the Commission completed the auction of 422 C- 
and F-Block Broadband PCS licenses in Auction No. 35. Of the 35 winning 
bidders in that auction, 29 claimed small business status. Subsequent 
events concerning Auction No. 35, including judicial and agency 
determinations, resulted in a total of 163 C- and F-Block licenses 
being available for grant. On February 15, 2005, the Commission 
completed an auction of 242 C-, D-, E-, and F-Block licenses in Auction 
No. 58. Of the 24 winning bidders in that auction, 16 claimed small 
business status and won 156 licenses. On May 21, 2007, the Commission 
completed an auction of 33 licenses in the A-, C-, and F-Blocks in 
Auction No. 71. Of the 12 winning bidders in that auction, five claimed 
small business status and won 18 licenses. On August 20, 2008, the 
Commission completed the auction of 20 C-, D-, E-, and F-Block 
Broadband PCS licenses in Auction No. 78. Of the eight winning bidders 
for Broadband PCS licenses in that auction, six claimed small business 
status and won 14 licenses.
    Wireless Communications Services. This service can be used for 
fixed, mobile, radiolocation, and digital audio broadcasting satellite 
uses. The Commission defined ``small business'' for the wireless 
communications services (WCS) auction as an entity with average gross 
revenues of $40 million for each of the three preceding years, and a 
``very small business'' as an entity with average gross revenues of $15 
million for each of the three preceding years. The SBA has approved 
these small business size standards. In the Commission's auction for 
geographic area licenses in the WCS there were seven winning bidders 
that qualified as ``very small business'' entities, and one that 
qualified as a ``small business'' entity.
    Radio and Television Broadcasting and Wireless Communications 
Equipment Manufacturing. This industry comprises establishments 
primarily engaged in manufacturing radio and television broadcast and 
wireless communications equipment. Examples of products made by these 
establishments are: Transmitting and receiving antennas, cable 
television equipment, GPS equipment, pagers, cellular phones, mobile 
communications equipment, and radio and television studio and 
broadcasting equipment. The SBA has established a small business size 
standard for this industry of 1,250 employees or less. U.S. Census 
Bureau data for 2012 shows that 841 establishments operated in this 
industry in that year. Of that number, 828 establishments operated with 
fewer than 1,000 employees, 7 establishments operated with between 
1,000 and 2,499 employees, and 6 establishments operated with 2,500 or 
more employees. Based on this data, the Commission concludes that a 
majority of manufacturers in this industry are small.

