The Emergency Alert System and Wireless Emergency Alerts, 72724-72737 [2024-19530]

Agencies

• FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION

[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 173 (Friday, September 6, 2024)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 72724-72737]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-19530]


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FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION

47 CFR Part 11

[PS Docket Nos. 15-91, 15-94; FCC 24-83; FR ID 240853]


The Emergency Alert System and Wireless Emergency Alerts

AGENCY: Federal Communications Commission.

ACTION: Final rule.

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SUMMARY: In this document, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC 
or Commission) amends its regulations governing the Emergency Alert 
System (EAS) and Wireless Emergency Alerts (WEA) to add a new event 
code, MEP, to allow alert originators to issue an alert to the public 
about missing and endangered persons (MEP) whose circumstances do not 
meet the criteria of ``America's Missing: Broadcast Emergency 
Response'' (AMBER) alerts.

DATES: Effective September 8, 2025.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: David Kirschner, of the Cybersecurity 
and Communications Reliability Division of the Public Safety and 
Homeland Security Bureau, at [email protected] or (202) 418-0695.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This is a summary of the Commission's Report 
and Order (Order) in PS Docket Nos. 15-91 and 15-94, FCC 24-83, adopted 
on August 7, 2024, and released on August 8, 2024. The full text of 
this document is available online at: https://docs.fcc.gov/public/attachments/FCC-24-83A1.pdf.

Synopsis

    1. The Order adds to part 11 EAS rules a new dedicated EAS event 
code for missing and endangered person incidents, to advance the 
important public policy of enabling and facilitating coordinated, 
nationwide law enforcement activity to locate missing and endangered 
persons in order to restore them to their homes, families, and 
communities. The Order adopts the three-character ``MEP'' code to 
enable delivery of missing and endangered person alerts over the EAS 
and WEA. This will promote the development of compatible, integrated 
and uniform ``Ashanti Alert'' plans throughout the United States, 
consistent with the Ashanti Alert Act of 2018 (Ashanti Alert Act), a 
Federal statute that addresses persons missing or abducted from states, 
territories, or Tribal communities under circumstances that fall 
outside of AMBER Alert notification criteria. While of widespread 
concern, the issue of missing and endangered persons is particularly 
prevalent in Tribal communities, where American Indian (AI) and Alaska 
Native (AN) people are at a disproportionate risk of experiencing 
violence, murder, or vanishing, and the Black community, which also 
experiences a disproportionately high risk of persons going missing.

I. Background

    2. Emergency Alert System. The EAS is a national public warning 
system through which TV and radio broadcasters, cable systems, and 
other service providers (EAS Participants) deliver alerts to the public 
to warn it of impending emergencies and dangers to life and property. 
The primary purpose of the EAS is to furnish the President with ``the 
capability to provide immediate communications and communications and 
information to the general public at the National, State and Local Area 
levels during periods of national emergency.'' The common usage of the 
EAS, however, is to distribute alerts issued by state and local 
governments, as well as by the National Weather Service (NWS), to the 
public. The Commission, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), 
and the NWS implement the EAS at the Federal level.
    3. EAS alerts are configured using the EAS Protocol, which utilizes 
fixed, three-character ``event codes'' (e.g., ``CAE'' signifies Child 
Abduction Emergency, ``TOR'' signifies Tornado Warning, and ``FFW'' 
signifies Flash Flood Warning) to describe the type of alert being 
sent. Additional data identifies other elements of an EAS alert, 
enabling the delivery of temporally- and geographically-targeted alerts 
to the public. EAS messages are distributed either through (i) a 
broadcast-based, hierarchical distribution system in which an alert 
message originator (``Alert Originator'') (e.g., State Governor's 
offices, state/county/Tribal emergency management authorities, NWS, 
etc.) encodes (or arranges to have encoded) a message in the EAS 
Protocol, which is then broadcast from one or more EAS Participants and 
subsequently relayed, participant-to-participant, until all affected 
EAS Participants have received the alert and delivered it to the 
public; or (ii) an internet Protocol (IP)-based process over the 
internet after formatting the alerts in the Common Alerting Protocol 
(CAP) and delivering them via the FEMA administered Integrated Public 
Alert and Warning System (IPAWS).
    4. Ashanti Alerts. Enacted in 2018, the Ashanti Alert Act is named 
in honor of Ashanti Billie, a 19-year-old woman who was abducted in 
2017 in Virginia and found dead in North Carolina. The Ashanti Alert 
Act requires a National Coordinator within the Department of Justice 
(DOJ) (the Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA)) to establish a national 
communications network to ``provide assistance to regional and local 
search efforts for missing adults through the initiation, facilitation, 
and promotion of local elements of the network, in coordination with 
States, Indian Tribes, units of local government, law enforcement 
agencies, and other concerned entities with expertise in providing 
services to adults.'' Ashanti Alerts are intended to aid in the search 
and recovery of missing persons over the age of 17 who fall outside the 
scope of AMBER Alerts and Silver Alerts.
    5. Under the Ashanti Alert Act, BJA, among other things, must work 
with ``States and Indian Tribes to encourage the development of 
additional Ashanti Alert plans in their network'' and ``establish 
voluntary guidelines for States and Indian Tribes to use in developing 
Ashanti Alert plans that will

[[Page 72725]]

promote compatible and integrated Ashanti Alert plans throughout the 
United States.'' And the BJA must coordinate and consult with the 
Commission and other Federal agencies ``in carrying out activities 
under'' the Ashanti Alert Act, and also must ``consult with local 
broadcasters and State, Tribal and local law enforcement agencies in 
establishing minimum standards [for issuance and dissemination of 
Ashanti Alerts] and in carrying out other activities'' under the 
Ashanti Alert Act.
    6. Savanna's Act. Named for Savanna LaFontaine-Greywind, a pregnant 
member of the Spirit Lake Tribe found brutally murdered in the Red 
River of North Dakota in 2017, Savanna's Act clarifies Federal, state, 
Tribal, and local law enforcement responsibilities for collecting and 
sharing data ``related to missing or murdered Indian men, women, and 
children, regardless of where they reside . . . and directs U.S. 
attorneys to develop regionally appropriate guidelines for responding 
to missing or murdered Indians.'' Savanna's Act further calls for 
establishing guidance for ``best practices in conducting searches for 
missing persons on and off Indian land.'' Savanna's Act brings 
attention to the need for law enforcement coordination in addressing 
violent crimes against American Indians and Alaska Natives.
    7. National Congress of American Indians' (NCAI) Resolution. In 
late 2023, Native Public Media (NPM) sponsored a resolution calling for 
the Commission to establish an MEP event code to ``enable a more rapid 
and coordinated response to incidents involving missing indigenous 
persons.'' NCAI Resolution #NO-23-001 states that ``Native Americans 
face significant challenges in addressing the issue of missing and 
endangered adults, requiring immediate attention and action,'' and that 
current EAS event codes fail to account for these unique missing person 
circumstances. The NCAI further states that their ``communities have 
historically been disproportionately affected by missing person cases, 
with Native Americans constituting 2.5% of all missing person cases 
despite comprising only 1.2% of the U.S. population, as reported by the 
National Crime Information Center, underscoring the urgent need for 
targeted measures.'' The General Assembly of NCAI adopted this 
resolution in November 2023.
    8. On January 29, 2024, the National Ashanti Alert Network 
Stakeholder Working Group and Pilot Project Participants Working Group 
(Ashanti Alert Working Groups) submitted comments that ``noted a need 
for a missing and endangered person code that would supplement the 
current Child Abduction Emergency (CAE) and Blue Alert (BLU) IPAWS 
codes. Currently no code exists for missing and endangered persons,'' 
which requires alerting agencies to use generic EAS event codes such as 
Local Area Emergency (LAE) or Law Enforcement Warning (LEW), when they 
issued an alert for a missing and endangered person. In offering 
language for a missing and endangered persons event code, they used 
``person'' and ``persons. Although Ashanti Alerts only apply to adults, 
the Ashanti Alert Working Groups specifically noted that they did not 
use ``adult'' in their proposed language ``because alerting agencies 
have noted that not all missing children fit the criteria outlined for 
an AMBER alert and as such the MEP code could be utilized when CAE 
alert criteria [are] not met.''
    9. Post-MEP Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) Tribal 
Consultation. The Commission adopted the MEP NPRM on March 14, 2024, 
proposing to ``revise the Commission's EAS rules to add a new `MEP' 
event code for all EAS alerts about missing and endangered person 
incidents that do not meet the criteria for an AMBER Alert.'' (89 FR 
27699, April 18, 2024) Consistent with Commission policy, the 
Commission directed the Office of Native Affairs and Policy (ONAP) to 
coordinate government-to-government consultation with Tribal Nations 
about the topics raised in the MEP NPRM, including the proposal to add 
a new ``MEP'' event code and whether it should consider an additional 
dedicated EAS event code for missing Indigenous persons on and off 
Tribal land.''
    10. Accordingly, ONAP arranged and participated in several 
consultation and listening sessions with leaders, representatives, and 
members of federally recognized Tribes and their communities. The 
consultative events and related ex parte meetings took place in May and 
June 2024, both in person and virtually. In the meetings, ONAP provided 
overviews of the Commission's rulemaking processes and the MEP NPRM. 
Commission staff solicited feedback from Tribal participants and 
explained how Tribal participants could engage in the rulemaking 
process through comment submissions in the relevant dockets.

