Contents
- Emergency radio ownership statistics by age, race, and education
- Emergency radio ownership statistics across CDC states
- Emergency radio ownership statistics by household and respondent characteristics
- emergency radio ownership: NOAA Weather Radio ownership and receiver types
- Emergency radio ownership estimates and survey scope
- Sources
Emergency radio ownership statistics by age, race, and education
Emergency radio ownership statistics depend on what a survey calls a radio. In the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) data, adults reported whether their household had a working battery-operated radio and working batteries for use if electricity was out. This measure does not identify NOAA Weather Radio receivers specifically. The pooled findings cover 2006–2010 in 14 states, and each percentage below is a respondent subgroup estimate from that historical survey. CDC household preparedness report, Table 1 continued
| Respondent characteristic | Reporting a working battery-operated radio |
|---|---|
| Age 18–24 | 75.6% |
| Age 25–34 | 74.2% |
| Age 35–44 | 78.4% |
| Age 45–54 | 79.5% |
| Age 55 or older | 78.8% |
The age figures cluster from 74.2% to 79.5%. The 18–24 group reported 75.6%, while the 25–34 group reported 74.2%. The measure does not tell us whether the radio was portable, tuned to weather alerts, or used during an emergency; it records reported household preparedness as defined by the survey. CDC household preparedness report, Table 1 continued
| Race/ethnicity category | Reporting a working battery-operated radio |
|---|---|
| Hispanic | 67.1% |
| Black, non-Hispanic | 72.4% |
| White, non-Hispanic | 80.4% |
| Other race/Multirace, non-Hispanic | 67.3% |
The reported proportions vary across the listed race and ethnicity categories. CDC’s Hispanic category can include people of any race, while the listed Black, White, and Other race/Multirace categories are non-Hispanic. These definitions matter when reading the comparison: the categories are not all race-only labels. The table describes reported possession, not the reasons for the differences or whether a household had access to other warning channels. CDC household preparedness report, Table 1 continued
| Education | Reporting a working battery-operated radio |
|---|---|
| Less than a high school diploma | 67.8% |
| High school diploma | 78.6% |
| More than a high school diploma | 78.8% |
In this grouping, the reported figure is 67.8% for respondents with less than a high school diploma, 78.6% for those with a high school diploma, and 78.8% for those with more than a high school diploma. The observations show how the survey responses differed by education category; they do not establish why the categories differed. CDC household preparedness report, Table 1 continued
Emergency radio ownership statistics across CDC states
The state figures are not a single, same-year comparison. Each row retains the year or combined years printed by CDC. Respondents were adults aged 18 or older in the state Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) data. Montana and Nebraska combine years because CDC found no significant increases or decreases over time in those states; those combined estimates should not be mistaken for a single-year reading. CDC household preparedness report, Table 2 continued
| State | Year(s) shown | Reporting a working battery-operated radio |
|---|---|---|
| Connecticut | 2006 | 79.2% |
| Delaware | 2007 | 79.0% |
| Georgia | 2008 | 75.1% |
| Louisiana | 2007 | 85.2% |
| Maryland | 2007 | 79.7% |
| Mississippi | 2009 | 78.7% |
| Montana | 2006, 2008, and 2010 combined | 74.2% |
| Nebraska | 2007 and 2008 combined | 82.6% |
| Nevada | 2006 | 72.3% |
| New Hampshire | 2007 | 79.4% |
| New York | 2008 | 76.7% |
| North Carolina | 2010 | 77.2% |
| Pennsylvania | 2008 | 77.7% |
| Tennessee | 2006 | 78.5% |
Among these reported state observations, the listed estimates range from 72.3% in Nevada in 2006 to 85.2% in Louisiana in 2007. They span different years and, in two cases, combined years, so they should be read as state-specific historical measurements rather than a current ranking. Across all state rows, the survey question remains household possession of a working battery-operated radio with working batteries for use during an outage. CDC household preparedness report, Table 2 continued
Emergency radio ownership statistics by household and respondent characteristics
CDC also tabulated the same battery-radio measure by sex, employment, marital status, interview language, and whether children lived in the household. The percentages are from the 2006–2010 pooled data across 14 states. The characteristics are respondent or household classifications in the survey, not explanations for radio ownership. CDC household preparedness report, Table 1 continued
| Characteristic | Category | Reporting a working battery-operated radio |
|---|---|---|
| Sex | Men | 79.6% |
| Sex | Women | 76.1% |
| Employment status | Currently employed | 79.0% |
| Employment status | Unemployed | 72.5% |
| Employment status | Retired | 79.0% |
| Employment status | Unable to work | 68.7% |
| Employment status | Housewife/Student | 76.5% |