E. Description of Projected Reporting, Recordkeeping, and Other 
Compliance Requirements for Small Entities

    The Order imposes additional reporting, recordkeeping and/or other 
compliance obligations on certain small, as well as other, entities 
that process WEA alerts and manufacture mobile devices that receive 
such alerts, and could impose additional reporting, recordkeeping and/
or other compliance obligations on small, as well as other entities 
that administer State EAS Plans, process and transmit EAS alerts, and 
manufacture equipment designed to process EAS alerts. While the 
Commission is not in a position to determine whether small entities 
will have to hire professionals to comply with its decisions and cannot 
quantify the cost of compliance for small entities, as discussed in the 
Order, the approaches it has taken to implement the requirements of 
NDAA21 have minimal or de minimis cost implications for impacted 
entities.
    In the Order, the Commission adds a national alert category to WEA 
that WEA-enabled mobile device users cannot opt-out of receiving. The 
national alert category changes the name of the current Presidential 
Alerts category to National Alerts and includes alerts from both the 
President and the FEMA Administrator. Participating CMS providers that 
use WEA header displays and settings menus that currently display 
``Presidential Alert'' will have to change the display to read 
``National Alert'' or discontinue their voluntary use of WEA header 
displays.
    The Order also requires that each updated State EAS Plan submitted 
annually to the Commission for approval include a certification by the 
SECC Chairperson or Vice-Chairperson that the SECC has met (in person, 
via teleconference, or via other methods of conducting virtual 
meetings) at least once in the twelve months prior to submitting the 
annual updated plan to review and update their State EAS Plan. The 
certification requirement will be included in the rules governing State 
EAS Plans and will be incorporated into the Alert Reporting System 
(ARS). The certification requirement can be met via an on-screen ARS 
click-box, rather than requiring SECCs to complete extra paperwork to 
generate a certification document to attach in ARS.
    To address the NDAA21's requirements for reporting by government 
entities on false EAS or WAS alerts, the Order revises the Commission's 
WEA and EAS rules to provide for voluntary reporting by the FEMA 
Administrator, State, local, Tribal, or territorial governments using 
an email reporting system. The rules provide guidance on the types of 
false alerts that are suitable to report--discouraging reporting alerts 
where the incorrect information is de-minimis. The Commission also 
provides guidance on the types of information in a report that it would 
find helpful, such as the time and date of the reported alert event, 
the geographic location where the alerts were received, the message the 
alert conveyed, how they became aware of the alert, over what medium 
the alert was transmitted (e.g., broadcast or cable), whether it was an 
EAS or WEA event, and who originated the alert (if known).
    To satisfy the alert repetition requirements in the NDAA21 the 
Order modifies the EAS rules to add a new section, 11.44 ``Alert 
Repetition,'' specifying that an alert originator may ``repeat'' an 
alert by releasing the alert anew--i.e., re-originating the alert--at 
least one minute subsequent to the time the message was initially 
released by the originator, as reflected in the repeat alert's JJJHHMM 
header code to meet its alert repetition obligation.

F. Steps Taken To Minimize the Significant Economic Impact on Small 
Entities, and Significant Alternatives Considered

    The RFA requires an agency to describe any significant, 
specifically small business alternatives that it has considered in 
reaching its approach, which may include the following four 
alternatives (among others): ``(1) the establishment of differing 
compliance or reporting requirements or timetables that take into 
account the resources

[[Page 46789]]

