Many Public Safety Groups Lining Up Against 911 Road Map

In February, the FCC proposed standards that would require carriers to locate 911 callers inside a building within 50 meters (55 yards) for 67 percent of calls within two years of the adoption of final rules, and for 80 percent within five years (see 1402210038). The road map offers an alternative (see 1411190064). The FCC released a public notice in November seeking comments, which were due Monday.

APCO defended the plan, calling it a “landmark” agreement. “During a process lasting over seven months, both APCO and NENA conveyed what is most important and needed for the 9-1-1 community, and the industry became increasingly responsive to these needs,” APCO said. The road map builds on a 2012 agreement on texting to 911, the group added. “The consensus agreement on location accuracy represents a blueprint for combining resources to solve both the present and future challenges.” APCO said it supported the FCC proposal but remained “open to considering alternative approaches to achieve that goal in a reasonable time frame.” Within five years, the road map “will yield far greater benefits than what could be achieved under the FCC’s proposal alone,” APCO said.

The Fraternal Order of Police said it remains committed to seeing the FCC finalize the rules proposed in February. These rules “will greatly improve the ability of law enforcement and other public safety officers to locate calls made indoors,” the group said. The California State Firefighters’ Association doesn’t mention APCO or NENA’s support of the road map in its comments. The group said it's “very disappointed by the wireless carriers’ plan to weaken and delay the FCC proposal to create indoor location accuracy standards for 9-1-1 calls made from cell phones.” The FCC February proposal is “the only proposal that actually improves public safety,” the California firefighters said.

The road map doesn’t go far enough, said the International Association of Chiefs of Police, International Association of Fire Chiefs, National Association of State Emergency Medical Services Officials, National Sheriffs’ Association and National Volunteer Fire Council in joint comments. “We are not opposed to the FCC incorporating portions of the Roadmap into its final rules so long as they are measureable and achievable benchmarks which are enforceable by the FCC to ensure that the carriers provide improved indoor location results in a reasonable timeframe.”

Four groups representing emergency medical services officials also opposed the road map, in joint comments filed by Kevin McGinnis, an adviser to the groups and a member of the FirstNet board. No one from the EMS associations was invited to play a role in developing the plan, the groups said. “The national, organized leadership of frontline first responders are united in speaking against the Roadmap agreement.”

The National Association of State 911 Administrators (NASNA) made some specific suggestions on timetables, a testbed and other aspects of the road map. “NASNA sincerely hopes the Commission will adopt rules that hold the carriers accountable for doing whatever it takes to succeed and that do not allow for the possibility that progress might not have been made in 36 months,” the group said.

But Mobile Future filed in support of the plan. The wireless industry is making a big commitment in time and money to improve indoor location accuracy, the group said. “The Roadmap is yet another step toward improving location accuracy and will lead to the implementation of new technologies that will improve public safety for all, including individuals with disabilities.” NATOA also supported the road map. “While some commenters may like to see more precise location coordinates and a shorter timetable for implementation, we agree with APCO’s statement that the Roadmap ‘is flexible enough to make adjustments along the way, and anticipates future advancements both in the private and public safety sectors, including roll out of Next Generation 9-1-1 services,’” NATOA said.