READI Act

To improve oversight by the Federal Communications Commission of the wireless and broadcast emergency alert systems. 1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Reliable Emergency Alert Distribution Improvement Act of 2018 READI Act 2. Definitions In this Act— (1) the term Administrator (2) the term Commission (3) the term Emergency Alert System (4) the term Wireless Emergency Alert System 47 U.S.C. 1201 3. Wireless Emergency Alert 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) (1) by striking the second and third sentences; and (2) by striking other than an alert issued by the President. other than an alert issued by— (A) the President; or (B) 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). 4. State Emergency Alert System Plans and Emergency Communications Committees (a) Definitions In this section— (1) the term SECC (2) the term State (3) the term State EAS Plan (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). 5. Emergency alert best practices (a) Guidance (1) In general Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall develop and issue guidance for State, Tribal, and local governments regarding policies and procedures relating to emergency alerts. (2) Contents The guidance developed under paragraph (1) shall include best practices and recommendations for— (A) the processes and procedures that a State, Tribal, or local government official should use to issue an alert that will use the Emergency Alert System or Wireless Emergency Alert System, including information about the technology used to issue such an alert; (B) steps that a State, Tribal, or local government official should take to mitigate the possibility of the issuance of a false alert through the Emergency Alert System and related emergency alerting systems; (C) the process that a State, Tribal, or local government official should adopt to retract a false alert in the case of the issuance of such an alert; (D) the annual training of State, Tribal, and local alert origination staff related to the— (i) issuance of alerts; (ii) avoidance of false alerts; and (iii) retracting of false alerts; and (E) a plan by which participants in the Emergency Alert System and the Wireless Emergency Alert System and other relevant State, Tribal, and local government officials may, during an emergency, contact each other, as well as Federal officials, when appropriate and necessary, by telephone, text message, or other means of communication, regarding an alert that has been distributed to the public. (b) Rule of construction Nothing in subsection (a) shall be construed to amend, supplement, or abridge the authority of the Commission under the Communications Act of 1934 ( 47 U.S.C. 151 6. 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 Alert System for the purpose of recording such false alerts and examining their causes. 7. Repeating Emergency Alert System messages for national security 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. 8. Online streaming services emergency alert examination (a) Study Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Commission shall complete an inquiry to examine the feasibility of establishing systems and signaling to offer Emergency Alert System alerts to audio and video streaming services delivered over the internet. (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.

Summary: Reliable Emergency Alert Distribution Improvement Act of 2018 or the READI Act This bill amends the Warning, Alert, and Response Network Act to include emergency alerts from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) as a type of alert that subscribers of commercial mobile service licensees may not block from their devices (currently, alerts from the President may not be blocked). The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) must adopt regulations that encourage states to establish a State Emergency Communications Commission (SECC) and provide that each SECC meet at least annually to review and update its Emergency Alert System Plan (State EAS Plan). The FCC must approve or disapprove the updated plan. FEMA shall develop and issue guidance for state, tribal, and local governments relating to emergency alerts. The FCC shall complete: (1) a rulemaking proceeding to establish a system to receive from FEMA or state, tribal, or local governments reports of false alerts under the emergency alert system (EAS) or the Wireless EAS to record such false alerts and examine their causes; (2) a rulemaking proceeding to modify the EAS to provide for repeating messages while an alert remains pending; and (3) an inquiry to examine the feasibility of establishing systems and signaling to offer EAS alerts to audio and video streaming services delivered over the Internet.