# 2026-00960: Phone Alerts Go Multilingual: 14 Languages Plus Sign Language

2026-00960, Wireless Emergency Alerts and the Emergency Alert System, is a Federal Register rule from Federal Communications Commission published 2026-01-20, effective 2028-06-12 (as of 2026-06-11).

- Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/federal-register/2026-00960
- As of: 2026-06-11
- Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts.

## Facts
- Document number: 2026-00960
- Title: Wireless Emergency Alerts and the Emergency Alert System
- Type: Rule
- Agencies: Federal Communications Commission
- Citation: 91 FR 2317
- Published: 2026-01-20
- Effective: 2028-06-12
- Comments close: not stated
- Significant: no
- Touches household money: no
- Regulation identifier numbers: none
- Last updated: 2026-06-11

## In one line

Phone Alerts Go Multilingual: 14 Languages Plus Sign Language

## Summary

Starting June 12, 2028, mobile providers must send Wireless Emergency Alerts in English plus 13 other common U.S. languages and American Sign Language. These alerts will use special templates with key details like agency name, location, and end time, making emergency info clearer and easier to understand. This update affects phone companies and helps everyone get important alerts faster and in their language, with no big cost changes.

## Abstract

In this document, the Federal Communications Commission (Commission) announces that the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) has approved a non-substantive change to the information collection associated with Wireless Emergency Alert (WEA) rules adopted in a Report and Order issued by the Public Safety and Homeland Security Bureau (Multilingual WEA Implementation Report and Order). These rules describe how commercial mobile service providers who participate in WEA (Participating CMS Providers) must implement multilingual templates for the most commonly issued and most time-sensitive types of alerts in English, the next thirteen most commonly spoken languages in the United States, and American Sign Language (ASL). Specifically, Participating CMS Providers shall support the pre-scripted templates published in 90 FR 57288 for eighteen emergency events. For English and the thirteen written languages, Participating CMS Providers must support the inclusion of four fillable elements that customize the pre-scripted alert templates: the name of the sending agency, the location pertaining to the alert message, the time when the emergency conditions described in the alert are expected to end, and an optional URL. When an alert originator sends a non-English template message, Participating CMS Providers must display the corresponding pre-scripted alert message in English after the non-English message.

## Effects PRIA read

- WEA in 13 Languages plus ASL: benefit, high. Starting June 12, 2028, participating mobile providers must send Wireless Emergency Alerts in English plus the next thirteen most commonly spoken written U.S. languages and American Sign Language (ASL). Providers must support the pre-scripted templates for eighteen emergency events and include four…
- Compliance Burden on Mobile Providers: cost, medium. The FCC estimates 1,253 respondents and 5,176 responses with an estimated time per response of 0.50 to 12 hours, a total annual burden of 106,943 hours, and a total annual cost of $7,050,800 associated with implementing the WEA information collection changes (OMB Control Number 3060-1113). OMB appr…

## Related documents

- [2026-20591](https://policyrisk.com/federal-register/2026-20591): Information Collection Being Reviewed by the Federal Communications Commission Under Delegated Authority, 2026-10-08
- [2026-20590](https://policyrisk.com/federal-register/2026-20590): Information Collection Being Reviewed by the Federal Communications Commission, 2026-10-08
- [2026-20676](https://policyrisk.com/federal-register/2026-20676): Information Collection Being Reviewed by the Federal Communications Commission Under Delegated Authority, 2026-10-08
- [2026-20607](https://policyrisk.com/federal-register/2026-20607): Information Collections Being Submitted for Review and Approval to Office of Management and Budget, 2026-10-08
- [2026-20681](https://policyrisk.com/federal-register/2026-20681): Information Collection Being Submitted for Review and Approval to Office of Management and Budget, 2026-10-08
- [2026-20486](https://policyrisk.com/federal-register/2026-20486): Information Collections Being Reviewed by the Federal Communications Commission, 2026-10-06

## Sources
- [2026-00960 on federalregister.gov](https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2026/01/20/2026-00960/wireless-emergency-alerts-and-the-emergency-alert-system)
- [2026-00960 as published (PDF)](https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/FR-2026-01-20/pdf/2026-00960.pdf)

## Related
- [Previous: 2026-00952, Publication of Russian Harmful Foreign Activities Sanctions Regulations Web Gen…](https://policyrisk.com/federal-register/2026-00952)
- [Next: 2026-00964, Ratification of Department Action](https://policyrisk.com/federal-register/2026-00964)
- [All Federal Register documents](https://policyrisk.com/federal-register)

Source: PRIA, https://policyrisk.com/federal-register/2026-00960 (as of 2026-06-11).