FCC approves rules to ensure 911 reliability, but dissenters worry about ‘federal takeover’ of emergency-calling system

FCC commissioners yesterday voted to propose measures aimed at increasing accountability and communication among service providers as 911 call centers transition to IP-based technologies.

Approved with a 3-2 vote along party lines, the notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) includes requirements that are intended to prevent another massive outage like the one in April that left millions of people in seven states without access to 911 for six hours.

Republican commissioners Ajit Pai and Michael O’Rielly, who were the two dissenting votes, said they did not believe the FCC had the legal authority to enact changes that Pai said amount to a “proposed federal takeover of 911.”

“We ought not neglect or understate the Rubicon the FCC aims to cross with this action,” Pai said during the meeting, which was webcast. “The commission may soon dismantle the long-standing governance structure of the 911 system, in which state and local authorities take a leading role.

“There is simply no law that gives the FCC the authority to create the comprehensive federal 911 regime we propose today. Without any legal backing, we are proposing to regulate any entity that operates in the 911 space. Entry and exit requirements will be determined by the FCC, and every component of a 911 provider’s offerings will be subject to agency review. Now, to me, that doesn’t leave much room for a local or state authorities to play a lead oversight role—unless, of course, we are telling them to lead from behind.”

Wheeler described the threat of a federal takeover as a “boogie man.”

“This remains a state and local responsibility. It will always be a state and local responsibility,” Wheeler said. “Chasing after red herrings—that there’s some kind of federal power play going on here—is just wrong. But there is a responsibility when things cross state lines, when state and local authorities don’t have the structure. That is the concept of federalism … and that is what we’re endorsing today.”

Commissioners were briefed last month on what caused an outage that affected 81 public-safety answering points (PSAPs) throughout the state of Washington, in half of Minnesota and in parts of five other states. An investigation found that a software coding issue was to blame for creating an “arbitrary” cap on the number of calls that could be handled at a data center in Englewood, Colo. Other actions by the vendor, Intrado, also were questioned. However, Intrado is a third-party vendor operating outside the jurisdiction of regulators in the affected states.

Expressing its support of the FCC’s new policy, Intrado yesterday released a statement commending the FCC for its actions toward ensuring 911 reliability.

“Intrado respects the commission’s important work on NG-911 reliability as the nation transitions to IP,” Intrado President Mary Hester said in the statement. “We look forward to partnering with the commission, state and local officials and others to achieve the goals outlined in its policy statement.”

Eric Schmidt, attorney advisor for the FCC’s public safety and homeland security bureau (PSHSB), said during the meeting that the policy statement and notice of proposed rulemaking included four key changes:

– Expansion of 911 certification rules to cover all entities providing core 911 capabilities, even if the entity does not have a direct relationship with a 911 call center.

– Any group attempting to offer a new 911 capability or service must now seek proper certification.

– A 911 service producer must seek approval when planning a major change to 911 service. Prior approval is not needed, if a 911 call center or emergency authority initiates the change.

– The creation of a class of lead providers that would have coordination responsibilities in the event of an outage. Other providers would also have an obligation to share information with the lead provider.