II. Discussion

    11. The Order finds that the EAS is an effective mechanism for 
delivering emergency alerts, which may include alerts about missing and 
endangered persons. An MEP event code could be used for all EAS alerts 
about missing and endangered person incidents including those that meet 
the criteria for an Ashanti Alert and those involving persons who are 
under 18 yet do not already meet the criteria for an AMBER Alert. The 
Order also finds that a dedicated EAS event code for missing and 
endangered person alerts serves the public interest and advances state 
and Tribal initiatives to find missing and endangered persons. 
Accordingly, we create and add a dedicated MEP event code to the EAS 
Protocol. The Order also permits MEP alerts to be deployed via WEA 
using existing alerting methodologies and consistent with our WEA 
rules. Finally, the Order establishes a period of 12 months from 
publication of the Report and Order in the Federal Register, both to 
enable the usage of the MEP EAS event code over EAS, and to enable the 
delivery of alerts over WEA.
    12. The Order finds, as virtually all commenters affirm, that 
adopting an MEP event code will make the EAS a more effective tool for 
finding missing and endangered persons. FEMA, which ``maintain[s] the 
integrity'' of IPAWS and, among other duties, ``provid[es] guidance on 
the categories of public emergencies'' meriting an alert, supports the 
creation of ``a new event code to expand emergency messaging for MEPs 
that fall outside the current criteria of the AMBER Alert.'' FEMA lauds 
the EAS' functionality and resiliency, and believes that implementation 
of an MEP event code in the same fashion as the CAE event code for 
AMBER Alerts presents ``no constraints that would impede the EAS's 
ability to contain the information required'' for those alerts. This 
position accords with the views of industry and public safety 
commenters who also support implementation of the MEP event code.
    12. The Commission also finds the views of Tribal and Indigenous 
communities supporting this action particularly compelling. These 
communities face a profound crisis of missing, endangered, abducted, 
and murdered persons. As one Native American commenter pointed out, 
``the MEP event code can be actively deployed to reach remote and 
underserved tribal communities, ensuring swift and efficient 
dissemination of critical information.'' Coordinated, often multi-
jurisdictional law enforcement search, rescue, and recovery activities 
enhanced by an MEP EAS event code could have enormous life-saving value 
for AI/AN people as well as persons of color.
    13. Comments associated with the FCC's Tribal consultations and ex 
parte

[[Page 72726]]

meetings also resoundingly support adding the proposed MEP event code 
to EAS, which could then be sent using a WEA, which is seen as ``a tool 
that would assist in recovery of missing and endangered persons'' and, 
indeed, could ``speed up the process to disseminate missing persons 
alerts.'' Comparing the proposed MEP code to AMBER Alerts, commenters 
expressed hope that the MEP code would be as effective as AMBER Alerts 
have been in helping to locate missing and endangered children. Another 
noted that the lack of a national EAS alert code for missing and 
endangered adults is ``one of the biggest barriers to the recovery of 
missing and endangered Indigenous people.''
    14. The Commission finds that it is in the public interest, as the 
vast majority of other commenters support, to facilitate notifications 
for all missing and endangered people, including AI/AN people, using 
the existing EAS mechanism.
    15. Technical and operational feasibility. The Order finds that it 
is technically and operationally feasible to send MEP alerts using the 
EAS. As FEMA observes in supporting the Commission's proposed use of 
EAS to deliver MEP alerts nationally, the EAS and the ``alerting 
ecosystem'' in which it operates ``is the broadest and most resilient 
system for relaying emergency messages'' and, indeed, there will be 
``no constraints that would impede the EAS's ability'' to function as 
proposed by the Commission. The Navajo Nation, citing its own 
experience with Ashanti Alerts for Navajo people, asserts that ``there 
are no constraints in the ability to send out imperative information 
through EAS under the Ashanti Alert.'' The Commission agrees, and 
further observes that no commenter has suggested otherwise.
    16. Geographic Requirements. The Order finds that the code the 
Commission adopts strikes a proper balance between the need to avoid 
the deleterious effects of alerting misuse or overuse through 
appropriate geolocation while ensuring sufficient scope to aid location 
and recovery of missing and endangered persons. EAS's effectiveness in 
managing the geographic targeting required for Blue Alerts (BLU) and 
AMBER Alerts (CAE), which the Commission acknowledged in the BLU Report 
and Order (83 FR 2557, January 18, 2018), warrants a conclusion that 
the EAS will be similarly effective for alerts using the MEP event 
code. That effectiveness, in turn, will both advance the critical 
policy goal of finding and recovering missing and endangered persons, 
and enhancing the public's trust in emergency alerts by avoiding 
unnecessarily broad activations that might contribute to warning 
fatigue.
    17. The Commission expects that EAS Participants can and will 
accommodate both micro- and macro-area geographic alerting in the 
context of missing and endangered person alerts, as they do for Blue 
Alerts and AMBER Alerts now. Of course, as is the case already with 
Blue and AMBER alerts, geographic scope will be based on the Alert 
Originators' inputs concerning the ``emergency prompting'' the alert. 
That is a matter of law enforcement discretion in originating and 
cascading the alert, of course, not an issue of whether the requirement 
poses technical feasibility challenges to the EAS, however broad or 
narrow that scope input may be at origination.
    18. IPAWS and Legacy EAS. The Commission agrees with commenters 
such as FEMA and the Navajo Nation that EAS MEP Alerts sent via both 
the IPAWS and the legacy EAS broadcast ``daisy chain'' will provide the 
fullest possible support for MEP transmissions. The Commission sees no 
discrepancy between the two delivery mechanisms material enough to 
prevent us from adopting the MEP event code as proposed.
    19. As the Commission previously noted: ``additional information 
cannot be relayed when CAP alerts are converted into legacy alerts for 
further distribution over the legacy EAS, all data other than the 
header codes [and the audio reading of the alert] are lost in this 
conversion process.'' To address this issue, the Commission required 
EAS Participants to check for CAP-formatted messages when they receive 
state or local alert messages in legacy format, and if the same alert 
is available in CAP format, to relay the CAP version instead. As a 
result, the benefits of the CAP formatted alert should always be 
available unless IPAWS is inaccessible, in which case the legacy format 
will still provide the audio description of the alert.
    20. The Commission adds the dedicated MEP event code to the EAS to 
advance the public interest and the purposes of the Ashanti Alert Act. 
The Commission believes that a dedicated EAS event code that expands 
MEP emergency messaging that fall outside the scope of AMBER Alerts 
will promote stronger nationwide coordination on Ashanti Alerts and 
other missing and endangered person alerts. It will also address 
jurisdictional alerting discrepancies, mitigate public confusion with 
respect to the meaning of various alerts, and ensure that more missing 
and endangered persons cases will be covered by the Federal emergency 
communications system. In the end, the Commission believes, this 
dedicated EAS event code will ``help save lives of [missing and 
endangered persons] across the United States and Tribal Nations.''
    21. Moreover, adding missing and endangered person alerts to EAS 
will advance the important public policy objective of ``encouraging 
states, territories, and Tribal governments to develop or enhance 
existing missing and endangered person and Ashanti Alert plans to 
optimize regional and nationwide search efforts for missing, 
endangered, or abducted persons.'' This is so, the Commission believes, 
because of the expected results; the persons who are saved, found, and 
reunited with their families and communities may encourage policy 
makers and law enforcement stakeholders to embrace EAS-enabled 
efficiencies in existing plans and, where no such plans exist, to 
construct them to serve their communities. In this regard, the 
Commission agrees with FEMA, which asserts that the new MEP EAS event 
code would ``promote stronger nationwide coordination'' with respect to 
handling missing and endangered persons alerts, and also would 
``address the discrepancies in alerts between different jurisdictions'' 
and help save the lives of missing and endangered persons.
    22. The Commission concludes that alert originators may use the MEP 
event code for all missing and/or endangered people alerts that do not 
qualify for an AMBER alert, whether that is because the missing and/or 
endangered person is over 17 or does not meet other criteria for 
issuing an AMBER alert. As FEMA observes, expanding emergency messaging 
for MEPs that fall outside of the criteria of an AMBER Alert, ``would 
promote stronger nationwide coordination on alerting for MEPs, address 
the existing discrepancies in alerts between different jurisdictions, 
mitigate public confusion on the meaning of various alerts, and ensure 
that federal rules and regulations cover more cases of MEPs.'' FEMA 
notes that its research ``shows that more than forty missing and 
endangered alert names lack uniformity in alert criteria and/or 
requirements and can create public confusion, especially when traveling 
from state to state.'' The Commission agrees with FEMA that 
establishing a dedicated MEP code ``will contribute to a national 
unified messaging approach to finding MEPs.''
    23. The Order also finds that this will further the goals of the 
Ashanti Alert Act. In their request for an MEP event code, the Ashanti 
Alert Working Groups

[[Page 72727]]