available to small entities; (2) the clarification, consolidation, or 
simplification of compliance or reporting requirements under the rule 
for such small entities; (3) the use of performance, rather than 
design, standards; and (4) and exemption from coverage of the rule, or 
any part thereof, for such small entities.''
    The actions taken by the Commission in the Order were considered to 
be the least costly and minimally burdensome for small and other 
entities impacted by the rules. As such, the Commission does not expect 
the adopted requirements to have a significant economic impact on small 
entities. Below the Commission discusses actions it took in the Order 
to minimize any significant economic impact on small entities and some 
alternatives that were considered.
    The rules adopted creating a WEA National Alert class which adds 
the FEMA Administrator as an authorized originator of these alerts in 
addition to the President of the United States, does not create any 
costs for small entities. Renaming the existing Presidential Alert 
class to National Alerts and allowing for use of the existing WEA 
handling code and other infrastructure already in place for 
Presidential Alert was the least costly way possible to implement the 
NDAA21 requirement to ensure that subscribers may not opt out of 
receiving FEMA Administrator alerts. This change requires few, if any, 
technical changes to be made to participating CMS provider networks or 
the mobile devices of their subscribers. With respect to the amendment 
requiring participating CMS provider handset display updates to 
discontinue the display of ``Presidential Alert,'' the Commission 
provides participating CMS providers flexibility in the approach they 
use to ensure compliance, allowing the requirement to be satisfied by 
any approach that ensures that ``Presidential Alert'' is not displayed 
on a user's mobile device, either by changing the displayed header or 
not displaying the header at all. The Commission notes that no 
commenting party disputed its estimate that these costs would be 
minimal to the industry. The Commission also reduces the burden on 
participating CMS providers by exempting from the requirement any 
network infrastructure that is technically incapable of meeting this 
requirement, such as legacy devices or networks that cannot be updated 
to support this functionality.
    With respect to the amendments involving SECCs and State EAS Plan 
provisions, the Commission declined to adopt recommendations for SECC 
membership and/or a model governance structure for SECCs. There are 
SECCs currently operating in all 50 states and all, but 2 territories 
and each state and territory is different with unique needs that no 
single framework may fit. Regarding the requirement for certification 
by the SECC Chairperson or Vice-Chairperson that the SECC has met (in 
person, via teleconference, or via other methods of conducting virtual 
meetings) at least once in the twelve months prior to submitting the 
annual updated plan to review and update their State EAS Plan, the 
Commission does not believe the costs to the SECC members will be more 
than de minimis. The Commission allows for virtual meetings, which 
lessens the cost and burden of meeting in person. Further, as mentioned 
in the previous section, the Commission allows the meeting 
certification to be effectuated by clicking a button on the ARS online 
menu, which is significantly less burdensome for small entities than 
having to make some other showing, such as a paper filing.
    The amendments the Commission adopted to create a system for false 
alert reporting by government entities minimize any impact of 
compliance for small entities and others by virtue of the reporting 
system being a voluntary reporting process. For government entities 
that choose to report false alerts, they can do so by simply sending 
the relevant information to the Commission via email to the FCC 
Operations Center. As mentioned above, the Commission declined to 
require a list of elements that must be reported, which could make the 
process unduly burdensome and deter government entities from filing 
false alert reports. The Commission also declined to adopt a definition 
of what constitutes a false alert which could be too limited and 
burdensome for reporting government entities. Instead, the Commission 
offers guidance on the type of information about false alerts that 
would be meaningful to the Commission, and note that the voluntary 
reporting process adopted in the Order does not alter the meaning of 
false alerts that has been applied in other parts of the Commission 
rules, including Sec.  11.45(a) and (b).
    With respect to the process for enabling Alert Originators to 
repeat EAS alerts for national security, the requirement to repeat EAS 
messages can be addressed under the Commission's existing rules. The 
Commission therefore kept the current EAS rules governing alert 
(re)transmission intact and added a new Sec.  11.44 that clarifies how 
alert originators can repeat their alert transmissions. The 
Commission's decision to clarify how alert originators can repeat (or 
re-originate) EAS alerts does not impose any additional costs, as such 
repetition has been a function available to alert originators from the 
inception of the EAS.
    Finally, the Commission notes two additional actions it took that 
minimizes the significant economic impact of the Order on small 
entities. The Commission declined to adopt a new national security-
related originator code or event code in light of the record, which 
suggests that adding new codes will introduce costs to EAS Participants 
that are difficult to justify given the complexity and costs associated 
with their adoption. The Commission also declined to adopt a 
requirement for implementation of automated repetition of alerts by EAS 
Participants' EAS devices. To do so would result in substantial burdens 
that are unnecessary, and the potential disruption and costs associated 
with implementing automated repeating in EAS devices is likely to be 
significant and could yield unintended consequences detrimental to EAS 
operations.

Paperwork Reduction Act Analysis

    This document contains modified information collection requirements 
subject to the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA), Public Law 104-
13. It will be submitted to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) 
for review under section 3507(d) of the PRA. OMB, the general public, 
and other Federal agencies will be invited to comment on the new or 
modified information collection requirements contained in this 
proceeding. In addition, the Commission notes that pursuant to the 
Small Business Paperwork Relief Act of 2002, Public Law 107-198, see 44 
U.S.C. 3506(c)(4), it previously sought specific comment on how the 
Commission might further reduce the information collection burden for 
small business concerns with fewer than 25 employees.

Congressional Review Act

    The Commission has determined, and the Administrator of the Office 
of Information and Regulatory Affairs, Office of Management and Budget, 
concurs, that this rule is non-major under the Congressional Review 
Act, 5 U.S.C. 804(2). The Commission will send a copy of this Report 
and Order to Congress and the Government Accountability Office pursuant 
to 5 U.S.C. 801(a)(1)(A).

