The FCC Tues. opened its Public Safety & Homeland Security Bureau, with veteran FCC official Ken Moran as acting bureau chief. Ordered in March, the bureau has a staff of 90, most already reassigned from elsewhere at the FCC -- making it the agency’s smallest bureau, comparable in size to the FCC Office of Engineering & Technology.
Public safety officials welcomed the VoIP E-911 legislation (S-1063) that the Senate approved Thurs. (CD Sept 14 p1) as part of the port security bill. The Assn. of Public-Safety Communications Officials (APCO) International said it was pleased that the Senate struck out provisions which would have given companies waivers from complying with E-911 requirements and delayed enforcement. APCO said it plans to work to ensure the provisions aren’t added back in during conference on the bill, according to a statement by Pres. Wanda McCarley. NENA also welcomed the legislation: “Ensuring that 911 service is available and effective for all Americans today and in the future as technology advances is a top priority for NENA,” said Pres. Bill Munn.
AT&T accused CTIA of trying to gain special privileges for wireless carriers, in its comments on a rulemaking released with the final report of the Independent Panel Reviewing the Impact of Hurricane Katrina on Communications Networks. AT&T also took issue with NENA’s contention that all 911 system service providers should be required to analyze the redundancy of their 911 networks and tell the FCC about possible gaps.
NENA urged the FCC to seek comment on Cyren Call’s proposal to dedicate 30 MHz of contiguous 700 MHz spectrum to public safety for wireless broadband. NENA also asked Congress to study the proposal. The NENA resolution follows an Assn. of Public Safety Communications Officials de facto endorsement of the Cyren Call plan (CD Aug 11 p7). Cyren Call founder Morgan O'Brien has made gaining these public safety groups’ support a priority. Carriers want the spectrum auctioned and have opposed the Cyren Call proposal. Quick action is critical, NENA said in a statement. “NENA appreciates the innovative approach and the significant potential benefits to the public safety community of this plan,” NENA said: “We also appreciate the timing of this proposal. Our nation has a one-time opportunity to take advantage of the clearance of a nationwide block of 30 MHz of frequencies in the 700 MHz spectrum band… We will lose a tremendous opportunity to improve public safety through improved interoperability if a debate is not initiated to license this spectrum to public safety for a nationwide broadband network before this spectrum is auctioned off and lost forever.”
Only about half of U.S. counties have E-911 Phase II capability, NENA said in documents filed this week at the FCC. Nationwide, 74.5% of counties have Phase I capability. NENA, which did a survey using a Dept. of Transportation grant, said it would cost $335 million to extend Phase II to all areas.
E-911 supporters urged Congress Wed. to approve funding for wireless E-911 technology that would make it possible for Americans to connect to safety services anywhere in the country. Only part of the wireless E-911 network is built, and many states need federal and state grants to upgrade equipment and technology to route calls from public safety access points (PSAPs) to the proper emergency personnel, said Greg Rohde, exec. dir.-E-911 Institute.
More than 75% of U.S. residents have “phase 2” wireless E-911 service, up 8% from Dec., the National Emergency Number Assn. (NENA) said Tues. Phase 2 E-911 service sends caller telephone numbers and locations to appropriate Public Safety Answering Points. This is a “certainly welcome,” but many people, mostly in rural areas, still don’t get this critical service, said NENA Pres. David Jones. Funding is the problem, which is why a grant program legislated in the 2004 Enhance 911 Act should be implemented, NENA said.
Reductions and reallocation of Dept. of Homeland Security (DHS) grant money have left some urban areas unhappy. But a Dept. official said the amounts make sense -- and won’t be the only consideration in how much is spent on communications upgrades in those cities. Budget cuts and a new methodology produced a shift in grant awards to Chicago, L.A., small cities and rural areas, while N.Y.C., D.C., and several previously well-funded border states had significant reductions from previous years. While public safety groups push for better first-response technology and increased interoperability spending - and congressional consensus is forming around the need for those improvements -- high-risk urban areas will be forced to do more with less this year.
The National Emergency Number Assn. met last week with FCC Chmn. Martin to clarify its position on E-911 rules for VoIP operators. “It is imperative that all entities involved in the delivery of VoIP E-911 operate from common principles and understanding,” NENA said in a statement aired at the meeting. NENA wants the FCC to “take immediate steps to establish an interim, followed by a permanent” pseudo automatic number identification (pANI) administrator. VoIP operators should be making sure subscriber records satisfy Master Street Address Guide (MSAG) standards “in preparation for 911 calling, equivalent to wireline treatment,” NENA said. Other topics: VoIP emergency service number (ESN) selection, trunking issues and the need to address intentional misrouting.
Emergency number representatives will storm the Hill today (Wed.) at the behest of the National Emergency Number Assn. (NENA) and several legislative and regulatory players who spoke at its conference. Timed to coincide with a report on the group’s E-911 program, the convention Tues. focused on how public safety access points (PSAPs) can grab funding and attention from D.C. policymakers. Several Hill staffers urged PSAP representatives to support pending legislation in both houses that would resolve liability issues for VoIP providers.