The FCC’s Publish Safety and Homeland Security Bureau has released a Public Notice informing all Emergency Alert System (EAS) Participants, and the public, that the FCC and FEMA will conduct a nationwide test of the EAS on Wednesday, August 7, 2019 at 2:20 pm EDT, with a backup date of Wednesday, August 21, 2019. Additionally, the FCC also provided notice that the EAS Test Reporting System (ETRS) is now open and accepting 2019 filings. All EAS Participants must renew their identifying information in ETRS Form One on or before Wednesday, July 3, 2019. Unlike in recent years, this upcoming EAS test will only be disseminated using a hierarchical, broadcast-based distribution system, otherwise known as the “daisy chain.” Accordingly, “full message text and multilingual messaging will not be available.” The purpose of this daisy chain test is to determine the capability of the EAS to deliver messages to the public in the event that dissemination via Internet is not available.