offered a definition for an MEP code that uses ``person'' or 
``persons,'' but not ``adult.'' To emphasize this point they write: 
``Note that the term adult is not added within this warning to 
differentiate same from CAE [the event code for AMBER Alerts] alerts 
because alerting agencies have noted that not all missing children fit 
the criteria outlined for an AMBER alert and as such the MEP code could 
be utilized when CAE alert criteria [are] not met.'' The Commission 
agrees with the Ashanti Alert Working Groups and other commenters who 
argue that an MEP event code should be able to be used for all missing 
and endangered person alerts that do not qualify for an AMBER Alert. 
Providing the broadest parameters for an MEP event code will grant 
maximum flexibility to alerting authorities trying to find missing and 
endangered persons, including Tribal alert originators who may not want 
to be constrained by the Ashanti Alert criteria when using the EAS and 
WEA to find missing and/or endangered members of their community.
    24. Tribal and Indigenous Voices. Tribal leaders, representatives, 
organizations, and members also believe the MEP event code will lead to 
optimization of existing missing and endangered persons plans and 
encouragement of plan development throughout the Nation. The United 
South and Eastern Tribes, Inc. (USET) states that ``adoption of MEP as 
a dedicated EAS event code would encourage EAS Participants to deliver 
missing and endangered persons and Ashanti Alert[s]'' nationwide, 
``thereby facilitating the work of the National Ashanti Alert 
Network.'' USET also agrees that the MEP event code would promote 
``nationwide adoption and expansion of Ashanti Alerts while [ ] 
ensuring that missing and endangered persons that don't meet the 
criteria of AMBER Alerts . . . are appropriately transmitted to the 
public.'' Similarly, the Navajo Nation commends the EAS as ``extremely 
efficient and effective'' in its experience using it and WEA.
    25. NPM extols IPAWS and asserts that ``the MEP code established 
within EAS would provide a clear, consistent trigger for issuing alerts 
across all participating media outlets and platforms.'' NPM further 
believes that ``[s]tandardizing criteria for activation [by way of EAS 
and IPAWS] would be nationwide, ensuring a baseline level of urgency 
and response regardless of location.''
    26. Commenters, including FEMA, industry, and Tribal voices support 
an EAS event code solely dedicated to MEP alerts. These commenters 
agree it will promote and catalyze uniformity with respect to efforts 
to locate and recover missing and endangered persons, promote the 
creation of Ashanti Alert Plans and Ashanti Alert-compliant Plans where 
they may not currently exist, and aid the integration of such plans 
into a coordinated national framework consistent with the Ashanti Alert 
Act's stated goals.
    27. The Commission believes that adoption of a single MEP code is 
appropriate at this time. Although nearly all AI/AN, Tribal, and 
Indigenous commenters favored swiftly moving forward with an MEP EAS 
event code as principally proposed in the MEP NPRM, some favor a 
Tribal-specific MIP (Missing Indigenous Person) or similar event code 
for EAS soon thereafter, while others call for only an MIP event code 
and others call for only an MEP event code. The Commission believes a 
single MEP event code will advance the cause of aiding in the rescue of 
Native persons and will monitor implementation of the new event code to 
make sure that is the case.
    28. The Order permits MEP alerts to be deployed via WEA using 
existing alerting methodologies and consistent with the Commission's 
WEA rules. The Commission believes that using the existing technologies 
will ensure a swift implementation of the new code. The Commission thus 
agrees with CTIA--The Wireless Association's (CTIA) and the Alliance 
for Telecommunications Industry Solutions' (ATIS') suggestion that the 
Commission use an existing WEA classification to achieve its alerting 
goals here. In addition, the Commission agrees with those commenters 
addressing the question that the logical WEA alert class choices are 
the Imminent Threat class and the Public Safety Message alert class.
    29. The Commission observed in the MEP NPRM that the WEA system is 
a ``tool for authorized federal, state, local and Tribal 
government[s]'' to provide geographically targeted alerts and warnings 
to WEA-capable mobile devices of participating commercial mobile 
service (CMS) providers' subscribers. However, WEA ``does not use event 
codes'' like the EAS; rather, EAS alert origination software and FEMA 
IPAWS `map' EAS event codes onto WEA handling codes corresponding to 
the alert message classifications the Commission has authorized for 
issuance over WEA. These classifications, currently, are National 
Alert, Imminent Threat Alert, AMBER Alert, and Public Safety Message.
    30. The Commission agrees with ATIS that there would be no 
``technical impacts to Commercial Mobile Service Provider (CMSP) 
networks or mobile devices if the EAS MEP event code is mapped to any 
existing WEA alert class.'' As ATIS notes, the required mapping would 
``occur prior to the arrival of the alert message at the CMSP 
network,'' and there would be no need for device modifications to 
reflect any ``user choice for opting in/out because all existing alert 
classes are already represented in the device WEA menus.'' The 
Commission also agrees with CTIA that using an ``existing alert class 
to implement any MEP alert will help avoid costly changes and potential 
backwards compatibility issues to handsets and Participating CMSP 
networks, as well as costly and time-consuming end-to-end testing and 
new device roll-out--all of which would delay the availability of the 
alert.''
    31. In the BLU Report and Order, the Commission declined to adopt a 
new alert classification for Blue Alerts and further chose not to 
specify one of the existing WEA classifications for Blue Alerts. 
Instead, the Commission left these issues ``teed up in the Blue Alert 
NPRM'' (82 FR 29811, June 30, 2017) proceeding ``to help gather 
additional information on this issue beyond what the record currently 
contains.'' The Commission chose this temporary course in order to 
``reduce the necessary time for Blue Alerts to become available on WEA, 
and [to] reduce the costs to WEA stakeholders,'' i.e., of establishing 
a new classification. The Commission does so again here.
    32. In the MEP NPRM, the Commission sought comment on the timeframe 
``in which MEP as a dedicated EAS event code for missing and endangered 
person alerts, including Ashanti Alerts, could be implemented.'' 
Because of the similar technical and public safety-related steps 
involved, the Commission proposed the same timeframe as that chosen in 
the BLU Report and Order, where the Commission required EAS equipment 
manufacturers to integrate BLU EAS event codes into equipment not yet 
manufactured or sold, and to make necessary software upgrades available 
to EAS Participants within 12 months. The Commission also proposed to 
allow EAS Participants, as in the BLU Report and Order, to implement 
the new MEP event code ``on a voluntary basis through new equipment 
programmed to contain the code or through a software upgrade to install 
the code into equipment already in place.'' We adopt those approaches 
here.
    33. The Commission allows a period of 12 months from publication of 
the Report and Order in the Federal

[[Page 72728]]

Register to enable the delivery of missing and endangered person alerts 
over EAS and over WEA. While the Commission ``encourage[s] stakeholders 
to work together voluntarily to implement'' MEP Alerts in swift fashion 
in order to capture ``the important public safety objectives 
involved,'' the record reflects that implementation is not merely turn-
key. Rather, some time is necessary for equipment manufacturers and 
CMSPs to prepare their equipment and networks to be able to process 
alerts sent with an MEP event code over EAS and WEA, as well as for 
alert originators, EAS Participants, and other stakeholders to acquire 
appropriate training and resources to deliver these alerts to the 
public if they choose to do so. This implementation schedule will 
ensure all stakeholders have sufficient time to address any technical, 
resource, and training needs they may require to ensure the successful 
delivery of missing and endangered person alerts.
    34. The Navajo Nation supports the Commission's 12-month 
implementation proposal and urges the Commission to move swiftly to 
implement the MEP event code. They acknowledge that implementation, 
especially if it is to be effective for Tribal communities and 
Indigenous people, will entail ``comprehensive training, culturally 
sensitive outreach, and a holistic approach that respects tribal 
sovereignty.'' Additionally, multiple individuals commented at the 
Commission's Tribal consultation and listening sessions regarding the 
need for socialization, outreach, and training for Tribal nations 
regarding implementation and adoption of the MEP code, and raised 
questions regarding available funding and support for tribal nations. 
NPM, like FEMA, pledges to work with the Commission and others in this 
regard.
    35. No commenter objected to the Commission's proposed timeline. 
FEMA, while not commenting on the proposed implementation timeline, 
pledges ``to work closely with the FCC to inform and empower 
jurisdictions'' in the effective use of the MEP event code, and to work 
with ``the FCC, the broadcast industry, Alert Originators (AOs), and 
relevant stakeholders to determine how alerts using the MEP event code 
can be successfully implemented.'' The Commission takes this to mean 
that FEMA, which controls IPAWS, is committed to doing its part to 
ensure the MEP event code is operationalized as swiftly as possible and 
does not object to a 12-month timetable.
    36. NCTA--The Internet & Television Association (NCTA) takes issue 
with the Commission's incremental time estimates in the MEP NPRM, 
arguing that the ``process takes weeks to months, not a few hours as 
the Notice suggests.'' The Commission proposed 12 months for 
implementation, which is consistent with NCTA's contention. The 
Commission also notes that NCTA does not suggest that 12 months, 
overall, is insufficient for the labors and operations needed. Thus, 
the Commission has, as NCTA urged, ``take[n] notice'' of the processes 
involved in calibrating a 12-month implementation requirement; the 
Commission does not read NCTA's comments to take issue with that 
overall. The Commission understands the technical issues involved in 
implementing the new event code and appropriately sets the 
implementation deadline to address those concerns.
    37. When the Commission addressed virtually identical issues in the 
BLU Report and Order, it followed NCTA's suggestion, then, that the 
Commission look to ``EAS manufacturers to determine the adequacy of the 
time allocated for software upgrades to equipment.'' There, the 
Commission noted comments from EAS equipment manufacturers ``that 12 
months is sufficient to allow for the [Blue Alerts] event code to be 
deployed within a scheduled in-version equipment software update, 
resulting in no incremental cost to EAS Participants, rather than as a 
scheduled major version upgrade that would have to be separately 
purchased.''
    38. The Commission chooses to follow its determination in the BLU 
Report and Order and require a 12-month implementation deadline for 
both EAS Participants and CMSPs. In the BLU Report and Order, the 
Commission acknowledged the soundness of 12 months for EAS Participants 
on the theses presented there, as described above, and the Commission 
believes these are mostly identical to the present MEP event code. 
However, in the BLU Report and Order, CMSPs contested a 12-month 
implementation deadline and specifically sought 18 months due to the 
technical requirements they anticipated (including concurrent 
implementation of then-pending wireless industry technical standards). 
Those issues are not present here because the standards have now been 
set and implemented. Rather, CMSPs conveyed confidence in 
implementation assuming the Commission does not order a new WEA 
classification for these alerts, which the Commission does not choose 
to do. Accordingly, the Commission adopts the same 12-month 
implementation schedule for CMSPs as for EAS Participants.
    39. Finally, the MEP NPRM proposed to allow EAS Participants to 
upgrade their equipment to add a designated MEP event code on a 
voluntary basis until their equipment is replaced. This proposal is the 
same as, or very similar to, the approach the Commission took with Blue 
Alerts in 2017 and with other new EAS event codes in the past. 
Commenters who addressed this issue agree. Accordingly, the Commission 
adopts its proposal, and permits EAS Participants to update their 
software to add the MEP event code on a voluntary basis. As the 
Commission observed in the NWS Report and Order (81 FR 53039, August 
11, 2016), and re-affirmed in the BLU Report and Order, ``the use by 
EAS Participants of these codes is and has always been voluntary, and 
`it would be contrary to the voluntary nature of state and local EAS to 
mandate upgrades to existing EAS equipment to incorporate new optional 
event codes.' '' The Commission again finds that this approach will 
significantly reduce the costs to EAS Participants.
    40. The Commission sought comment in the MEP NPRM on additional 
issues that affect implementation of the MEP event code approved in the 
Order. For example, the Commission invited comment on: (i) whether to 
consider a missing Tribal or Indigenous person-specific EAS code in 
addition to the MEP event code; (ii) how to ensure adequate protection 
of civil liberties, sensitive medical information, and other privacy-
related issues; and (iii) public awareness, outreach, and engagement to 
ensure that the MEP code effectively conveys an ``appropriate sense of 
urgency to the public and galvanize[s] the public . . . to aid in the 
finding of missing or endangered adults.''
    41. NPM addresses these questions in part by asking the Commission 
to engage with Tribes, as sovereign nations, to empower and aid their 
efforts to address the missing and endangered persons crisis uniquely 
imperiling their communities. In that regard, NPM asks the Commission 
to, among other things, encourage Tribes to become IPAWS Alerting 
Authorities and, through ONAP outreach (which necessarily would involve 
other alerting stakeholders, such as FEMA and DOJ), provide them the 
support needed to achieve that status. NPM looks to ensure that all 
participants in the MEP ecosystem ``recognize that this work is a 
sacred trust.''

