FCC Urges Caution on NG911 Liability Protections Urged by Carriers
The FCC recommended in a report released Wednesday that Congress create incentives for states to become “early adopters” of next generation 911. The FCC also said the states should be in charge of NG911 deployment but with a “federal regulatory ‘backstop’ to ensure that there is no gap between federal and state authority over NG911.” It said Congress should encourage all states to establish 911 boards. The report to Congress (http://fcc.us/Y14wtA) was mandated by last February’s spectrum law.
Sign up for a free preview to unlock the rest of this article
If your job depends on informed compliance, you need International Trade Today. Delivered every business day and available any time online, only International Trade Today helps you stay current on the increasingly complex international trade regulatory environment.
Carriers didn’t get everything they asked for. Addressing a key concern voiced by Verizon Wireless, AT&T, T-Mobile and others (CD Dec 17 p7), the FCC said Congress should provide “appropriate liability protection as part of any federal law that imposes NG911 requirements or solicits voluntary NG911 activity.” But the FCC warned that Congress needs to approach liability protections with some caution.
"While some commenters call for Congress to preempt state law and set federal liability protection standards for NG911, we believe that Congress should proceed cautiously in this area,” the report said. “Tort law liability standards are traditionally a matter of state law. Further, while commenters have expressed concern that recent laws are inadequate, they do not cite any specific incidents where liability has attached or otherwise impacted behavior."
The report emphasized the importance of early adoption. More specifically, Congress should consider creating challenge grants and other competitive funding programs to encourage states to compete to be NG911 “early adopters,” the report said. “State public safety authorities will necessarily play a critical role in the deployment and configuration of NG911,” the report said. “In addition, early engagement at the state level can help drive the transition to NG911 and make near-term implementation of NG911 in those states more likely."
At the same time, the FCC said, Congress should help eliminate “legacy state regulations that are impeding NG911 deployment,” while offering incentives for states to “modernize their laws and regulations to accommodate NG911.”
The states must play a critical role, the report said. “Congress should provide funding or other incentives for states that establish ... governance structures,” the FCC advised. “Congress should also consider requiring state-level governance as a condition for receipt of 911 or NG911-related grants or other appropriate federal benefits relating to public safety."
The report backed a “consistent nationwide approach to key elements of NG911 deployment,” including standards promoting “seamless communication” between public safety answering points and between PSAPs and first responders. Congress should also promote the creation of location technologies supporting all NG911 applications regardless of the network or device used by the caller and establish national databases that support NG911 routing and security, the FCC said.
"One of the critical steps in the transition to NG911 is the deployment by 911 authorities of IP-based networks that are capable of receiving emergency communications via voice, text, video, and data,” the report said. “These networks, commonly referred to as Emergency Services IP Networks (ESInets), will be the primary platform for receipt of incoming NG911 traffic from commercial networks to PSAPs as well as other public safety authorities data communications streams."
Carriers, the major public safety associations and others offered the FCC advice on NG911 recommendations in December and in January replies (CD Jan 16 p10), responding to a November public notice from the FCC Public Safety Bureau (http://fcc.us/WjaNqs).