The Emergency Reporting Act directs the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to conduct regular public hearings and issue reports after major disasters in which the Disaster Information Reporting System (DIRS) is activated for at least seven days. Those reports must examine the number and duration of outages affecting broadband internet access, interconnected VoIP, commercial mobile service, and commercial mobile data service, as well as the impact on users, communications infrastructure, and emergency communications centers. The FCC must also include recommendations for improving the resilience of affected networks and services.
The bill further requires the FCC to study and publish a report on network outage reporting practices, including whether outage notifications to emergency communications centers should include visual information to improve situational awareness, how many 9–1–1 outages may go unreported under current thresholds, and whether changes to FCC rules are warranted. The legislation also limits its scope by stating that it does not grant the FCC broader authority over broadband providers beyond what is specifically authorized in the bill.
Impact
The bill would add new FCC reporting and oversight duties tied to disaster-related communications outages and emergency communications center notifications. It does not directly impose new operational requirements on providers in the text, but it does require the FCC to investigate current outage-reporting practices and potentially recommend rule changes. The measure also defines key terms such as broadband internet access service, emergency communications center, outage, and DIRS, and it expressly preserves limits on FCC authority over broadband providers outside the bill’s specific provisions.
Sentiment
The available voting history suggests strong bipartisan support: the House passed the bill overwhelmingly by a 384-7 vote under suspension of the rules. No committee transcript is available, but the vote margin indicates broad agreement that post-disaster communications reporting and 9–1–1 outage transparency are worthwhile public-safety measures. The Senate status shown is procedural receipt and placement on the calendar, with no recorded opposition in the provided materials.
Contention
The main policy tension in the bill is between public-safety transparency and the burden on communications providers. The FCC is directed to examine whether adding visual information to outage notifications would help emergency communications centers, but also to weigh that benefit against the practicality and compliance burden for originating service providers. Another point of caution is the bill’s explicit rule of construction limiting any expansion of FCC authority over broadband internet access service, which suggests sensitivity to concerns about regulatory overreach.