[[Page 72729]]

    42. The Commission thinks there is merit to NPM's suggested 
approach, given the value in ensuring the EAS efficiently and 
effectively addresses the plight of the missing in AI/AN communities. 
The Commission is interested in how such an approach might be 
implemented (e.g., bringing together stakeholders from AI/AN 
communities, FEMA, EAS Participants, law enforcement, and other trusted 
alerting system stakeholders to aid a process of understanding and 
implementation germane to Tribal communities). Accordingly, the 
Commission will continue to consider this subject through further 
engagement between ONAP and members of AI/AN communities, which ideally 
should occur in tandem with the roll-out of the MEP event code.
    43. The Order concludes that the benefits of implementing the MEP 
EAS event code, and permitting MEP alerts to be deployed via WEA using 
existing alerting methodologies and consistent with the Commission's 
WEA rules, outweigh its costs. In this regard, the Commission draws 
extensively on its experience with the implementation of new EAS event 
codes and acknowledges the potential benefits of missing and endangered 
person alerts issued via an MEP EAS event code and WEA alerts, with 
respect to which nearly all commenters in this proceeding agree. The 
Order finds that most of the potential costs of implementation arise 
from software updates made outside of the normal course of planned 
upgrades. The Order allows sufficient time and flexibility to allow 
manufacturers and EAS Participants and CMSPs to make upgrades and to 
conduct associated testing in tandem with general software upgrades 
installed during the regular course of business, thus minimizing costs. 
The rules adopted in the Order present many potential benefits by 
keeping the public informed and vigilant via the issuance of alerts, 
and by enlisting their aid to more quickly locate and recover missing 
and endangered persons, as well as the same kinds of cost reductions 
for 911 call centers and emergency responders the Commission outlined 
in the BLU Report and Order.
    44. Costs. The Order finds, as suggested in the MEP NPRM, that the 
main cost to EAS Participants that elect to install MEP will be the 
cost involved in downloading the software updates into their devices 
and conducting associated testing. In the MEP NPRM, the Commission 
posited that adopting an MEP Alert EAS event code would present similar 
technical issues to those raised in the BLU Report and Order, and, 
accordingly, tentatively concluded that the costs for adding a 
dedicated missing and endangered person alert EAS event code would not 
exceed a one-time $12 million implementation ceiling. The Commission 
carefully explained its rationale for that calculation. No industry or 
other commenter has challenged this tentative conclusion. Accordingly, 
the Commission adopts its tentative conclusion from the MEP NPRM and 
finds that a dedicated missing and endangered person alert EAS event 
code would not exceed a one-time $12 million implementation cost. 
Further, the Commission notes that EAS Participants can avoid most 
incremental implementation costs by downloading the new MEP event code 
in conjunction with a scheduled software update.
    45. Although the Commission recognizes that EAS equipment 
manufacturers will incur some costs in making the new event code 
available to all EAS Participants, the Commission believes that 12 
months will provide sufficient time to dovetail the MEP upgrade with 
other scheduled upgrades, posing minimal expense to equipment 
manufacturers. The Commission believes that the costs for 
implementation of WEA--given the Commission's decision not to require a 
new alert classification--will be similarly low. As such, the 
Commission believes there will be no, or only low, incremental costs 
associated with the delivery of missing and endangered person alerts 
over WEA, and that the 12 months granted to Participating CMS Providers 
is sufficient to allow providers to minimize the costs of deployment.
    46. Benefits. The Commission anticipates that establishing the EAS 
MEP event code and allowing MEP alerts through WEA will improve 
emergency alerting during events described in DOJ's Ashanti Alert 
criteria, as well as other missing and endangered person scenarios, 
thereby helping law enforcement locate and recover missing and 
endangered persons and return them to their regular lives. Existing EAS 
event codes, such as CAE (AMBER) and LEW (law enforcement warning), are 
either unavailable for missing and endangered adults (AMBER) or do not 
effectively identify missing and endangered person alerts to the public 
(LEW). While precise numerical estimation is not possible, the 
Commission expects that the MEP event code will improve public safety 
outcomes for missing and endangered persons in a similar fashion to CAE 
and AMBER Alerts. The Commission notes the success of AMBER Alerts, 
where 180 out of the 181 AMBER Alerts issued in 2022 resulted in a 
recovery, with respect to which 16 were as a direct result of an AMBER 
Alert being issued. In contrast, Ashanti Alerts have not been as 
effective as AMBER Alerts. The Commission anticipates that using a 
dedicated MEP Event code in the EAS and the corresponding WEA handling 
codes would greatly improve the effectiveness of the alerts for missing 
and endangered persons not currently covered by AMBER Alerts. Given 
that fewer than one third of active missing persons records involves 
children under the age of 18, the Commission anticipates the number of 
the MEP Alerts per year would be at least double the number of AMBER 
Alerts. The Commission believes it is reasonable to expect that many 
more missing and endangered persons will be located and recovered due 
to the issuance of an EAS missing and endangered person alert that uses 
the MEP event code. Extrapolating the recovery of missing children 
directly attributable to AMBER Alerts, the Commission estimates that 
more than 15 additional missing adults per year would be recovered as a 
result of the Order. The recovery could prevent deaths and bodily harm 
that these missing persons may otherwise have to endure. Therefore, the 
benefits to public safety as a result of the Order could be 
substantial. If even one life is saved due to these recoveries, the 
public safety benefits would outweigh the costs. The Order concludes 
that the minor burdens associated with adopting the MEP code will be 
more than offset by its benefits. The Commission also concludes that, 
given the potential for lifesaving and reduction in harm, if even the 
number of missing persons equals those found due to AMBER Alerts, and 
definitely if it exceeds it, this item will result in excess of $100 
million in benefits.

III. Procedural Matters

A. Accessible Formats

    47. 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).

B. Regulatory Flexibility Analysis

    48. The Regulatory Flexibility Act of 1980, as amended (RFA), 
requires that an agency prepare a regulatory flexibility analysis for 
notice and comment rulemakings, unless the agency certifies that ``the 
rule will not, if promulgated, have a significant

[[Page 72730]]

economic impact on a substantial number of small entities.'' 
Accordingly, the Commission has prepared a Final Regulatory Flexibility 
Analysis (FRFA) concerning the possible impact of the rule changes 
contained in this Report and Order on small entities. The FRFA is set 
forth in Appendix B of the Report and Order.

C. Paperwork Reduction Analysis

    49. This document does not contain information collection(s) 
subject to the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA), Public Law 104-
13. In addition, therefore, it does not contain any new or modified 
information collection burden for small business concerns with fewer 
than 25 employees, pursuant to the Small Business Paperwork Relief Act 
of 2002, Public Law 107-198, see 44 U.S.C. 3506(c)(4).

D. Congressional Review Act

    50. 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 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).

IV. Final Regulatory Flexibility Analysis

    51. As required by the Regulatory Flexibility Act of 1980, as 
amended (RFA), an Initial Regulatory Flexibility Analysis (IRFA) was 
included in the MEP NPRM released in March 2024. The Commission sought 
written public comment on the proposals in the MEP NPRM, including 
comments on the IRFA. No comments were filed addressing the IRFA. This 
Final Regulatory Flexibility Analysis (FRFA) conforms to the RFA.

A. Need for, and Objectives of, the Order

    52. The Order advances the important public policy of encouraging 
the formation, enhancement, and integration of Ashanti Alert plans 
throughout the United States, and for other purposes, by 
``establish[ing] a voluntary nationwide communication network to aid in 
the search and recovery of missing persons over the age of 17 who fall 
outside the scope of America's Missing: Broadcast Emergency Response 
(AMBER) Alerts and Silver Alerts.'' As required by the Ashanti Alert 
Act, the DOJ has designated the BJA as the Ashanti Alert Coordinator 
which, in turn, has developed guidance for ``states, Indian Tribes, 
local governments, law enforcement agencies, and other stakeholders 
seeking to establish or enhance an existing Ashanti Alert Plan'' in a 
manner that will promote compatible and integrated missing and 
endangered person plans throughout the United States. The Order creates 
and adds a dedicated MEP event code to the EAS Protocol for Ashanti 
Alerts, and permits MEP alerts to be deployed via WEA using existing 
alerting methodologies and consistent with our WEA rules. It also 
establishes a period of 12 months from publication of the Order in the 
Federal Register to enable the delivery of Ashanti Alerts over EAS, and 
over WEA. Ashanti Alert carriage, and use of the MEP event code will be 
voluntary. EAS Participants who decide to carry missing and endangered 
person alerts, including Ashanti Alerts, should be able to accommodate 
the new code with a software upgrade of equipment already in place but 
not yet capable of handling these codes. Any new equipment allowed 
under existing rules is either similarly upgradeable or will already be 
programmed to handle the code.
    53. The Order promotes the development of compatible and integrated 
Ashanti Alert plans throughout the United States, consistent with the 
Ashanti Alert Act, and supports the need for a dedicated EAS event code 
for missing and endangered person alerts. The Order also describes the 
integration of missing and endangered person alerts into WEA.

