On December 14, 2016, the Federal Communications Commission adopted an Order expressing its support for a voluntary industry commitment to promote resilient wireless communications and situational awareness during disasters. This commitment, the Wireless Resiliency Cooperative Framework (Framework), set out a five-pronged approach for enhancing coordination during an emergency:
- providing for reasonable roaming under disaster arrangements when technically feasible;
- fostering mutual aid among wireless providers during emergencies;
- enhancing municipal preparedness and restoration by convening with local government public safety representatives to develop best practices, and establishing a provider/PSAP contact database;
- increasing consumer readiness and preparation through development and dissemination with consumer groups of a Consumer Readiness Checklist; and
- improving public awareness and stakeholder communications on service and restoration status, through Commission posting of data on cell site outages on an aggregated, county-by-county basis in the relevant area through its Disaster Information Reporting System.
To date, the following signatories have committed to adopting the Framework:
- AT&T Mobility
- CTIA
- Sprint
- T-Mobile
- U.S. Cellular
- Verizon Wireless
Additionally, the Competitive Carriers Association filed a letter in PS Docket Nos. 13-239 and 11-60 supporting the Framework.
On December 20, 2017, CTIA, as part of its commitment to the Framework, released a set of best practices designed to enhance emergency and disaster preparedness and restoration.
The FCC continues to encourage wireless providers to adopt the Framework and to jointly and collaboratively take steps to ensure wireless resiliency during disasters and other emergencies.
For further information, contact: Jennifer Holtz, Deputy Division Chief, Cybersecurity and Communications Reliability Division, Public Safety and Homeland Security Bureau, at (202) 418-2336, jennifer.holtz@fcc.gov or Renee Roland, Special Counsel, Public Safety and Homeland Security Bureau, at (202) 418-2357, renee.roland@fcc.gov.