# 116-hr-4856: READI Act

116-hr-4856, READI Act, is a 116th Congress bill sponsored by Rep. McNerney, Jerry [D-CA-9] (D-CA); status Subcommittee Hearings Held. (as of 2025-11-18).

- Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/legislation/116-hr-4856
- As of: 2025-11-18
- Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts.

## Facts
- Bill: 116-hr-4856
- Congress: 116
- Title: READI Act
- Status: Subcommittee Hearings Held.
- Introduced: 2019-10-24
- Sponsor: Rep. McNerney, Jerry [D-CA-9] (D-CA)
- Cosponsors: 4
- Policy area: Science, Technology, Communications
- Touches household money: no
- Last recorded action: 2025-11-18

## Summary

Reliable Emergency Alert Distribution Improvement Act of 2019 or READI Act This bill modifies how citizens receive emergency alerts through wireless and broadcast emergency alert systems. Specifically, the bill includes emergency alerts from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) as a type of alert that mobile subscribers may not block from their devices (currently, only alerts from the President may not be blocked). FEMA must develop and issue guidance for how state, tribal, and local governments can participate in the integrated public alert and warning system. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) must adopt regulations that encourage states to establish a State Emergency Communications Commission (SECC) and require each SECC to meet at least annually to review and update its Emergency Alert System Plan. The FCC must approve or disapprove the updated plan. The FCC shall also (1) establish a system to receive from FEMA or state, tribal, or local governments reports of false alerts under the Emergency Alert System (EAS) or the Wireless EAS to record such false alerts and examine their causes; (2) modify the EAS to provide for repeating messages while an alert remains pending; and (3) examine the feasibility of updating the EAS to enable or improve alerts provided through the internet, including through audio and video streaming services.

## Cosponsors (4)

- Rep. Bilirakis, Gus M. [R-FL-12] (R-FL), 2019-10-24T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Gabbard, Tulsi [D-HI-2] (D-HI), 2019-10-24T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Olson, Pete [R-TX-22] (R-TX), 2019-10-24T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Garamendi, John [D-CA-8] (D-CA), 2019-11-14T00:00:00.000Z

## Related bills

- 116-hr-4104: Negro Leagues Baseball Centennial Commemorative Coin Act
- 116-hr-2420: National Museum of the American Latino Act
- 116-hr-1980: Smithsonian Women’s History Museum Act
- 116-hr-1865: Further Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2020
- 116-hr-1570: Removing Barriers to Colorectal Cancer Screening Act of 2020
- 116-hr-748: CARES Act

## Sources
- [116-hr-4856 on Congress.gov](https://www.congress.gov/bill/116th-congress/house-bill/4856)

## Related
- [116-hr-4104: Negro Leagues Baseball Centennial Commemorative Coin Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/116-hr-4104)
- [116-hr-2420: National Museum of the American Latino Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/116-hr-2420)
- [116-hr-1980: Smithsonian Women’s History Museum Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/116-hr-1980)
- [116-hr-1865: Further Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2020](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/116-hr-1865)
- [116-hr-1570: Removing Barriers to Colorectal Cancer Screening Act of 2020](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/116-hr-1570)
- [116-hr-748: CARES Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/116-hr-748)
- [All bills in Congress](https://policyrisk.com/legislation)

Source: PRIA, https://policyrisk.com/legislation/116-hr-4856 (as of 2025-11-18).