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

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

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

    55. 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.
    56. The Chief Counsel did not file any comments in response to the 
proposed rule changes in this proceeding.

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

    57. 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 SBA.
    58. Small Businesses, Small Organizations, Small Governmental 
Jurisdictions. Our actions, over time, may affect small entities that 
are not easily categorized at present. We therefore describe, 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 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 33.2 million 
businesses.
    59. 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.'' 
The 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 2022, there were 
approximately 530,109 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.
    60. 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.'' 
The 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 2022, there were approximately 530,109 small 
exempt organizations in the U.S.

[[Page 72731]]

reporting revenues of $50,000 or less according to the registration and 
tax data for exempt organizations available from the IRS.
    61. 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 
SBA size standard for this industry classifies a business as small if 
it has 1,500 or fewer employees. U.S. Census Bureau data for 2017 show 
that there were 2,893 firms in this industry that operated for the 
entire year. Of that number, 2,837 firms employed fewer than 250 
employees. Additionally, based on Commission data in the 2022 Universal 
Service Monitoring Report, as of December 31, 2021, there were 594 
providers that reported they were engaged in the provision of wireless 
services. Of these providers, the Commission estimates that 511 
providers have 1,500 or fewer employees. Consequently, using the SBA's 
small business size standard, most of these providers can be considered 
small entities.
    62. Broadband Personal Communications Services. The broadband 
personal communications services (PCS) spectrum encompasses services in 
the 1850-1910 and 1930-1990 MHz bands. The closest industry with an SBA 
small business size standard applicable to these services is Wireless 
Telecommunications Carriers (except Satellite). The SBA small business 
size standard for this industry classifies a business as small if it 
has 1,500 or fewer employees. U.S. Census Bureau data for 2017 show 
that there were 2,893 firms that operated in this industry for the 
entire year. Of this number, 2,837 firms employed fewer than 250 
employees. Thus, under the SBA size standard, the Commission estimates 
that a majority of licensees in this industry can be considered small.
    63. Based on Commission data as of November 2021, there were 
approximately 5,060 active licenses in the Broadband PCS service. The 
Commission's small business size standards with respect to Broadband 
PCS involve eligibility for bidding credits and installment payments in 
the auction of licenses for these services. In auctions for these 
licenses, the Commission defined ``small business'' as an entity that, 
together with its affiliates and controlling interests, has average 
gross revenues not exceeding $40 million for the preceding three years, 
and a ``very small business'' as an entity that, together with its 
affiliates and controlling interests, has had average annual gross 
revenues not exceeding $15 million for the preceding three years. 
Winning bidders claiming small business credits won Broadband PCS 
licenses in C, D, E, and F Blocks.
    64. In frequency bands where licenses were subject to auction, the 
Commission notes that, as a general matter, the number of winning 
bidders that qualify as small businesses at the close of an auction 
does not necessarily represent the number of small businesses currently 
in service. Further, the Commission does not generally track subsequent 
business size unless, in the context of assignments or transfers, 
unjust enrichment issues are implicated. Additionally, since the 
Commission does not collect data on the number of employees for 
licensees providing these, at this time we are not able to estimate the 
number of licensees with active licenses that would qualify as small 
under the SBA's small business size standard.
    65. Narrowband Personal Communications Services. Narrowband 
Personal Communications Services (Narrowband PCS) are PCS services 
operating in the 901-902 MHz, 930-931 MHz, and 940-941 MHz bands. PCS 
services are radio communications that encompass mobile and ancillary 
fixed communication that provide services to individuals and businesses 
and can be integrated with a variety of competing networks. Wireless 
Telecommunications Carriers (except Satellite) is the closest industry 
with an SBA small business size standard applicable to these services. 
The SBA small business size standard for this industry classifies a 
business as small if it has 1,500 or fewer employees. U.S. Census 
Bureau data for 2017 show that there were 2,893 firms that operated in 
this industry for the entire year. Of this number, 2,837 firms employed 
fewer than 250 employees. Thus, under the SBA size standard, the 
Commission estimates that a majority of licensees in this industry can 
be considered small.
    66. According to Commission data as of December 2021, there were 
approximately 4,211 active Narrowband PCS licenses. The Commission's 
small business size standards with respect to Narrowband PCS involve 
eligibility for bidding credits and installment payments in the auction 
of licenses for these services. For the auction of these licenses, the 
Commission defined a ``small business'' as 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 defined as an entity that, together with affiliates 
and controlling interests, has average gross revenues for the three 
preceding years of not more than $15 million. Pursuant to these 
definitions, 7 winning bidders claiming small and very small bidding 
credits won approximately 359 licenses. One of the winning bidders 
claiming a small business status classification in these Narrowband PCS 
license auctions had an active license as of December 2021.
    67. In frequency bands where licenses were subject to auction, the 
Commission notes that, as a general matter, the number of winning 
bidders that qualify as small businesses at the close of an auction 
does not necessarily represent the number of small businesses currently 
in service. Further, the Commission does not generally track subsequent 
business size unless, in the context of assignments or transfers, 
unjust enrichment issues are implicated. Additionally, since the 
Commission does not collect data on the number of employees for 
licensees providing these services, at this time we are not able to 
estimate the number of licensees with active licenses that would 
qualify as small under the SBA's small business size standard.
    68. Wireless Communications Services. Wireless Communications 
Services (WCS) can be used for a variety of fixed, mobile, 
radiolocation, and digital audio broadcasting satellite services. 
Wireless spectrum is made available and licensed for the provision of 
wireless communications services in several frequency bands subject to 
part 27 of the Commission's rules. Wireless Telecommunications Carriers 
(except Satellite) is the closest industry with an SBA small business 
size standard applicable to these services. The SBA small business size 
standard for this industry classifies a business as small if it has 
1,500 or fewer employees. U.S. Census Bureau data for 2017 show that 
there were 2,893 firms that operated in this industry for the entire 
year. Of this number, 2,837 firms employed fewer than 250 employees. 
Thus, under the SBA size standard, the Commission estimates that a 
majority of licensees in this industry can be considered small.
    69. The Commission's small business size standards with respect to 
WCS involve eligibility for bidding credits and installment payments in 
the auction of licenses for the various frequency bands included in 
WCS. When bidding credits are adopted for the auction of licenses in 
WCS frequency bands, such credits may be available to several types

[[Page 72732]]

