Before the Federal Communications Commission Washington, D.C. ...

Federal Communications Commission FCC 02-64manufacturers and therefore will not require that newly manufactured equipment be capable of receivingand transmitting these new event codes until August 1, 2003. Thus, all existing and new models of EASequipment manufactured after August 1, 2003 will be required to be capable of receiving andtransmitting these codes. We believe that this approach is preferable for several reasons.14. First, participation in EAS at the state and local levels has been voluntary since we firstauthorized its use for state and local emergencies in 1976. 37 Despite the fact that participation in stateand local EAS is voluntary, broadcast stations and cable systems have participated extensively in stateand local EAS activities and have helped to make EAS an invaluable tool for disseminating informationabout state and local emergencies to the public. We fully expect that broadcast stations and cablesystems will continue to be active participants in their state and local EAS plans and we stronglyencourage them to upgrade their existing equipment and begin using the new codes without delay. Wethink, however, that it would be contrary to the voluntary nature of state and local EAS to mandateupgrades to existing EAS equipment to incorporate new optional event codes.15. In addition, we are concerned that imposing additional costs and burdens on broadcaststations and cable systems at this time may have the undesired effect of reducing voluntary participationin state and local EAS activities. The commenters confirm that implementation of the new codes willnecessitate software/firmware and, in some cases, hardware upgrades to existing equipment. 38 Twoequipment manufacturers which filed comments estimate that such upgrades will cost from $100 to $300plus shipping and handling. 39 While these costs may seem relatively modest, we recognize that they maypresent a financial burden to some broadcast stations, particularly radio stations in smaller markets. 40Furthermore, it appears that the costs of upgrades for cable systems may be significantly higher. In thisregard, NCTA estimates, based on discussions with equipment manufacturers, that the cost for cablesystems to upgrade their equipment would be $200 to $500 plus labor and the administrative costs ofinstalling the upgrades in each and every headend. 41 NCTA further observes that for cable systems thisadditional expense would come only three years after making substantial expenditures to purchase andinstall new EAS equipment. 42 Similarly, the National Association of Broadcasters (“NAB”) points outthat it has only been about five years since broadcast stations made substantial investments in new EASequipment. 43 Several commenters predict that the costs and burdens associated with a requirement toretrofit existing equipment to implement the new codes would cause some broadcast stations and cable37In 1976, the FCC, NWS, the Defense Civil Preparedness Agency and the National Industry AdvisoryCommittee (“NIAC”) approved a plan for the use of the former EBS for state and local emergencies. See Plan forNationwide Use of the Emergency Broadcast System for State and Local Emergencies (June 28, 1976). This planwas revised in 1982 pursuant to a Memorandum of Understanding between the FCC, the Federal EmergencyManagement Agency, NWS and NIAC. See Memorandum of Understanding on State and Local EmergencyBroadcasting System (April 21, 1982).38Gorman Comments at 1; TFT Comments at 3; NCTA Comments at 4.39Gorman Comments at 1; TFT Comments at 3. These estimates include the cost of upgrading EASequipment to revise existing codes and to add new codes.40414243See KPVI Comments at 1; Seven Ranges Comments at 11; NAB Comments at 4.NCTA Comments at 4.Id.NAB Comments at 8.8