The FCC is investigating a widespread outage of 911 service affecting AT&T wireless customers for about 90 minutes Wednesday, the agency confirmed. Industry officials said Thursday they don’t necessarily expect the FCC to take enforcement action against the carrier or contemplate new rules unless the investigation uncovers major problems. The FCC usually doesn’t issue a fine as a result of 911 outages, former officials said.

Draft legislative text for the Next Generation 911 Act of 2017 began circulating in recent days. Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., said Feb. 28 the draft would be forthcoming and described its provisions at length (see 1702280062). Senate Commerce Committee ranking member Bill Nelson, D-Fla., who announced efforts to work on such a bill in September, is listed as lead author. Both senators mentioned the initiative in the course of hearings last week. The 21-page draft bill still leaves some sections unfilled, such as the transition completion deadline for the NG-911 transition and the precise funding to be slated for the efforts: “There is authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section such sums as may be necessary,” it simply says in brackets in the appropriations section. The draft “makes the transition to NG 9-1-1 a national priority,” said a one-page summary. “The Act will further state and federal cooperation to build Next Generation 9-1-1 systems nationwide. It refocuses federal efforts to support NG 9-1-1 and provides necessary resources to use to help develop and implement NG 9-1-1 transition plans. But it keeps governance and control of the 9-1-1 system where it belongs -- with state and localities.” The text “closely tracks” with the efforts of the NG-911 Now Coalition, said the National Emergency Number Association, a member of the coalition. The draft “will ensure 9-1-1 authorities have access to the capital necessary to fully implement NG9-1-1,” the association said. APCO also lauded the draft, which “aligns with priorities APCO has long advocated, for accomplishing a full transition to NG9-1-1,” the group said. “APCO is especially supportive of provisions recognizing the need for standards and resources to support [public safety answering points]. 9-1-1 professionals deserve the benefits of accredited, consensus-based standards to ensure services and equipment match the level of innovation and cost efficiencies enjoyed in the consumer marketplace, akin to the path Congress set for FirstNet. Further, the draft recognizes the need to reserve governance and control to states and localities, and the imperative of cybersecurity.”

Emergency 911 apps for smartphones may not be safe, cautioned public safety, phone companies and others, in comments last week in FCC docket RM-11780 about a National Association of State 911 Administrators (NASNA) request for a proceeding on how smartphone 911 apps may interface with 911 systems (see 1612190055). Mobile apps are “not ready to replace traditional voice calls and SMS messages to 9-1-1, APCO commented. Apps could one day enhance 911, but critical issues must first be addressed, it said. The National Emergency Number Association supported an FCC proceeding, agreeing the apps are an opportunity but also a challenge for public safety. The apps must be held to the same standards as other parts of 911 systems, NENA said. AT&T said mobile 911 apps hold promise, but it has seen that certain apps can interfere with the normal operations of 911 calling provided by mobile service providers. “Wireless carriers cannot be the gate keepers for these third-party emergency services apps over which the carrier has no control,” AT&T commented. But it said there’s no legal basis for the FCC to assert authority over 911 apps, and it would be better to develop industry standards. NTCA also raised concerns about FCC legal authority, saying the FTC may be better positioned to act. ACT|The App Association agreed the FTC is a more appropriate venue. It commented that FCC actions could stunt growth of the app industry: “Emergency communications are no exception to the app revolution, and the Commission should ensure that its policies enhance, rather than disrupt, the benefits that this innovative ecosystem can bring to 911 communications.”

