PlainBillCongress, translated.Legislation. Context. Public interest.
H.R.6096 / 116th Congress

READI Act

Received in the Senate. Read twice. Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 596.

Official summary

Version 53 · Passed House · Nov 17, 2020

Reliable Emergency Alert Distribution Improvement Act of 2020 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.)

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) must adopt regulations that encourage states to establish a State Emergency Communications Committee (SECC) and provide that each SECC meets at least annually to review and update its Emergency Alert System (EAS) 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 EAS or the Wireless EAS and 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 offering EAS alerts through the internet, including through audio and video streaming services.

Read the summary on Congress.gov
PlainBill analysis is coming later. This page presents official source data. We have not yet published a PlainBill explanation for this bill.

Who introduced it

Rep. McNerney, Jerry [D-CA-9] · D–CA

Committees

  • Transportation and Infrastructure Committee
  • Energy and Commerce Committee
3 cosponsorship records, including any withdrawals

Actions

A procedural vote is different from passage. Passage in one chamber does not establish enactment. Explore the glossary.

  1. Received in the Senate. Read twice. Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 596.

  2. Motion to reconsider laid on the table Agreed to without objection.

  3. On motion to suspend the rules and pass the bill, as amended Agreed to by voice vote. (text: CR H5820-5821)

  4. Passed/agreed to in House: On motion to suspend the rules and pass the bill, as amended Agreed to by voice vote.(text: CR H5820-5821)

  5. DEBATE - The House proceeded with forty minutes of debate on H.R. 6096.

  6. Considered under suspension of the rules. (consideration: CR H5820-5823)

  7. Mr. Pallone moved to suspend the rules and pass the bill, as amended.

  8. Placed on the Union Calendar, Calendar No. 480.

  9. Committee on Transportation discharged.

  10. Committee on Transportation discharged.

  11. Reported by the Committee on Energy and Commerce. H. Rept. 116-582, Part I.

  12. Reported by the Committee on Energy and Commerce. H. Rept. 116-582, Part I.

  13. Ordered to be Reported by Voice Vote.

  14. Committee Consideration and Mark-up Session Held.

  15. Forwarded by Subcommittee to Full Committee by Voice Vote .

  16. Subcommittee Consideration and Mark-up Session Held.

  17. Referred to the Subcommittee on Economic Development, Public Buildings, and Emergency Management.

  18. Referred to the Subcommittee on Communications and Technology.

  19. Referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, and in addition to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.

  20. Referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, and in addition to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.

  21. Introduced in House

  22. Introduced in House

Bill text & related measures

Text links open the official source. We currently store references to these documents.

Related bills identified by Congress.gov

Source last updated: Dec 5, 2025. Consult Congress.gov for the current record.

Explore the bill from different angles

Choose a perspective, copy a prompt, and paste it into your preferred AI. Each prompt includes the bill version and available official source links, and asks for counterarguments as well as supporting evidence.

Neutral evidence review

Objective

Analyze H.R.6096 as objectively as possible. Explain its main provisions, who would be affected, possible benefits and harms, implementation, exceptions, and uncertainties. Present the strongest arguments for and against it, and identify evidence needed to assess its public impact.

View full prompt & sources
Fairness and public impact

Progressive lens

Examine H.R.6096 through a progressive lens, focusing on fairness, access, economic inequality, and effects on vulnerable communities. Explain potential benefits, costs, and unintended consequences. Consider the strongest counterarguments and distinguish stated goals from demonstrated outcomes.

View full prompt & sources
Institutions and government scope

Conservative lens

Examine H.R.6096 through a conservative lens, focusing on fiscal responsibility, institutional stability, federalism, and the scope of government. Explain potential benefits, costs, and unintended consequences. Consider the strongest counterarguments and any provisions that challenge this perspective.

View full prompt & sources
Individual rights and government power

Liberty lens

Examine H.R.6096 through a civil-liberties and limited-government lens. Consider individual rights, privacy, voluntary choice, accountability, and government power. Explain tradeoffs, possible safeguards, and the strongest counterarguments without assuming the proposal is beneficial or harmful.

View full prompt & sources