Frank Gilliland wrote:

I never knew there was a minimum range for emergency communications.
So how far does a radio wave have to go in order to get this
distinction? A couple hundred miles? More than 10 or 20 miles? Is
there some FCC rule that defines this distance?

Doesn't matter, cb is limited in it's useful range, not to mention all
the idiots screaming "ten fer thar" and "aaaaaauuuuuudddddddiiiiiioooo".
Name the range you want and ham radio can provide it by using the proper
band.