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 NEWS  News  Media  Information  202  /  418-  0500  TTY  202  /  418-  2555  Fax-  On-  Demand  202  /  418-  2830  Internet:  http://  www.  fcc.  gov  ftp.  fcc.  gov  Federal  Communications  Commission  445  12  th  Street,  S.  W.  Washington,  D.  C.  20554  This  is  an  unofficial  announcement  of  Commission  action.  Release  of  the  full  text  of  a  Commission  order  constitutes  official  action.  See  MCI  v.  FCC.  515  F  2d  385  (D.  C.  Circ  1974). 
 FOR  IMMEDIATE  RELEASE:  NEWS  MEDIA  CONTACT:  March  20,  2001  John  Winston  at  (202)  418-  7450 
 FCC  ADOPTS  NOTICE  OF  PROPOSED  RULEMAKING 
 ON  EMERGENCY  ALERT  SYSTEM  RULES 


 Washington,  D.  C.  –  Today,  the  Federal  Communications  Commission  announced  it  has 
 adopted  a  Notice  of  Proposed  Rulemaking  (NPRM)  seeking  comment  on  amendments  to  the  Part 
 11  Rules  governing  the  Emergency  Alert  System  (EAS)  requested  by  the  National  Weather 
 Service  and  the  Society  of  Broadcast  Engineers. 


 The  NPRM  proposes  to  amend  Part  11  to:  (1)  increase  from  15  minutes  to  60  minutes 
 the  relay  window  within  which  Required  Monthly  Tests  of  the  EAS  must  be  retransmitted;  (2) 
 reduce  the  required  modulation  level  of  EAS  codes  from  80%  to  50%  of  full  channel  modulation 
 limits;  (3)  delete  references  to  the  Emergency  Action  Notification  network,  which  was 
 eliminated  in  1995  in  accordance  with  a  Presidential  directive;  and  (4)  eliminate  the  requirement 
 that  international  High  Frequency  broadcast  stations  purchase  and  install  EAS  equipment. 


 The  NPRM  also  invites  comment  on  requests  that  the  Commission  amend  Part  11  to  add  a 
 protocol  for  the  transmission  of  text  information  following  the  EAS  alert;  amend  the  list  of  state 
 and  local  EAS  event  codes  to  add  new  event  codes  for  emergency  conditions  not  currently 
 addressed;  amend  the  list  of  location  codes  to  include  new  codes  for  marine  areas;  permit  the 
 carriage  of  audio  of  Presidential  messages  from  non-  EAS  sources;  and  allow  equipment 
 manufacturers  to  include  an  optional  feature  in  EAS  equipment  that  would  give  EAS  participants 
 the  capability  to  select  only  certain  received  EAS  messages  for  processing. 


 Action  by  the  Commission  on  March  13,  2001  by  Notice  of  Proposed  Rulemaking  (FCC  01-  88). 
 Chairman  Powell,  Commissioners  Ness  and  Tristani,  with  Commissioner  Furchtgott-  Roth 
 dissenting  and  issuing  a  statement. 


 EB  Docket  No.  01-  66 
 -  FCC  -Enforcement 


 Bureau  Contacts:  John  Winston  at  (202)  418-  7450  or  Kathy  Berthot  at 
 (202)  418-  7454. 
 TTY:  1  (888)  835-  5322 
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