APTS, NPR, PBS join in petition asking FCC to extend CAP regulation deadline

Forty-six broadcast and cable associations, including APTS, NPR and PBS, petitioned the FCC last week (Oct. 21) to extend the deadline to comply with new regulations for the Common Alerting Protocol (CAP)-formatted Emergency Alert System (EAS) alerts by an additional 180 days, Broadcast Engineering is reporting. On Sept. 30, the Federal Emergency Management Agency published technical standards for CAP-formatted EAS alerts to be used for the Integrated Public Alert Warning System. That triggered a six-month clock — deadline March 29, 2011 — for stations to buy, install and test CAP-compliant equipment. The petition (PDF) requests that the commission extend the deadline until at least Sept. 30, 2011, noting that it is unlikely vendors will be able to meet demand for CAP-compliant equipment in time.