First Responder Network Authority Reauthorization Act of 2026
Latest action · Apr 21, 2026 Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.
Progress
Where this bill reached, and when. A stage with no date was not reached; one that failed a vote and later carried shows the date it carried.
- IntroducedFeb 5, 2026
- Passed HouseApr 20, 2026
- Passed SenateNot reached
- To the PresidentNot reached
- Became lawNot reached
Summary
First Responder Network Authority Reauthorization Act of 2026
This bill extends through FY2037 and modifies the management of the First Responder Network (FirstNet) Authority. (The FirstNet Authority oversees the development and operation of FirstNet, a nationwide, interoperable broadband network for first responders.) The bill also requires certain actions of the entity operating FirstNet.
Currently, the FirstNet Authority is an independent agency within the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA). The bill removes the FirstNet Authority’s independent status and establishes an associate administrator in the NTIA to manage the FirstNet Authority’s operations. The FirstNet Authority’s actions must be subject to NTIA approval, with exceptions established by the NTIA. The FirstNet Authority’s Board must include at least five (currently, three) individuals who have served as public safety professionals.
The entity contracted to develop and operate FirstNet (currently AT&T) must notify the FirstNet Authority within 30 minutes of any network outage and provide users with a network status tool to monitor outages. Every five years, such entity must submit to the NTIA for approval a business continuity and disaster recovery plan to ensure rapid restoration of the network following disaster-caused outages. Annual audits of the FirstNet Authority must include an evaluation of such entity’s performance.
The NTIA must brief Congress annually regarding FirstNet and provide annual reports relating to cybersecurity and network adoption rates.
Within seven years after the bill’s enactment, the Government Accountability Office must report on what action Congress should take regarding the termination of the FirstNet Authority in 2037.
Cosponsors 1
Members who signed on, in the order they did. All signed on Feb 5, 2026.
| Seat | Cosponsor | Signed on | |
|---|---|---|---|
| D-VA | Jennifer L. McClellan | Original | Feb 5, 2026 |
Actions 19
Everything that happened, newest first.
- Apr 21, 2026Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.
- Apr 20, 2026Considered under suspension of the rules.
- Apr 20, 2026Considered under suspension of the rules. (consideration: CR H2967-2970)
- Apr 20, 2026DEBATE - The House proceeded with forty minutes of debate on H.R. 7386.
- Apr 20, 2026Motion to reconsider laid on the table Agreed to without objection.
Subjects
Assigned by the Library of Congress. Policy area: Emergency Management.
- Advisory bodies
- Computer security and identity theft
- Computers and information technology
- Congressional oversight
- Emergency communications systems
- Emergency Management
- Emergency planning and evacuation
- First responders and emergency personnel
- Government information and archives
- Government studies and investigations
- Performance measurement
- Public contracts and procurement
- Telephone and wireless communication
Text 4
Each version as it was printed, newest first.
- Apr 21, 2026Referred in Senate
- Apr 20, 2026Engrossed in House
- Apr 15, 2026Reported in House
- Feb 5, 2026Introduced in House
Everything here is as published by Congress: the summary is the Congressional Research Service's, the action wording is the clerks', and the subjects are the Library of Congress's. How far it got is read from the actions themselves, taking the most recent one of each kind, so a bill that failed a vote and later passed is shown as having passed. Records come from this bill on Congress.gov and govinfo.gov.