of small businesses based average gross revenues (small, very small and 
entrepreneur) pursuant to the competitive bidding rules adopted in 
conjunction with the requirements for the auction and/or as identified 
in the designated entities section in part 27 of the Commission's rules 
for the specific WCS frequency bands.
    70. In frequency bands where licenses were subject to auction, the 
Commission notes that as a general matter, the number of winning 
bidders that qualify as small businesses at the close of an auction 
does not necessarily represent the number of small businesses currently 
in service. Further, the Commission does not generally track subsequent 
business size unless, in the context of assignments or transfers, 
unjust enrichment issues are implicated. Additionally, since the 
Commission does not collect data on the number of employees for 
licensees providing these services, at this time we are not able to 
estimate the number of licensees with active licenses that would 
qualify as small under the SBA's small business size standard.
    71. 700 MHz Guard Band Licensees. The 700 MHz Guard Band 
encompasses spectrum in 746-747/776-777 MHz and 762-764/792-794 MHz 
frequency bands. Wireless Telecommunications Carriers (except 
Satellite) is the closest industry with an SBA small business size 
standard applicable to licenses providing services in these bands. The 
SBA small business size standard for this industry classifies a 
business as small if it has 1,500 or fewer employees. U.S. Census 
Bureau data for 2017 show that there were 2,893 firms that operated in 
this industry for the entire year. Of this number, 2,837 firms employed 
fewer than 250 employees. Thus, under the SBA size standard, the 
Commission estimates that a majority of licensees in this industry can 
be considered small.
    72. According to Commission data as of December 2021, there were 
approximately 224 active 700 MHz Guard Band licenses. The Commission's 
small business size standards with respect to 700 MHz Guard Band 
licensees involve eligibility for bidding credits and installment 
payments in the auction of licenses. For the auction of these licenses, 
the Commission defined a ``small business'' as an entity that, together 
with its affiliates and controlling principals, has average gross 
revenues not exceeding $40 million for the preceding three years, and a 
``very small business'' an entity that, together with its affiliates 
and controlling principals, has average gross revenues that are not 
more than $15 million for the preceding three years. Pursuant to these 
definitions, five winning bidders claiming one of the small business 
status classifications won 26 licenses, and one winning bidder claiming 
small business won two licenses. None of the winning bidders claiming a 
small business status classification in these 700 MHz Guard Band 
license auctions had an active license as of December 2021.
    73. In frequency bands where licenses were subject to auction, the 
Commission notes that, as a general matter, the number of winning 
bidders that qualify as small businesses at the close of an auction 
does not necessarily represent the number of small businesses currently 
in service. Further, the Commission does not generally track subsequent 
business size unless, in the context of assignments or transfers, 
unjust enrichment issues are implicated. Additionally, since the 
Commission does not collect data on the number of employees for 
licensees providing these services, at this time we are not able to 
estimate the number of licensees with active licenses that would 
qualify as small under the SBA's small business size standard.
    74. Lower 700 MHz Band Licenses. The lower 700 MHz band encompasses 
spectrum in the 698-746 MHz frequency bands. Permissible operations in 
these bands include flexible fixed, mobile, and broadcast uses, 
including mobile and other digital new broadcast operation; fixed and 
mobile wireless commercial services (including frequency division 
duplex (FDD)- and time division duplex (TDD)-based services); as well 
as fixed and mobile wireless uses for private, internal radio needs, 
two-way interactive, cellular, and mobile television broadcasting 
services. Wireless Telecommunications Carriers (except Satellite) is 
the closest industry with an SBA small business size standard 
applicable to licenses providing services in these bands. The SBA small 
business size standard for this industry classifies a business as small 
if it has 1,500 or fewer employees. U.S. Census Bureau data for 2017 
show that there were 2,893 firms that operated in this industry for the 
entire year. Of this number, 2,837 firms employed fewer than 250 
employees. Thus, under the SBA size standard, the Commission estimates 
that a majority of licensees in this industry can be considered small.
    75. According to Commission data as of December 2021, there were 
approximately 2,824 active Lower 700 MHz Band licenses. The 
Commission's small business size standards with respect to Lower 700 
MHz Band licensees involve eligibility for bidding credits and 
installment payments in the auction of licenses. For auctions of Lower 
700 MHz Band licenses the Commission adopted criteria for three groups 
of small businesses. A very small business was defined as an entity 
that, together with its affiliates and controlling interests, has 
average annual gross revenues not exceeding $15 million for the 
preceding three years, a small business was defined as an entity that, 
together with its affiliates and controlling interests, has average 
gross revenues not exceeding $40 million for the preceding three years, 
and an entrepreneur was defined as an entity that, together with its 
affiliates and controlling interests, has average gross revenues not 
exceeding $3 million for the preceding three years. In auctions for 
Lower 700MHz Band licenses, 72 winning bidders claiming a small 
business classification won 329 licenses, 26 winning bidders claiming a 
small business classification won 214 licenses, and three winning 
bidders claiming a small business classification won all five auctioned 
licenses.
    76. In frequency bands where licenses were subject to auction, the 
Commission notes that as a general matter, the number of winning 
bidders that qualify as small businesses at the close of an auction 
does not necessarily represent the number of small businesses currently 
in service. Further, the Commission does not generally track subsequent 
business size unless, in the context of assignments or transfers, 
unjust enrichment issues are implicated. Additionally, since the 
Commission does not collect data on the number of employees for 
licensees providing these services, at this time we are not able to 
estimate the number of licensees with active licenses that would 
qualify as small under the SBA's small business size standard.
    77. Upper 700 MHz Band Licenses. The upper 700 MHz band encompasses 
spectrum in the 746-806 MHz bands. Upper 700 MHz D Block licenses are 
nationwide licenses associated with the 758-763 MHz and 788-793 MHz 
bands. Permissible operations in these bands include flexible fixed, 
mobile, and broadcast uses, including mobile and other digital new 
broadcast operation; fixed and mobile wireless commercial services 
(including FDD- and TDD-based services); as well as fixed and mobile 
wireless uses for private, internal radio needs, two-way interactive, 
cellular, and mobile television broadcasting services. Wireless 
Telecommunications Carriers (except Satellite) is the closest industry 
with an SBA small business size standard applicable to licenses 
providing services in these bands. The

[[Page 72733]]

SBA small business size standard for this industry classifies a 
business as small if it has 1,500 or fewer employees. U.S. Census 
Bureau data for 2017 show that there were 2,893 firms that operated in 
this industry for the entire year. Of that number, 2,837 firms employed 
fewer than 250 employees. Thus, under the SBA size standard, the 
Commission estimates that a majority of licensees in this industry can 
be considered small.
    78. According to Commission data as of December 2021, there were 
approximately 152 active Upper 700 MHz Band licenses. The Commission's 
small business size standards with respect to Upper 700 MHz Band 
licensees involve eligibility for bidding credits and installment 
payments in the auction of licenses. For the auction of these licenses, 
the Commission defined a ``small business'' as an entity that, together 
with its affiliates and controlling principals, has average gross 
revenues not exceeding $40 million for the preceding three years, and a 
``very small business'' as an entity that, together with its affiliates 
and controlling principals, has average gross revenues that are not 
more than $15 million for the preceding three years. Pursuant to these 
definitions, three winning bidders claiming very small business status 
won five of the 12 available licenses.
    79. In frequency bands where licenses were subject to auction, the 
Commission notes that as a general matter, the number of winning 
bidders that qualify as small businesses at the close of an auction 
does not necessarily represent the number of small businesses currently 
in service. Further, the Commission does not generally track subsequent 
business size unless, in the context of assignments or transfers, 
unjust enrichment issues are implicated. Additionally, since the 
Commission does not collect data on the number of employees for 
licensees providing these services, at this time we are not able to 
estimate the number of licensees with active licenses that would 
qualify as small under the SBA's small business size standard.
    80. Advanced Wireless Services (AWS)--(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); 2000-2020 MHz 
and 2180-2200 MHz (AWS-4)). Spectrum is made available and licensed in 
these bands for the provision of various wireless communications 
services. Wireless Telecommunications Carriers (except Satellite) is 
the closest industry with an SBA small business size standard 
applicable to these services. The SBA small business size standard for 
this industry classifies a business as small if it has 1,500 or fewer 
employees. U.S. Census Bureau data for 2017 show that there were 2,893 
firms that operated in this industry for the entire year. Of this 
number, 2,837 firms employed fewer than 250 employees. Thus, under the 
SBA size standard, the Commission estimates that a majority of 
licensees in this industry can be considered small.
    81. According to Commission data as December 2021, there were 
approximately 4,472 active AWS licenses. The Commission's small 
business size standards with respect to AWS involve eligibility for 
bidding credits and installment payments in the auction of licenses for 
these services. For the auction of AWS licenses, the Commission 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. Pursuant to these 
definitions, 57 winning bidders claiming status as small or very small 
businesses won 215 of 1,087 licenses. In the most recent auction of AWS 
licenses 15 of 37 bidders qualifying for status as small or very small 
businesses won licenses.
    82. In frequency bands where licenses were subject to auction, the 
Commission notes that as a general matter, the number of winning 
bidders that qualify as small businesses at the close of an auction 
does not necessarily represent the number of small businesses currently 
in service. Further, the Commission does not generally track subsequent 
business size unless, in the context of assignments or transfers, 
unjust enrichment issues are implicated. Additionally, since the 
Commission does not collect data on the number of employees for 
licensees providing these services, at this time we are not able to 
estimate the number of licensees with active licenses that would 
qualify as small under the SBA's small business size standard.
    83. 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)). 
Wireless cable operators that use spectrum in the BRS often 
supplemented with leased channels from the EBS, provide a competitive 
alternative to wired cable and other multichannel video programming 
distributors. Wireless cable programming to subscribers resembles cable 
television, but instead of coaxial cable, wireless cable uses microwave 
channels.
    84. In light of the use of wireless frequencies by BRS and EBS 
services, the closest industry with an SBA small business size standard 
applicable to these services is Wireless Telecommunications Carriers 
(except Satellite). The SBA small business size standard for this 
industry classifies a business as small if it has 1,500 or fewer 
employees. U.S. Census Bureau data for 2017 show that there were 2,893 
firms that operated in this industry for the entire year. Of this 
number, 2,837 firms employed fewer than 250 employees. Thus, under the 
SBA size standard, the Commission estimates that a majority of 
licensees in this industry can be considered small.
    85. According to Commission data as December 2021, there were 
approximately 5,869 active BRS and EBS licenses. The Commission's small 
business size standards with respect to BRS involves eligibility for 
bidding credits and installment payments in the auction of licenses for 
these services. For the auction of BRS licenses, the Commission adopted 
criteria for three groups of small businesses. A very small business is 
an entity that, together with its affiliates and controlling interests, 
has average annual gross revenues exceed $3 million and did not exceed 
$15 million for the preceding three years, a small business is an 
entity that, together with its affiliates and controlling interests, 
has average gross revenues exceed $15 million and did not exceed $40 
million for the preceding three years, and an entrepreneur is an entity 
that, together with its affiliates and controlling interests, has 
average gross revenues not exceeding $3 million for the preceding three 
years. Of the ten winning bidders for BRS licenses, two bidders 
claiming the small business status won 4 licenses, one bidder claiming 
the very small business status won three licenses and two bidders 
claiming entrepreneur status won six licenses. One of the winning 
bidders claiming a small business status classification in the BRS 
license auction has an active license as of December 2021.
    86. The Commission's small business size standards for EBS define a 
small