For sex, the survey reported 79.6% among men and 76.1% among women. Employment categories ranged from 68.7% among respondents unable to work to 79.0% among currently employed respondents and retired respondents. The source reports these as separate subgroup results; it does not provide evidence that employment status itself caused the differences. CDC household preparedness report, Table 1 continued
| Characteristic | Category | Reporting a working battery-operated radio |
|---|---|---|
| Marital status | Currently married | 80.8% |
| Marital status | Previously married | 71.9% |
| Marital status | Never married | 73.8% |
| Interview language | English | 78.1% |
| Interview language | Spanish | 56.5% |
| Children in household | Yes | 78.2% |
| Children in household | No | 77.4% |
“Previously married” includes divorced, widowed, and separated respondents. “Never married” also includes members of unmarried couples. The language grouping describes the language of the interview, not necessarily a respondent’s overall language ability. In households with children, 78.2% reported a working battery-operated radio; the corresponding figure in households without children was 77.4%. CDC household preparedness report, Table 1 continued
The Spanish-language interview result, 56.5%, differs from the English-language result, 78.1%, in this historical sample. Those figures identify the interview-language categories and should not be treated as a causal comparison or a measure of language access to alerts. CDC’s measure is household radio possession and batteries, not NOAA-specific ownership. CDC household preparedness report, Table 1 continued
emergency radio ownership: NOAA Weather Radio ownership and receiver types
NOAA Weather Radio ownership figures come from sources distinct from the CDC household battery-radio measure. A NOAA enclosure included in a 2005 congressional hearing reported that about 17% of the U.S. population owned a NOAA Weather Radio at the time described in that document. The enclosure noted that actual reach might be greater because receivers could be present in public places such as schools, hospitals, fire stations, and malls. This is a historical estimate represented in a 2005 hearing document, not a current ownership rate. Congressional hearing, NOAA enclosure, p. 96
The same enclosure described an August 2002 survey of NOAA Weather Radio owners conducted by eBrain Market Research, a Consumer Electronics Association service. It reported several receiver types. Because owners could have more than one type, these percentages may overlap and should not be added as if they described mutually exclusive groups. Congressional hearing, NOAA enclosure, p. 96
| Receiver type among NOAA Weather Radio owners | Survey result |
|---|---|
| Handheld model | 50% |
| Desktop weather radio | 32% |
| Marine weather radio receiving NOAA Weather Radio | 19% |
| Clock-radio equipped to receive NOAA alerts | 11% |
| CB radio able to receive NOAA announcements | 10% |
In that owner survey, 50% owned a handheld model, 32% possessed a desktop weather radio, and 19% owned a marine weather radio that received NOAA Weather Radio. The reported shares were 11% for a clock-radio equipped to receive NOAA alerts and 10% for owners who could receive NOAA announcements on a CB radio. These are receiver-type results among NOAA Weather Radio owners surveyed in August 2002, not percentages of all U.S. households. Congressional hearing, NOAA enclosure, p. 96
A separate presentation on four severe-weather events in 2008 reported a NOAA weather radio ownership response from 268 telephone interviews across impacted areas in Kansas, Minnesota, Oklahoma, and Illinois. In that event-based sample, 31% answered yes, 66% no, 2% did not know, and 1% refused. The presentation’s chart asks, “Do you own a NOAA weather radio?” These responses describe the surveyed impacted areas, not a national estimate. University of Delaware, Technology, Society & Severe Weather Events, slide 39
Emergency radio ownership estimates and survey scope
The overall CDC finding was that 77.7% of surveyed households reported a working battery-operated radio. The report defines the preparedness measure as household possession of a working battery-operated radio and working batteries for use if electricity was out. Its population was noninstitutionalized U.S. civilian adults aged 18 or older surveyed through BRFSS in 14 participating states during 2006–2010. The result is pooled historical data, not a current nationwide ownership rate. CDC household preparedness report, Table 1 continued and report text
These sources answer different questions. CDC measured reported household possession of a working battery radio and batteries for an outage. The congressional hearing enclosure supplied a historical estimate of NOAA Weather Radio ownership and receiver types among owners. The Delaware presentation reported responses to a NOAA weather radio ownership question in an event-based sample after severe-weather events. Their populations, dates, and definitions differ, so the percentages should be kept in their original contexts rather than combined into one trend or general ownership rate.