Letter of Support to the Petition for Immediate Interim Relief filed by MMTC

Before the
FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION
Washington, DC 20554
                                                                     )
In the Matter of:                                           )
Review of the Emergency Alert System   )   EB Docket No. 040296
To the Commission                                    )
                                                                      )
REPLY COMMENTS
Consumers Union, the non-profit, independent publisher of Consumer Reports® has a long history of pro-consumer telecommunications advocacy at the federal and state levels. As part of our mission, we insure that the policies we promote properly serve low-income and minority consumers, in addition to middle and upper-middle class consumers. As such, we write in support of the Petition for Immediate Interim Relief filed by the Minority Media Telecommunications Council (“MMTC”) on September 20, 2005. Specifically, we endorse the following proposals:
The Commission should provide that:

1. Emergency Alert System (“EAS”) PEP stations would air Presidential level messages in both English and Spanish
   
2. state and local EAS plans would designate a “Local Primary Spanish” (“LP-S”) station to transmit emergency information in Spanish in local areas where a substantial proportion of the population has its primary fluency in Spanish
   
3. state and local EAS plans would also designate a “Local Primary Multilingual” (“LP-M”) station in local areas where a substantial proportion of the population has its primary fluency in a language other than English or Spanish
   
4. at least one broadcast station in every market would monitor and rebroadcast emergency information carried by local LP-S and LP-M stations
   
5. stations remaining on the air during an emergency would broadcast emergency information in Spanish and in languages used on local LP-S and LP-M stations if these stations lose transmission capability, and
   
6. all broadcasters would be encouraged to assist local LP-S and LP-M stations to return to the air under such circumstances.

We respectfully request that the Commission adopt the relief set forth above and in the petition submitted by the MMTC at the earliest possible date.
October 20, 2005                                                     Respectfully submitted,
                                                                                   Chanelle Hardy
                                                                                   Legislative Counsel
                                                                                   Consumers Union
                                                                                   1666 Connecticut Ave, NW Suite 310
                                                                                   Washington, DC 20009
                                                                                   (202) 462-6262