[[Page 72734]]

business as an entity that, together with its affiliates, its 
controlling interests and the affiliates of its controlling interests, 
has average gross revenues that are not more than $55 million for the 
preceding five years, and a very small business is an entity that, 
together with its affiliates, its controlling interests and the 
affiliates of its controlling interests, has average gross revenues 
that are not more than $20 million for the preceding five years. In 
frequency bands where licenses were subject to auction, the Commission 
notes that as a general matter, the number of winning bidders that 
qualify as small businesses at the close of an auction does not 
necessarily represent the number of small businesses currently in 
service. Further, the Commission does not generally track subsequent 
business size unless, in the context of assignments or transfers, 
unjust enrichment issues are implicated. Additionally, since the 
Commission does not collect data on the number of employees for 
licensees providing these services, at this time we are not able to 
estimate the number of licensees with active licenses that would 
qualify as small under the SBA's small business size standard.
    87. The Educational Broadcasting Services. Cable-based educational 
broadcasting services fall under the broad category of the Wired 
Telecommunications Carriers industry. 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 a 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 Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) services; wired (cable) 
audio and video programming distribution; and wired broadband internet 
services.
    88. The SBA small business size standard for this industry 
classifies businesses having 1,500 or fewer employees as small. U.S. 
Census Bureau data for 2017 show that there were 3,054 firms in this 
industry that operated for the entire year. Of this total, 2,964 firms 
operated with fewer than 250 employees. Thus, under this size standard, 
the majority of firms in this industry can be considered small. 
Additionally, according to Commission data as of December 2021, there 
were 4,477 active EBS licenses. The Commission estimates that the 
majority of these licenses are held by non-profit educational 
institutions and school districts and are likely small entities.
    89. 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, Global Positioning System (GPS) equipment, 
pagers, cellular phones, mobile communications equipment, and radio and 
television studio and broadcasting equipment. The SBA small business 
size standard for this industry classifies businesses having 1,250 
employees or less as small. U.S. Census Bureau data for 2017 show that 
there were 656 firms in this industry that operated for the entire 
year. Of this number, 624 firms had fewer than 250 employees. Thus, 
under the SBA size standard, the majority of firms in this industry can 
be considered small.
    90. Software Publishers. This industry comprises establishments 
primarily engaged in computer software publishing or publishing and 
reproduction. Establishments in this industry carry out operations 
necessary for producing and distributing computer software, such as 
designing, providing documentation, assisting in installation, and 
providing support services to software purchasers. These establishments 
may design, develop, and publish, or publish only. The SBA small 
business size standard for this industry classifies businesses having 
annual receipts of $41.5 million or less as small. U.S. Census Bureau 
data for 2017 indicate that 7,842 firms in this industry operated for 
the entire year. Of this number 7,226 firms had revenue of less than 
$25 million. Based on this data, we conclude that a majority of firms 
in this industry are small.
    91. Noncommercial Educational (NCE) and Public Broadcast Stations. 
Noncommercial educational broadcast stations and public broadcast 
stations are television or radio broadcast stations which under the 
Commission's rules are eligible to be licensed by the Commission as a 
noncommercial educational radio or television broadcast station and are 
owned and operated by a public agency or nonprofit private foundation, 
corporation, or association; or are owned and operated by a 
municipality which transmits only noncommercial programs for education 
purposes.
    92. The SBA small business size standards and U.S. Census Bureau 
data classify radio stations and television broadcasting separately and 
both categories may include both noncommercial and commercial stations. 
The SBA small business size standard for both radio stations and 
television broadcasting classify firms having $47 million or less in 
annual receipts as small. For Radio Stations, U.S. Census Bureau data 
for 2017 show that 1,879 of the 2,963 firms that operated during that 
year had revenue of less than $25 million per year. For Television 
Broadcasting, U.S. Census Bureau data for 2017 show that 657 of the 744 
firms that operated for the entire year had revenue of less than 
$25,000,000. While the U.S. Census Bureau data does not indicate the 
number of non-commercial stations, we estimate that under the 
applicable SBA size standard the majority of noncommercial educational 
broadcast stations and public broadcast stations are small entities. 
According to Commission data as of March 31, 2024, there were 4,703 
licensed noncommercial educational radio and television stations. In 
addition, the Commission estimates as March 31, 2024, there were 383 
licensed NCE television stations, 379 Class A TV stations, 1,829 low 
power TV (LPTV) stations, and 3,118 TV translator stations. The 
Commission does not compile and otherwise does not have access to 
financial information for these stations that permit it to determine 
how many stations qualify as small entities under the SBA small 
business size standards. However, given the nature of these services, 
we will presume that all noncommercial educational and public broadcast 
stations qualify as small entities under the above SBA small business 
size standards.
    93. Radio Stations. This industry is comprised of ``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 small business 
size standard for this industry classifies firms having $47 million or 
less in annual receipts as small. U.S. Census Bureau data for 2017 show 
that 2,963 firms operated in this industry during that year. Of this 
number, 1,879 firms operated with revenue of less than $25 million per 
year. Based on this data and the SBA's small business size standard, we 
estimate a majority of such entities are small entities.

[[Page 72735]]

    94. The Commission estimates that as of June 30, 2024, there were 
4,413 licensed commercial AM radio stations and 6,620 licensed 
commercial FM radio stations, for a combined total of 11,033 commercial 
radio stations. Of this total, 11,032 stations (or 99.99%) had revenues 
of $47 million or less in 2023, according to Commission staff review of 
the BIA Kelsey Inc. Media Access Pro Database (BIA) on July 3, 2024, 
and therefore these licensees qualify as small entities under the SBA 
definition. In addition, the Commission estimates that as of June 30, 
2024, there were 4,356 NCE FM radio stations, 1,965 low power FM (LPFM) 
stations, and 8,906 FM translators and boosters. The Commission however 
does not compile, and otherwise does not have access to financial 
information for these radio stations that would permit it to determine 
how many of these stations qualify as small entities under the SBA 
small business size standard. Nevertheless, given the SBA's large 
annual receipts threshold for this industry and the nature of radio 
station licensees, we presume that all of these entities qualify as 
small entities under the above SBA small business size standard.
    95. We note, however, that in assessing whether a business concern 
qualifies as ``small'' under the above definition, business (control) 
affiliations must be included. Our estimate, therefore, likely 
overstates the number of small entities that might be affected by our 
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. We are unable at 
this time to define or quantify the criteria that would establish 
whether a specific radio or television broadcast station is dominant in 
its field of operation. Accordingly, the estimate of small businesses 
to which the rules may apply does not exclude any radio or television 
station from the definition of a small business on this basis and is 
therefore possibly over-inclusive. An additional element of the 
definition of ``small business'' is that the entity must be 
independently owned and operated. Because it is difficult to assess 
these criteria in the context of media entities, the estimate of small 
businesses to which the rules may apply does not exclude any radio or 
television station from the definition of a small business on this 
basis and similarly may be over-inclusive.
    96. FM Translator Stations and Low-Power FM Stations. FM 
translators and Low Power FM Stations are classified in the industry 
for Radio Stations. The Radio Stations industry 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 small 
business size standard for this industry classifies firms having $47 
million or less in annual receipts as small. U.S. Census Bureau data 
for 2017 show that 2,963 firms operated during that year. Of that 
number, 1,879 firms operated with revenue of less than $25 million per 
year. Therefore, based on the SBA's size standard we conclude that the 
majority of FM Translator stations and Low Power FM Stations are small. 
Additionally, according to Commission data, as of March 31, 2024, there 
were 8,913 FM Translator Stations and 1,960 Low Power FM licensed 
broadcast stations. The Commission however does not compile and 
otherwise does not have access to information on the revenue of these 
stations that would permit it to determine how many of the stations 
would qualify as small entities. For purposes of this regulatory 
flexibility analysis, we presume the majority of these stations are 
small entities.
    97. Television Broadcasting. This industry is comprised of 
``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 small business size standard 
for this industry classifies businesses having $47 million or less in 
annual receipts as small. 2017 U.S. Census Bureau data indicate that 
744 firms in this industry operated for the entire year. Of that 
number, 657 firms had revenue of less than $25,000,000. Based on this 
data we estimate that the majority of television broadcasters are small 
entities under the SBA small business size standard.
    98. As of June 30, 2024, there were 1,384 licensed commercial 
television stations. Of this total, 1,307 stations (or 94.4%) had 
revenues of $47 million or less in 2023, according to Commission staff 
review of the BIA on July 3, 2024, and therefore these licensees 
qualify as small entities under the SBA definition. In addition, the 
Commission estimates as of June 30, 2024, there were 382 licensed NCE 
television stations, 379 Class A TV stations, 1,821 LPTV stations, and 
3,100 TV translator stations. The Commission, however, does not compile 
and otherwise does not have access to financial information for these 
television broadcast stations that would permit it to determine how 
many of these stations qualify as small entities under the SBA small 
business size standard. Nevertheless, given the SBA's large annual 
receipts threshold for this industry and the nature of these television 
station licensees, we presume that all of these entities qualify as 
small entities under the above SBA small business size standard.
    99. 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 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 small business size standard for this industry 
classifies firms with annual receipts less than $41.5 million as small. 
Based on U.S. Census Bureau data for 2017, 378 firms operated in this 
industry during that year. Of that number, 149 firms operated with 
revenue of less than $25 million a year and 44 firms operated with 
revenue of $25 million or more. Based on this data, the Commission 
estimates that the majority of firms operating in this industry are 
small.
    100. Cable System Operators (Rate Regulation Standard). The 
Commission has developed its own small business size standard 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. Based on industry data, there are about 420 cable companies 
in the U.S. Of these, only seven have more than 400,000 subscribers. In 
addition, under the Commission's rules, a ``small system'' is a cable 
system serving 15,000 or fewer subscribers. Based on industry data, 
there are about 4,139 cable systems (headends) in the U.S. Of these, 
about 639 have more than 15,000 subscribers. Accordingly, the 
Commission estimates that the majority of cable companies and cable 
systems are small.

