Recent Post-Disaster Wireless Problems Scoped as Part of 911 NPRM
The FCC is examining rules that would allow wireless subscribers to reach 911 even when wireless networks can’t process the flood of calls after an emergency, such as last month’s earthquake in Virginia. The commission will ask questions as part of a rulemaking approved by the agency 4-0 at its September meeting. The notice examines “nonregulatory and regulatory” approaches for updating 911 communications so call centers can process emergency texts and other data.
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"In light of reports that some 911 calls were impeded by network congestions after the Aug. 23 East Coast [earthquake] and during Hurricane Irene, the notice ... seeks comment on whether the commission should prioritize 911 traffic to ensure that people in need of assistance have reliable access to emergency services, especially during large scale natural and manmade disasters,” said Patrick Donovan, who presented the notice Thursday on behalf of the Public Safety Bureau. Donovan said the FCC is asking about how to address the issue for both legacy networks and emergency broadband networks that will support next-generation 911.
Public safety and industry officials both concede that updating wireless systems to prioritize 911 calls is a big challenge (CD Sept 9 p4). Commissioner Robert McDowell noted at a Sept. 8 FCC workshop that the Wireless Priority Service (WPS), a federal system which is supposed to give public officials the ability to make calls even when wireless networks are overloaded (CD Sept 6 p1), failed to work effectively based on his experience after the Virginia earthquake.
The FCC estimated in a staff paper presented Thursday that the network connectivity and call routing costs to transition to NG911 will be as high as $2.68 billion over 10 years (http://xrl.us/bmd6n7). The costs would be lower if the move to NG911 results in call center consolidation, the report said.
The NPRM was not released by our deadline. It “examines short-term and long-term options for enabling consumers to send texts to 911, including the advantages and disadvantages of different approaches,” the commission said in a statement. The FCC is seeking comment “on long-term development of multimedia NG911 technology that would support delivery of photos, videos, and data to 911, in addition to texting,” the statement said. “The Commission will consider the appropriate role for the agency in facilitating -- and, if necessary, accelerating -- the rollout of these capabilities, and encouraging the parallel development of NG911 capabilities in 911 call centers."
The notice asks whether 911 call centers should have to first demonstrate a “threshold level of NG911 technical capability” as a precondition of a requirement that carriers are capable of delivering text messages and other data as part of 911, Donovan said. The notice also asks whether this capability should be established at the state or regional level, he said. The notice recognizes that all call centers nationwide won’t be able to accept the same date and asks questions about how to educate consumers about the limitations of text-to-911 services, Donovan said. The FCC asks whether consumers should receive messages when texts don’t go through, “such as a message directing the consumers to place a 911 voice call instead,” he said.
McDowell cautioned that the FCC “must be careful not to impose costly requirements on industry that would, in turn, require large taxpayer financed investments by public safety or overhauls of existing emergency communications systems. ... As part of this proceeding, we should examine all potential costs.” The FCC needs to keep in mind its “limited legal authority” to act, “technical limitations and unfunded mandates,” he said.
Commissioner Michael Copps said the FCC should recognize that not all critical calls made after emergencies are to 911. “We're not trying to identify a silver bullet here,” Copps said. “Texting is neither a total response nor a perfect tool. The record so far points out that, unlike phone calls, texts can take precious more time to get to recipients. And, importantly, they lack the automatic location information that accompanies calls to 911 and that is so important is responding to emergencies. Public safety answering points will need time and resources to build-in the capability to receive, process and respond to texts.” The FCC needs to play an active role, Copps said. “We need not and should not be timid about asserting our authority in this critical area,” he said.
Commissioner Mignon Clyburn said she was pleased with the approach taken in the NPRM. “It is important that we do all we can to accelerate the ability of PSAPs to receive the most advanced multi-media services IP technology can provide,” she said. But “PSAPs, like all other local government agencies, must carefully manage their budgets, and upgrading to IP networks can impose significant costs. Also complicating the matter, is that there are over 6,800 PSAPs nationwide, and each has varying resources and timetables for improving their operational capability.”