Summary#
This bill directs the Federal Communications Commission (the Commission) to strengthen public reporting after the Commission's Disaster Information Reporting System (DIRS) is activated and to study improvements to network outage reporting.
Key actions in the bill:
- Public hearings: The Commission must hold at least one public hearing each year (first hearing due within one year of enactment) about events when DIRS was activated for at least 7 days. The Commission should consider including state, local, or tribal officials, residents or consumer advocates, communications providers, utility providers, higher-education faculty, other federal agencies, infrastructure companies, and first responders or 9-1-1 officials in those hearings.
- Post-hearing reports: Within 120 days after each hearing, the Commission must publish a report (using information it already has) that, to the extent known, includes the number and duration of outages for broadband internet access service, interconnected VoIP service, commercial mobile service, and commercial mobile data service; the approximate number of users and amount of infrastructure affected; outages that prevented emergency communications centers from receiving caller location or calls; and recommendations to improve communications resiliency.
- Publication and confidentiality: The Commission must publish these reports on its website, excluding information that is confidential under Commission rules.
- Network outage study: Within one year of enactment, the Commission must investigate and publish a report on (1) the value of including visual information in outage notifications to emergency communications centers, (2) the volume and nature of 9-1-1 outages that might not be reported under current thresholds, (3) the balance between the value of visual information and the burden on providers, and (4) recommended rule changes to address these issues.
- Other provisions: The bill clarifies it does not give the Commission authority over broadband providers beyond what the bill specifically authorizes. It also defines key terms used in the section.
What it means for you#
- The public can expect at least one annual public hearing and published reports after DIRS activations that lasted 7 days or more. These reports will be posted on the Commission's website unless information is confidential.
- Emergency communications centers, 9-1-1 officials, communications providers, and local or tribal officials may be invited to participate in hearings and will be the focus of some reporting and study efforts.
- The Commission will study whether outage notifications should include visual information and whether current reporting rules miss some 9-1-1 outages.
Expenses#
No publicly available information on estimated costs, funding, or budgetary effects is included in the bill text or the provided metadata.
Proponents' View#
No publicly available information on proponents' arguments or statements is included in the bill text or the provided metadata.
Opponents' View#
No publicly available information on opponents' arguments or statements is included in the bill text or the provided metadata.