[[Page 72736]]

    101. Cable System Operators (Telecom Act Standard). The 
Communications Act of 1934, as amended, contains a size standard for a 
``small cable operator,'' 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.'' For purposes of the Telecom Act Standard, the 
Commission determined that a cable system operator that serves fewer 
than 498,000 subscribers, either directly or through affiliates, will 
meet the definition of a small cable operator. Based on industry data, 
only six cable system operators have more than 498,000 subscribers. 
Accordingly, the Commission estimates that the majority of cable system 
operators are small under this size standard. We note however, that the 
Commission neither requests nor collects information on whether cable 
system operators are affiliated with entities whose gross annual 
revenues exceed $250 million. Therefore, we are 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.
    102. Satellite Telecommunications. This industry 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 SBA small business size standard for this 
industry classifies a business with $38.5 million or less in annual 
receipts as small. U.S. Census Bureau data for 2017 show that 275 firms 
in this industry operated for the entire year. Of this number, 242 
firms had revenue of less than $25 million. Additionally, based on 
Commission data in the 2022 Universal Service Monitoring Report, as of 
December 31, 2021, there were 65 providers that reported they were 
engaged in the provision of satellite telecommunications services. Of 
these providers, the Commission estimates that approximately 42 
providers have 1,500 or fewer employees. Consequently, using the SBA's 
small business size standard, approximately two-thirds of these 
providers can be considered small entities.
    103. All Other Telecommunications. This industry is comprised of 
establishments 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. Providers of 
internet services (e.g. dial-up ISPs) or VoIP services, via client-
supplied telecommunications connections are also included in this 
industry. The SBA small business size standard for this industry 
classifies firms with annual receipts of $40 million or less as small. 
U.S. Census Bureau data for 2017 show that there were 1,079 firms in 
this industry that operated for the entire year. Of those firms, 1,039 
had revenue of less than $25 million. Based on this data, the 
Commission estimates that the majority of ``All Other 
Telecommunications'' firms can be considered small.
    104. 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 Wired 
Telecommunications Carriers industry which 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.
    105. The SBA small business size standard for Wired 
Telecommunications Carriers classifies firms having 1,500 or fewer 
employees as small. U.S. Census Bureau data for 2017 show that 3,054 
firms operated in this industry for the entire year. Of this number, 
2,964 firms operated with fewer than 250 employees. Based on this data, 
the majority of firms in this industry can be considered small under 
the SBA small business size standard. According to Commission data 
however, only two entities provide DBS service--DIRECTV (owned by AT&T) 
and DISH Network, which require a great deal of capital for operation. 
DIRECTV and DISH Network both exceed the SBA size standard for 
classification as a small business. Therefore, we must conclude based 
on internally developed Commission data, in general DBS service is 
provided only by large firms.

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

    106. The Order will impose new or additional reporting, 
recordkeeping, and/or other compliance obligations on small entities, 
including EAS Participants that choose to use the new MEP code, and 
small EAS equipment manufactures. As proposed in the MEP NPRM, use of 
the MEP event code for EAS is voluntary. The Commission allows a period 
of 12 months from publication of the Report and Order in the Federal 
Register to enable the delivery of Ashanti Alerts over EAS, and 12 
months from publication of the Report and Order in the Federal Register 
to enable the delivery of Ashanti Alerts over WEA. This will allow time 
for the equipment manufacturers and CMSPs to prepare their equipment 
and networks to be able to process Ashanti Alerts sent over EAS and 
WEA. This will also allow EAS Participants and other stakeholders to 
acquire the training and resources to deliver Ashanti Alerts to the 
public.
    107. The Commission finds that most of the potential costs of 
implementation arise from software updates made outside of the normal 
course of planned upgrades and estimate that a dedicated Ashanti Alert 
EAS event code would not exceed a one-time $12 million implementation 
cost. The main cost is to EAS Participants, in that those who elect to 
install the MEP alert code will bear the cost involved in downloading 
the software updates into their devices, and any associated clerical 
work. The Commission minimizes additional costs by allowing sufficient 
time and flexibility so that manufacturers and EAS Participants may 
make upgrades in tandem with general software upgrades installed during 
the regular course of business. This approach will significantly reduce 
the costs to small entities as well as to other EAS Participants, which 
fosters greater support for the MEP alerts and ensures

[[Page 72737]]

that more alerts about missing and endangered person are transmitted by 
EAS Participants over time. As noted above, the Order permits 
transmission of MEP Alerts over WEA using an existing WEA message 
classification.

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

    108. The RFA requires an agency to provide ``a description of the 
steps the agency has taken to minimize the significant economic impact 
on small entities . . . including a statement of the factual, policy, 
and legal reasons for selecting the alternative adopted in the final 
rule and why each one of the other significant alternatives to the rule 
considered by the agency which affect the impact on small entities was 
rejected.''
    109. As mentioned above, the Order adopts ``MEP'' as a new EAS 
event code for Ashanti Alerts, and requires implementation by small and 
other participating EAS Participants and CMRS Providers on a voluntary 
basis through equipment already in place, which will require a software 
upgrade. Among the alternatives presented in the MEP NPRM was whether 
there are existing EAS event codes that could effectively transmit 
Ashanti Alerts. The Commission determined that existing EAS event codes 
are either unavailable for missing and endangered adults or do not 
effectively identify Ashanti Alerts to the public. The Commission also 
considered a Tribal-specific MIP event code, however the Commission did 
not adopt this alternative because there is greater support for the MEP 
EAS code. In considering ways to minimize costs to EAS Participants 
associated with implementing the codes, the Commission anticipates 
compliance costs will be limited to the cost of labor for downloading 
software updates, which may be completed during the regular course of 
business.

G. Report to Congress

    110. The Commission will send a copy of the Order, including the 
FRFA, in a report to Congress pursuant to the Congressional Review Act. 
In addition, the Commission will send a copy of the Order, including 
the FRFA, to the Chief Counsel for Advocacy of the SBA. A copy of the 
Order, and FRFA (or summaries thereof) will also be published in the 
Federal Register.

V. Ordering Clauses

    111. Accordingly, it is ordered that, pursuant to sections 1, 4(i), 
4(n), 303(r), 303(v), 624(g), and 706 of the Communications Act of 
1934, as amended, 47 U.S.C. 151, 154(i), 154(n), 303(r), 303(v), 
544(g), 606, the Report and Order is adopted.
    112. It is further ordered that the Commission's rules are hereby 
amended as set forth in Appendix A of the Order.
    113. It is further ordered that the rules and requirements adopted 
herein, including at Appendix A of the Order, to enable the delivery of 
missing and endangered person alerts over EAS will become effective 12 
months from the date of publication in the Federal Register.
    114. It is further ordered that the rules and requirements adopted 
herein, including at Appendix A of the Order, to enable the delivery of 
missing and endangered person alerts over WEA will become effective 12 
months from the date of publication in the Federal Register.
    115. It is further ordered that the Office of the Managing 
Director, Performance Program Management, shall send a copy of the 
Report and Order in a report to be sent to Congress and the Government 
Accountability Office pursuant to the Congressional Review Act, 5 
U.S.C. 801(a)(1)(A).
    116. It is further ordered that the Commission's Office of 
Secretary shall send a copy of the Report and Order, including the 
Regulatory Flexibility Analysis, to the Chief Counsel for Advocacy of 
the Small Business Administration.

List of Subjects in 47 CFR Part 11

    Radio, Television.

Federal Communications Commission.
Marlene Dortch,
Secretary, Office of the Secretary.

Final Rules

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

PART 11--EMERGENCY ALERT SYSTEM (EAS)

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

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


0
2. Amend Sec.  11.31 by:
0
a. Designating the table in paragraph (d)(1) as table 1 to paragraph 
(d)(1);
0
b. Designating the table in paragraph (e) as table 2 to paragraph (e);
0
c. Revising newly designated table 2 to paragraph (e); and
0
d. Designating the table in paragraph (f) as table 3 to paragraph (f).
    The revision reads as follows:


Sec.  11.31  EAS protocol.

* * * * *
    (e) * * *

                        Table 2 to Paragraph (e)
------------------------------------------------------------------------
             Nature of activation                     Event codes
------------------------------------------------------------------------
National Codes (Required):
Emergency Action Notification (National only)  EAN.
National Information Center..................  NIC.
National Periodic Test.......................  NPT.
Required Monthly Test........................  RMT.
Required Weekly Test.........................  RWT.
State and Local Codes (Optional):
Administrative Message.......................  ADR.
Avalanche Warning............................  AVW.
Avalanche Watch..............................  AVA.
Blizzard Warning.............................  BZW.
Blue Alert...................................  BLU.
Child Abduction Emergency....................  CAE.
Civil Danger Warning.........................  CDW.
Civil Emergency Message......................  CEM.
Coastal Flood Warning........................  CFW.
Coastal Flood Watch..........................  CFA.
Dust Storm Warning...........................  DSW.
Earthquake Warning...........................  EQW.
Evacuation Immediate.........................  EVI.
Extreme Wind Warning.........................  EWW.
Fire Warning.................................  FRW.
Flash Flood Warning..........................  FFW.
Flash Flood Watch............................  FFA.
Flash Flood Statement........................  FFS.
Flood Warning................................  FLW.
Flood Watch..................................  FLA.
Flood Statement..............................  FLS.
Hazardous Materials Warning..................  HMW.
High Wind Warning............................  HWW.
High Wind Watch..............................  HWA.
Hurricane Warning............................  HUW.
Hurricane Watch..............................  HUA.
Hurricane Statement..........................  HLS.
Law Enforcement Warning......................  LEW.
Local Area Emergency.........................  LAE.
Missing and Endangered Persons...............  MEP.
Network Message Notification.................  NMN.
911 Telephone Outage Emergency...............  TOE.
Nuclear Power Plant Warning..................  NUW.
Practice/Demo Warning........................  DMO.
Radiological Hazard Warning..................  RHW.
Severe Thunderstorm Warning..................  SVR.
Severe Thunderstorm Watch....................  SVA.
Severe Weather Statement.....................  SVS.
Shelter in Place Warning.....................  SPW.
Special Marine Warning.......................  SMW.
Special Weather Statement....................  SPS.
Storm Surge Watch............................  SSA.
Storm Surge Warning..........................  SSW.
Tornado Warning..............................  TOR.
Tornado Watch................................  TOA.
Tropical Storm Warning.......................  TRW.
Tropical Storm Watch.........................  TRA.
Tsunami Warning..............................  TSW.
Tsunami Watch................................  TSA.
Volcano Warning..............................  VOW.
Winter Storm Warning.........................  WSW.
Winter Storm Watch...........................  WSA.
------------------------------------------------------------------------

* * * * *
[FR Doc. 2024-19530 Filed 9-5-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6712-01-P