Emergency Alert System Rules Revised

[Commentary] Nearly four years ago the Federal Communications Commission (along with Federal Emergency Management Agency) conducted the first ever nationwide test of the Emergency Alert System (EAS). Now, after analyzing the performance of the EAS during that test, and after twice soliciting input from interested parties, the FCC has decided to tweak the system.

This will be of interest to all EAS participants, since within the next year or so their equipment will have to accommodate the tweaks. The first two changes the FCC has adopted involve EAS “header codes”. The second change: Electronic Test Reporting. After the 2011 nationwide test, EAS Participants were required to submit test results data, either on paper or through a temporary electronic filing system. Most took the electronic option, which not surprisingly provided data much more promptly than did the paper route. Happy with those results, the FCC has opted to implement a permanent, and mandatory, Electronic Test Reporting System (or ERTS).