Ordering Clauses

    Accordingly, it is ordered, pursuant to sections 1, 2, 4(i), 4(o), 
301, 303(r),

[[Page 46790]]

303(v), 307, 309, 335, 403, 624(g), 706, and 713 of the Communications 
Act of 1934, as amended, 47 U.S.C. 151, 152, 154(i), 154(o), 301, 
303(r), 303(v), 307, 309, 335, 403, 544(g), and 606, as well as by 
sections 602(a), (b), (c), (f), 603, 604 and 606 of the WARN Act, 47 
U.S.C. 1202(a), (b), (c), (f), 1203, 1204 and 1206, Section 202 of the 
Twenty-First Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act of 
2010, as amended, 47 U.S.C. 613, and the National Defense Authorization 
Act for Fiscal Year 2021, Public Law 116-283, 134 Stat. 3388, section 
9201, 47 U.S.C. 1201, 1206, that this Report and Order and Further 
Notice of Proposed Rulemaking in PS Docket Nos. 15-94 and 15-91 is 
hereby adopted.
    It is further ordered that the rule amendments adopted herein will 
become effective September 20, 2021. The new or revised portions of 
Sec. Sec.  of 10.11(b), 10.520(d)(2), 11.21, 11.21(a), 11.45(c), and 
11.21(a)(8) contain new or modified information collection requirements 
that require OMB review under the PRA. The Commission directs the 
Public Safety and Homeland Security Bureau (Bureau) to announce the 
compliance dates for these rules after OMB has reviewed and approved 
those information collections in a document published in the Federal 
Register, delegates authority to the Bureau to cause the July 31, 2022 
deadline in Sec.  10.11(b) to be revised accordingly as necessary if 
more time is needed to secure OMB's review, and delegates authority to 
the Bureau to revise Sec. Sec.  10.11(c), 10.520(d)(3), 11.21(g), and 
11.45(d) once OMB review has been obtained. The compliance dates that 
the Bureau announces for the new or revised portions of Sec.  11.21(a) 
at Appendix A shall supply sufficient time to comply with the Sec.  
11.21 rule revisions adopted in Emergency Alert System, Report and 
Order, PS Docket Nos. 15-94 and 15-91, (83 FR 37750, Aug. 2, 2018).
    It is further ordered that the Commission's Consumer and 
Governmental Affairs Bureau, Reference Information Center, shall send a 
copy of this Report and Order, including the Final Regulatory 
Flexibility Analysis, to the Chief Counsel for Advocacy of the Small 
Business Administration.

List of Subjects

47 CFR Part 10

    Communications common carriers, Radio.

 47 CFR Part 11

    Radio, Television.

Federal Communications Commission.
Marlene Dortch,
Secretary.

Final Rules

    For the reasons discussed in the preamble, the Federal 
Communications Commission amends 47 CFR parts 10 and 11 as follows:

PART 10--WIRELESS EMERGENCY ALERTS

0
1. The authority citation for part 10 is revised to read as follows:

    Authority: 47 U.S.C. 151, 154(i) and (o), 201, 303(r), 403, and 
606, 1202(a), (b), (c), (f), 1203, 1204, and 1206.]


0
2. Section 10.11 is amended by designating the current text as 
paragraph (a) and by adding paragraphs (b) and (c) to read as follows:


Sec.  10.11   WEA implementation timeline.

* * * * *
    (b) If a Participating CMS Provider's network infrastructure would 
generate and display WEA headers with the text ``Presidential Alert'' 
to subscribers upon receipt of a National Alert, or include the text 
``Presidential Alert'' in a mobile device's settings menus, then by 
July 31, 2022, that Participating CMS Provider's network infrastructure 
shall either generate and display WEA headers and menus with the text 
``National Alert,'' or no longer display those headers and menu text to 
the subscriber. Network infrastructure that is technically incapable of 
meeting this requirement, such as situations in which legacy devices or 
networks cannot be updated to support header display changes, are 
exempt from this requirement.
    (c) Compliance date(s)--paragraph (b) of this section contains an 
information-collection and recordkeeping requirement. Compliance with 
paragraph (b) will not be required until after approval by the Office 
of Management and Budget. The Commission will publish a document in the 
Federal Register announcing compliance date(s) with this paragraph and 
revising this paragraph accordingly.

