MADISON, Wis. – Attorney General Josh Kaul today joined a coalition urging the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to publish a delayed rule that would expand language access for government emergency alerts sent to cell phones.
The rule was adopted by the FCC in January 2025. It requires Wireless Emergency Alerts (WEAs) to be available in 13 additional languages, including American Sign Language (ASL). However, for the last ten months, the FCC has not moved to implement the rule.
“Making Wireless Emergency Alerts comprehensible to more recipients will add to the impact those alerts can have in helping to keep folks safe,” said AG Kaul. “The FCC should publish this order promptly.”
WEAs are short text-like messages sent by government agencies through cell carriers to warn the public of imminent threats such as severe weather, natural disasters, or public safety emergencies. These alerts are among the most effective public warning tools in the United States, but have historically been issued only in English, with Spanish alerts being supported only in recent years.
In 2023, the FCC voted to expand emergency alerts to additional languages, and in January 2025, it formally adopted the Multilingual Alerts Order, which requires the implementation of pre-translated alert templates in the 13 most spoken non-English languages and American Sign Language. The order states that once the rule is published in the Federal Register, wireless carriers will have 30 months to update their systems to support multilingual alerts.
Joining AG Kaul in sending today’s letter are the attorneys general of Arizona, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawai’i, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, and Washington, in addition to New York City.
View this press release on the DOJ website here.
