New Jersey EAS Software Not Supported, Concerning Broadcasters
The New Jersey Broadcasters Association has claimed for years that the state’s emergency alerting system is out of date and on the brink of failure. Now, things may come to a head, some warned. Microsoft ends support in January for the Windows 7 software that the state’s EMnet software runs on means the problem has worsened, said NJBA President Paul Rotella.
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“If we had a software problem, it couldn’t be restored,” said Rotella. He blames antiquated technology and lack of funding. Emergency alerting personnel who work with the system told us they aren’t as concerned. Others said New Jersey’s procurement rules may be part of the issue. “It is the responsibility of the state of New Jersey" to keep the system up and running, said Trevor Clayton, operations manager for EMnet maker Comlabs. He said the company gave the state quotes for upgrading software to Windows 10; no order was placed.
Other states and facilities use EMnet, and upgraded their software to address the problem, said Clayton. “More than 650 federal, state, local, tribal, and territorial governments currently use EMnet to construct and distribute CAP/EAS alerts,” says the Comlabs website. “Everyone” has long known the demise of Windows 7 support was coming, Clayton said.
Virginia upgraded its own EMnet system to be compatible with the new software without difficulty, said Virginia State Emergency Communication Coordinator Bill Fawcett. The New Jersey State Police, which oversees the state’s emergency alerting systems, didn’t comment Friday.
Clayton said budget complications aren’t uncommon in his company's dealings with state and local governments. Rotella urges New Jersey lawmakers to take advantage of federal grants connected with Hurricane Sandy recovery to fund system upgrades.
One additional barrier to an upgrade may be New Jersey procurement rules. The state government is barred from buying directly from vendors, but Comlabs doesn’t sell its products through third parties, Clayton said. Though the company sought waiver, that process hasn’t led to a successful transaction, he said.
Rotella’s recent complaints about the New Jersey alerting system in the association’s regular newsletter focused on the Windows 7 obsolescence (see 1908220048). He has been critical of it for years. In 2017, he wrote a letter to then-Gov. Chris Christie seeking a replacement system. “There is advanced technology, I want to take advantage of that,” Rotella said now. “I don’t want to wait for something to break.”
New Jersey State Emergency Communication Coordinator Richard Archut has fewer concerns. “It’s an older system, it could use some work, but I’m not saying it would fail terribly,” he said of EMnet. Though Rotella said the system has dropped Amber alerts in the past, Archut said it largely functions as needed. Fawcett said Virginia’s system works effectively. EMnet systems have been dependably used for all sorts of facilities, including nuclear power plants, Clayton said. He resisted Rotella’s arguments the system is antiquated, saying the software is upgraded as new tech becomes available.
Rotella doesn’t want the state to pay to upgrade the existing EMnet system, but instead replace it with a system similar to Alert FM, which uses satellites and FM stations to deliver emergency data.
Four states use Alert FM to provide their EAS software, said Chief Technology Officer Matthew Straebin. Rotella believes that system would offer a higher level of service. He compared upgrading EMnet to “putting a Band-Aid on the problem.”