0
3. Section 10.320 is amended by revising paragraph (e)(3) to read as 
follows:


Sec.  10.320   Provider alert gateway requirements.

* * * * *
    (e) * * *
    (3) Prioritization. The CMS provider gateway must process an Alert 
Message on a first in-first out basis except for National Alerts, which 
must be processed before all non-National Alerts.
* * * * *

0
4. Section 10.400 is amended by revising paragraph (a) to read as 
follows:


Sec.  10.400  Classification.

* * * * *
    (a) National Alert. A National Alert is an alert issued by the 
President of the United States or the President's authorized designee, 
or by the Administrator of FEMA. National Alerts may be either 
nationwide or regional in distribution.
* * * * *

0
5. Section 10.410 is revised to read as follows:


Sec.  10.410  Prioritization.

    A Participating CMS Provider is required to transmit National 
Alerts upon receipt. National Alerts preempt all other Alert Messages. 
A Participating CMS Provider is required to transmit Imminent Threat 
Alerts, AMBER Alerts and Public Safety Messages on a first in-first out 
(FIFO) basis.

0
6. Section 10.420 is revised to read as follows:


Sec.  10.420  Message elements.

    A WEA Alert Message processed by a Participating CMS Provider shall 
include five mandatory CAP elements--Event Type; Area Affected; 
Recommended Action; Expiration Time (with time zone); and Sending 
Agency. This requirement does not apply to National Alerts.

0
7. Section 10.500 is amended by revising paragraph (f) to read as 
follows:


Sec.  10.500  General requirements.

* * * * *
    (f) Presentation of alert content to the device, consistent with 
subscriber opt-out selections. National Alerts must always be 
presented.
* * * * *

0
8. Section 10.520 is amended by redesignating paragraph (d) as 
paragraph (d)(1) and by adding paragraphs (d)(2) and (3) to read as 
follows:


Sec.  10.520  Common audio attention signal.

* * * * *
    (d)(1) * * *
    (2) If the Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency 
(FEMA) or a State, local, Tribal, or territorial government entity 
becomes aware of transmission of a WEA false alert to the public, they 
are encouraged to send an email to the Commission at the FCC Ops Center 
at [email protected], informing the Commission of the event

[[Page 46791]]

and of any details that they may have concerning the event.
    (3) Compliance date(s)--paragraph (d)(2) of this section contains 
an information-collection and recordkeeping requirement. Compliance 
with paragraph (d)(2) will not be required until after approval by the 
Office of Management and Budget. The Commission will publish a document 
in the Federal Register announcing compliance date(s) with this 
paragraph and revising this paragraph accordingly.
* * * * *

PART 11--EMERGENCY ALERT SYSTEM (EAS)

0
9. The authority citation for part 11 is revised to read as follows:

    Authority: 47 U.S.C. 151, 154 (i) and (o), 303(r), 544(g), 606, 
1201, 1206].


0
10. Section 11.21 is amended by revising the introductory text and 
paragraph (a) introductory text and adding paragraphs (a)(8) and (g) to 
read as follows:


Sec.  11.21  State and Local Area plans and FCC Mapbook.

