Emergency Reporting Act

Bill Number

H.R. 5200

Origin Chamber

House

Congress

119th Congress, Session 2

Policy Area

Science, Technology, Communications

Status

Passed House

Latest Action

2026-04-21: Received in the Senate. Read twice. Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 375.

Last Updated

2026-06-11T23:41:32Z

AI-Generated Summary

Summary of H.R. 5200: Emergency Reporting Act

Purpose

This legislation directs the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to conduct public hearings and issue reports following activations of its Disaster Information Reporting System (DIRS)—a tool used to gather data on communications outages during disasters. It also requires the FCC to investigate and recommend improvements to how network outages, especially those affecting 911 services, are reported.

Key Provisions

• Public Hearings: Within 1 year of enactment and annually thereafter, the FCC must hold at least one public hearing on disasters where DIRS was active for 7 or more days. Hearings should include diverse participants such as:
• State, local, and tribal government representatives from affected areas.
• Residents, consumer advocates, communications providers, educators, federal agencies, electric utilities, infrastructure companies, first responders, emergency managers, and 911 directors.
• Post-Hearing Reports: Within 120 days after each hearing, the FCC must publish a report (on its website, excluding confidential information) covering:
• Number and duration of outages in broadband internet, interconnected Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) service (phone service over the internet), commercial mobile service (cell phones), and commercial mobile data service.
• Estimated users and infrastructure affected.
• Outages blocking 911 calls, caller location/number info, or routing to emergency personnel.
• FCC recommendations to improve network resiliency (ability to withstand disruptions).
• Network Outage Reporting Investigation: Within 1 year of enactment, the FCC must investigate and report on:
• Benefits to public safety agencies of adding visual information (e.g., maps) to outage notifications.
• Unreported 911 outages due to current FCC thresholds.
• Balance between benefits to safety agencies and burdens on service providers.
• Recommended FCC rule changes.
• Limitations: No new FCC authority over broadband providers beyond these requirements.
• Definitions: Clarifies terms like "outage" (service failure meeting FCC criteria), "emergency communications center" (911 call centers or similar facilities handling emergency calls), and others tied to existing laws.

Significant Changes to Existing Law

• Introduces mandatory annual hearings and detailed reports tied to DIRS activations, which previously lacked such structured follow-up.
• Requires a one-time investigation into enhancing outage notifications with visuals and addressing unreported 911 issues, potentially leading to FCC rule updates.
• Builds on existing FCC outage rules without expanding regulatory power.

Potential Impacts

• Government Agencies (FCC): Increased workload for hearings, data analysis, and reporting; promotes better disaster response coordination.
• Citizens and Residents: Greater transparency on communications failures during disasters, potentially leading to more reliable services.
• Public Safety and Emergency Services: Improved situational awareness via better outage reports, aiding faster recovery and resiliency upgrades.
• Communications Providers: Heightened scrutiny and possible new reporting burdens, balanced against no new regulatory authority.
• No direct impacts on international relations.

Main Stakeholders Affected

• Primary: FCC (leads implementation).
• Public Safety: First responders, 911 directors, emergency communications centers.
• Governments: State, local, tribal, and federal agencies.
• Industry: Communications service providers (broadband, mobile, VoIP), electric utilities, infrastructure companies.
• Public: Affected residents, consumer advocates.
• Others: Educators, emergency managers.

Notable Legal, Constitutional, or Political Implications

• Legal: Reinforces existing FCC tools (DIRS, outage rules) with procedural mandates; protects confidential business info under current regulations. Rule of construction prevents overreach on broadband regulation.
• Constitutional: No apparent issues; aligns with FCC's statutory role in communications and public safety.
• Political: Enhances accountability for disaster preparedness, fostering bipartisan support for resilient infrastructure without imposing broad new mandates.

This summary was generated by AI and may contain inaccuracies. Refer to the official source document for the authoritative text.

Sponsor

Rep. Matsui, Doris O. [D-CA-7]

Cosponsors (2)

Rep. Bilirakis, Gus M. [R-FL-12], Rep. Barragán, Nanette Diaz [D-CA-44]

Recent Actions

• 2026-04-21: Received in the Senate. Read twice. Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 375.
• 2026-04-20: Motion to reconsider laid on the table Agreed to without objection.
• 2026-04-20: On motion to suspend the rules and pass the bill Agreed to by the Yeas and Nays: (2/3 required): 386 - 7 (Roll no. 126). (text: CR H2974-2975) (Roll call 126)
• 2026-04-20: Passed/agreed to in House: On motion to suspend the rules and pass the bill Agreed to by the Yeas and Nays: (2/3 required): 386 - 7 (Roll no. 126). (text: CR H2974-2975) (Roll call 126)
• 2026-04-20: Considered as unfinished business. (consideration: CR H2976-2978)
• 2026-04-20: At the conclusion of debate, the Yeas and Nays were demanded and ordered. Pursuant to the provisions of clause 8, rule XX, the Chair announced that further proceedings on the motion would be postponed.
• 2026-04-20: DEBATE - The House proceeded with forty minutes of debate on H.R. 5200.
• 2026-04-20: Considered under suspension of the rules. (consideration: CR H2974-2976)
• 2026-04-20: Mr. Allen moved to suspend the rules and pass the bill.
• 2026-04-09: Placed on the Union Calendar, Calendar No. 517.
• 2026-04-09: Reported by the Committee on Energy and Commerce. H. Rept. 119-597.
• 2026-04-09: Reported by the Committee on Energy and Commerce. H. Rept. 119-597.
• 2026-01-15: Forwarded by Subcommittee to Full Committee by Voice Vote.
• 2026-01-15: Subcommittee Consideration and Mark-up Session Held
• 2025-09-08: Referred to the Subcommittee on Communications and Technology.

Bill Versions

• Emergency Reporting Act — issued 2026-04-20 — PDF (10 pages)
• Emergency Reporting Act — issued 2025-09-08 — PDF (9 pages)
• Emergency Reporting Act — issued 2026-04-21 — PDF (10 pages)
• Emergency Reporting Act — issued 2026-04-09 — PDF (12 pages)