Public Alert and Warning System, 36975-36977 [06-5829]

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• Executive Office of the President
• Presidential Documents

[Federal Register Volume 71, Number 124 (Wednesday, June 28, 2006)]
[Presidential Documents]
[Pages 36975-36977]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 06-5829]




                        Presidential Documents 



Federal Register / Vol. 71, No. 124 / Wednesday, June 28, 2006 / 
Presidential Documents

[[Page 36975]]


                Executive Order 13407 of June 26, 2006

                
Public Alert and Warning System

                By the authority vested in me as President by the 
                Constitution and the laws of the United States of 
                America, including the Robert T. Stafford Disaster 
                Relief and Emergency Assistance Act, as amended (42 
                U.S.C. 5121 et seq.), and the Homeland Security Act of 
                2002, as amended (6 U.S.C. 101 et seq.), it is hereby 
                ordered as follows:

                Section 1. Policy. It is the policy of the United 
                States to have an effective, reliable, integrated, 
                flexible, and comprehensive system to alert and warn 
                the American people in situations of war, terrorist 
                attack, natural disaster, or other hazards to public 
                safety and well-being (public alert and warning 
                system), taking appropriate account of the functions, 
                capabilities, and needs of the private sector and of 
                all levels of government in our Federal system, and to 
                ensure that under all conditions the President can 
                communicate with the American people.

                Sec. 2. Functions of the Secretary of Homeland 
                Security.

                (a) To implement the policy set forth in section 1 of 
                this order, the Secretary of Homeland Security shall:

                    (i) inventory, evaluate, and assess the 
                capabilities and integration with the public alert and 
                warning system of Federal, State, territorial, tribal, 
                and local public alert and warning resources;
                    (ii) establish or adopt, as appropriate, common 
                alerting and warning protocols, standards, terminology, 
                and operating procedures for the public alert and 
                warning system to enable interoperability and the 
                secure delivery of coordinated messages to the American 
                people through as many communication pathways as 
                practicable, taking account of Federal Communications 
                Commission rules as provided by law;
                    (iii) ensure the capability to adapt the 
                distribution and content of communications on the basis 
                of geographic location, risks, or personal user 
                preferences, as appropriate;
                    (iv) include in the public alert and warning system 
                the capability to alert and warn all Americans, 
                including those with disabilities and those without an 
                understanding of the English language;
                    (v) through cooperation with the owners and 
                operators of communication facilities, maintain, 
                protect, and, if necessary, restore communications 
                facilities and capabilities necessary for the public 
                alert and warning system;
                    (vi) ensure the conduct of training, tests, and 
                exercises for the public alert and warning system;
                    (vii) ensure the conduct of public education 
                efforts so that State, territorial, tribal, and local 
                governments, the private sector, and the American 
                people understand the functions of the public alert and 
                warning system and how to access, use, and respond to 
                information from the public alert and warning system;
                    (viii) consult, coordinate, and cooperate with the 
                private sector, including communications media 
                organizations, and Federal, State, territorial, tribal, 
                and local governmental authorities, including emergency 
                response providers, as appropriate;

[[Page 36976]]

                    (ix) administer the Emergency Alert System (EAS) as 
                a critical component of the public alert and warning 
                system; and
                    (x) ensure that under all conditions the President 
                of the United States can alert and warn the American 
                people.
                    (b) In performing the functions set forth in 
                subsection (a) of this section, the Secretary of 
                Homeland Security shall coordinate with the Secretary 
                of Commerce, the heads of other departments and 
                agencies of the executive branch (agencies), and other 
                officers of the United States, as appropriate, and the 
                Federal Communications Commission.
                    (c) The Secretary of Homeland Security may issue 
                guidance to implement this order.

                Sec. 3. Duties of Heads of Departments and Agencies.

                (a) The heads of agencies shall provide such assistance 
                and information as the Secretary of Homeland Security 
                may request to implement this order.

                (b) In addition to performing the duties specified 
                under subsection (a) of this section:

                    (i) the Secretary of Commerce shall make available 
                to the Secretary of Homeland Security, to assist in 
                implementing this order, the capabilities and expertise 
                of the Department of Commerce relating to standards, 
                technology, telecommunications, dissemination systems, 
                and weather;
                    (ii) the Secretary of Defense shall provide to the 
                Secretary of Homeland Security requirements for the 
                public alert and warning system necessary to ensure 
                proper coordination of the functions of the Department 
                of Defense with the use of such system;
                    (iii) the Federal Communications Commission shall, 
                as provided by law, adopt rules to ensure that 
                communications systems have the capacity to transmit 
                alerts and warnings to the public as part of the public 
                alert and warning system; and
                    (iv) the heads of agencies with capabilities for 
                public alert and warning shall comply with guidance 
                issued by the Secretary of Homeland Security under 
                subsection 2(c) of this order, and shall develop and 
                maintain such capabilities in a manner consistent and 
                interoperable with the public alert and warning system.

                Sec. 4.  Reports on Implementation. Not later than 90 
                days after the date of this order, the Secretary of 
                Homeland Security shall submit to the President, 
                through the Assistant to the President for Homeland 
                Security and Counterterrorism, a plan for the 
                implementation of this order, and shall thereafter 
                submit reports from time to time, and not less often 
                than once each year, on such implementation, together 
                with any recommendations the Secretary finds 
                appropriate.

                Sec. 5.  Amendment, Revocation, and Transition.

                (a) Section 3(b)(4) of Executive Order 12472 of April 
                3, 1984, as amended, is further amended by striking 
                ``Emergency Broadcast System'' and inserting in lieu 
                thereof ``Emergency Alert System''.

                (b) Not later than 120 days after the date of this 
                order, the Secretary of Homeland Security, after 
                consultation with the Assistant to the President for 
                Homeland Security and Counterterrorism, shall issue 
                guidance under section 2(c) of this order that shall 
                address the subject matter of the presidential 
                memorandum of September 15, 1995, for the Director, 
                Federal Emergency Management Agency, on Presidential 
                Communications with the General Public During Periods 
                of National Emergency, and upon issuance of such 
                guidance such memorandum is revoked.

                    (c) The Secretary of Homeland Security shall ensure 
                an orderly and effective transition, without loss of 
                capability, from alert and warning systems available as 
                of the date of this order to the public alert and 
                warning system for which this order provides.

[[Page 36977]]

                Sec. 6.  General Provisions. (a) This order shall be 
                implemented in a manner consistent with:

                    (i) applicable law and presidential guidance, 
                including Executive Order 12472 of April 3, 1984, as 
                amended, and subject to the availability of 
                appropriations; and
                    (ii) the authorities of agencies, or heads of 
                agencies, vested by law.

                (b) This order shall not be construed to impair or 
                otherwise affect the functions of the Director of the 
                Office of Management and Budget relating to budget, 
                administrative, and legislative proposals.

                (c) This order is not intended to, and does not, create 
                any rights or benefits, substantive or procedural, 
                enforceable at law or in equity by a party against the 
                United States, its agencies, instrumentalities, or 
                entities, its officers, employees, or agents, or any 
                other person.

                    (Presidential Sig.)B

                THE WHITE HOUSE,

                    June 26, 2006.

[FR Doc. 06-5829
Filed 6-27-06; 8:45 am]
Billing code 3195-01-P