    EAS plans contain guidelines which must be followed by EAS 
Participants' personnel, emergency officials, and National Weather 
Service (NWS) personnel to activate the EAS. The plans include the EAS 
header codes and messages that will be transmitted by key EAS sources 
(NP, LP, SP and SR). State and local plans contain unique methods of 
EAS message distribution such as the use of the Radio Broadcast Data 
System (RBDS). The plans also include information on actions taken by 
EAS Participants, in coordination with state and local governments, to 
ensure timely access to EAS alert content by non-English speaking 
populations. The plans must be reviewed and approved by the Chief, 
Public Safety and Homeland Security Bureau (Bureau), prior to 
implementation to ensure that they are consistent with national plans, 
FCC regulations, and EAS operation. The plans are administered by State 
Emergency Communications Committees (SECC). The Commission encourages 
the chief executive of each State to establish an SECC if their State 
does not have an SECC, and if the State has an SECC, to review the 
composition and governance of the SECC. The Bureau will review and 
approve plans, including annual updated plans, within 60 days of 
receipt, provided that no defects are found requiring the plan to be 
returned to the SECC for correction and resubmission. If a plan 
submitted for approval is found defective, the SECC will be notified of 
the required corrections, and the corrected plan may be resubmitted for 
approval, thus starting the 60-day review and approval period anew. The 
approval dates of State EAS Plans will be listed on the Commission's 
website.
    (a) State EAS Plans contain guidelines that must be followed by EAS 
Participants' personnel, emergency officials, and National Weather 
Service (NWS) personnel to activate the EAS. The Plans include 
information on actions taken by EAS Participants, in coordination with 
state and local governments, to ensure timely access to EAS alert 
content by non-English speaking populations. State EAS Plans must be 
updated on an annual basis. State EAS Plans must include the following 
elements:
* * * * *
    (8) Certification by the SECC Chairperson or Vice-Chairperson that 
the SECC met (in person, via teleconference, or via other methods of 
conducting virtual meetings) at least once in the twelve months prior 
to submitting the annual updated plan to review and update the plan.
* * * * *
    (g) Compliance date(s)--the introductory text and paragraphs (a) 
introductory text and (a)(8) of this section contain information-
collection and recordkeeping requirements adopted in the Report and 
Order and Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, Amendment of the 
Commission's Rules Regarding the Emergency Alert System; Wireless 
Emergency Alerts, PS Docket Nos. 15-91 and 15-94, FCC 21-77 (June 17, 
2021). Compliance with the introductory text and paragraphs (a) 
introductory text and (a)(8) will not be required until after approval 
by the Office of Management and Budget. The Commission will publish a 
document in the Federal Register announcing compliance date(s) with 
those paragraphs and revising those paragraphs accordingly.
* * * * *

0
11. Section 11.44 is added to read as follows:


Sec.  11.44   Alert Repetition.

    An alert originator may ``repeat'' an alert by releasing the alert 
anew--i.e., re-originating the alert--at least one minute subsequent to 
the time the message was initially released by the originator, as 
reflected in the repeat alert's JJJHHMM header code. Because alerts 
take time to activate across the EAS alert distribution chain, alert 
originators should consider an interval between the original and re-
originated alert that is long enough to account for this process. If 
the re-originated alert is intended to reflect a valid time period 
consistent with the original, the valid time period code (the +TTTT 
header code identified in Sec.  11.31(c)) set for the re-originated 
alert should be adjusted to account for the elapsed time between the 
original and re-originated alerts. Alert originators should be aware 
that repeating alerts routinely may cause alert fatigue among the 
public.

0
12. Section 11.45 is amended by revising paragraph (b) and adding 
paragraphs (c) and (d) to read as follows:


Sec.  11.45  Prohibition of false or deceptive EAS transmissions.

* * * * *
    (b) No later than twenty-four (24) hours of an EAS Participant's 
discovery (i.e., actual knowledge) that it has transmitted or otherwise 
sent a false alert to the public, the EAS Participant shall send an 
email to the Commission at the FCC Ops Center at [email protected], 
informing the Commission of the event and of any details that the EAS 
Participant may have concerning the event.
    (c) If the Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency 
or a State, local, Tribal, or territorial government entity becomes 
aware of transmission of an EAS false alert to the public, they are 
encouraged to send an email to the Commission at the FCC Ops Center at 
[email protected], informing the Commission of the event and of any 
details that they may have concerning the event.
    (d) Compliance date(s)--paragraph (c) of this section contains an 
information-collection and recordkeeping requirement. Compliance with 
paragraph (c) will not be required until after approval by the Office 
of Management and Budget. The Commission will publish a document in the 
Federal Register announcing compliance date(s) for this paragraph and 
revising this paragraph accordingly.

[FR Doc. 2021-15175 Filed 8-19-21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6712-01-P