Emergency Reporting Act

Hozzl · 2026-04-23T03:53:24Z

Explore the details of House Bill 5200 Emergency Reporting Act currently in Congress. Get insights into its purpose, current status, sponsors, and potential impact on Science, Technology, Communications. Stay informed on legislative developments.

4/23/2026, 3:53 AM

Summary of Bill HR 5200

The bill, designated as H.R. 5200 in the 119th Congress and introduced on September 8, 2025, aims to direct the Federal Communications Commission to issue reports post-activation of the Disaster Information Reporting System, enhance network outage reporting, and address other related matters.

Congressional Summary of HR 5200

Emergency Reporting Act

This bill requires the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to investigate and report on emergency communications outages (e.g., 9-1-1 outages).

Specifically, the FCC must publish a general report on (1) the volume and nature of 9-1-1 outages that are not required to be reported under current outage notification rules, (2) the value and practicality of including visual information in outage notifications from communications providers, and (3) recommended changes to FCC rules to address these issues.

Separately, the FCC must hold annual public hearings on events for which the Disaster Information Reporting System (DIRS) was activated for at least a week. (DIRS is a reporting system that is activated during severe weather and other events impacting communications service. It enables communications providers to report outages and other degradations to service.) After each such hearing, the FCC must issue a report that includes information about the number, duration, and nature of all associated outages, along with recommendations for improving the resiliency of affected communications services or networks. Such reports must generally be made public on the FCC website.

Read the Full Bill

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Current Status of Bill HR 5200

Bill HR 5200 is currently in the status of Passed in House since April 20, 2026. Bill HR 5200 was introduced during Congress 119 and was introduced to the House on September 8, 2025. Bill HR 5200's most recent activity was Received in the Senate. Read twice. Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 375. as of April 21, 2026

Bipartisan Support of Bill HR 5200

Total Number of Sponsors

Democrat Sponsors

Republican Sponsors

Unaffiliated Sponsors

Total Number of Cosponsors

Democrat Cosponsors

Republican Cosponsors

Unaffiliated Cosponsors

Policy Area and Potential Impact of Bill HR 5200

Primary Policy Focus

Science, Technology, Communications

Potential Impact Areas

- Congressional oversight

- Electric power generation and transmission

- Emergency communications systems

- Emergency medical services and trauma care

- Emergency planning and evacuation

- Government information and archives

- Government studies and investigations

- Natural disasters

- Telephone and wireless communication

Alternate Title(s) of Bill HR 5200

To direct the Federal Communications Commission to issue reports after activation of the Disaster Information Reporting System and to make improvements to network outage reporting, and for other purposes.

Comments

Khari Stephens

831

15 days ago

I fully support this new bill. It's about time we had some real change in our emergency reporting system. This is going to make a huge difference in how things are handled in times of crisis. I can't wait to see the positive impact it will have on our communities.

Bentley Best

863

26 days ago

I heard about this new bill, HR 5200, and I think it's a good idea. It's supposed to help with emergency reporting, which sounds important. I'm not sure exactly what it all means, but I think it could be helpful. I wonder how it will work and what changes it will bring. I hope it will make things better for everyone. #HR5200 #EmergencyReportingAct #USApolitics

Azari Bender

843

17 days ago

I think this bill is good cuz it helps with reporting emergencies faster. It says that people have to report emergencies within 3 hours or they could get in trouble. I think this is important cuz it can save lives. I live in SD and this bill could help me if I ever need to report an emergency. So I think it's a good thing.

Raven Chambers

803

27 days ago

OMG did u hear about this new bill?? It's like, super important or something. I think it's called the Emergency Reporting Act or something like that. I'm not totally sure what it's about, but I think it's gonna help keep us safe or something. And like, did you know that it includes a provision for increased funding for emergency response teams? So cool! #excited #HR5200 #safetyfirst