APCO and the National Emergency Number Association supported a petition by Onvoy Spectrum, which is seeking to directly obtain pseudo-automatic number identifications (p-ANI) for use in its 911 technology for data-only devices using over-the-top VoIP. The FCC Wireline Bureau issued a notice in December seeking comment (see 1612230019). Onvoy is developing a new capability for a VoIP app to contact 911 from devices not tied into a wireless carrier network, APCO said. “APCO is encouraged by Onvoy’s efforts, because there is presently no 9-1-1 solution for such OTT mobile applications, and Onvoy appears to be addressing a number of important 9-1-1-related considerations,” APCO commented in docket 13-97. “It is in the public interest for the Commission to grant appropriate waiver relief to enable Onvoy to continue to pursue further testing of its OTT VoIP 9-1-1 solution.” In separate comments, NENA said it "cannot fault Neustar for attempting to establish sensible criteria for the evaluation of requests for wireless p-ANI resources. Clearly some gating criteria must be established for this purpose. As a practical matter, however, there is little to no technical difference between wireless and VoIP p-ANI resources. [Wireless] and VoIP technologies are rapidly converging, and approaches such as Onvoy’s, which enables dynamic location capabilities for VoIP services, are a natural part of that convergence.” Neustar administers the p-ANI pool.

The National Emergency Number Association and others urged an end to 911 fee diversion, after the FCC released another report showing several states using 911 fees from phone bills for things not directly related to 911. Eight states and Puerto Rico together diverted nearly $220.3 million, or about 8.4 percent of total fees collected by 49 states and four territories reporting in 2015, the commission said in an annual report to Congress released Friday (see 1701130065). Some state lawmakers want to close the spigot through legislation this session; state executives defended the practice.

Senate Commerce Committee ranking member Bill Nelson, D-Fla., is still drafting 911 legislation, which could carry out FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler's next-generation 911 legislative goals. Nelson first mentioned he would craft a bill on the topic during a September FCC oversight hearing, promising an introduction “in the near future” but without any movement in the months that followed. Lawmakers adjourned earlier this month, but Nelson didn’t forget his pledge.

APCO, the National Emergency Number Association and National Association of State 911 Administrators jointly expressed concerns about a CTIA proposal for quarterly 911 live call reports by the carriers, due at the FCC starting in February. “CTIA included a proposed template for the reports and explanatory information regarding the carriers’ intent to exclude certain categories of 9-1-1 calls from consideration,” the public safety groups said. But the proposal wouldn't include some important calls to 911, the associations said. “APCO, NENA, and NASNA are particularly concerned that the carriers intend to exclude 9-1-1 calls made from roaming handsets and non-service initialized (NSI) devices,” said a filing in docket 07-114. Location accuracy rules, meanwhile, “make no exceptions when it comes to the collection and reporting of aggregate live 9-1-1 call location data,” the groups said. CTIA didn't comment Wednesday.

A large majority of Americans remain unable to text 911 for help in emergency situations, but some local authorities continue to question calls to support SMS at public safety answering points (PSAPs), 911 officials said in interviews. The National Emergency Number Association is frustrated the rollout isn’t going faster, said NENA Director-Government Affairs Trey Forgety. “If everyone made a decision that text-to-911 had to be implemented before the end of the year 2017, it could be done easily.” Localities are sympathetic to the need for text-to-911 but worry there's not a sufficient business model to move forward, said Fire Chief Don Crowson of Arlington, Texas. “We’re not resistant. We’re concerned.”

A single national system for 911 data could promote upgrades to next-generation 911, said public safety and emergency-number officials. Comments were due Wednesday on a National Highway Traffic Safety Administration request for information (docket NHTSA-2016-0069) about setting up a nationally uniform data system for 911 public safety answering point (PSAP) call data and local and state 911 system operations data (see 1607070008). Commenters said possible barriers to a national system are convincing software vendors to share data and locating enough funding.

Fake 911 calls to public safety answering points remain a major problem, said National Emergency Number Association officials in a meeting with FCC Public Safety Bureau Chief David Simpson and others from the bureau. The FCC sought comment last year on whether to drop a 1996 requirement that cellphones that are no longer in service must still be able to make calls to 911 (see 1504020047). The FCC refers to these nonconnected devices as non-service-initialized (NSI) phones. “NENA’s representatives reiterated the extreme importance of solving the NSI problem quickly, and urged the Bureau to work with carriers and other stakeholders to develop novel and viable solutions to this ongoing crisis,” said a filing in docket 08-51.