How participation in the National 911 Profile Database matters to PSAPs nationwide

By Harriet Miller-Brown

Due to decreasing public-safety budgets, as well as competing needs and priorities, evidence-based decisions are more important than ever to continue improving our emergency communication systems across the nation. 

As many states, regions and counties embark upon the planning for and transition to next-generation 911, the lack of data available about 911 services is a significant concern for those managing these services. Without trustworthy data about 911, it is difficult to prove to legislators and leaders that 911 needs additional funding and support to best serve our constituents.

While a number of public-safety databases exist, the diverse nature of 911 systems and their management structures makes the collection of statistics about 911 systems a difficult task.

Currently, the 911 community can’t confidently claim knowledge of even some of the most basic data at the state and national levels, including:

·         The number of 911 telecommunicators in the U.S.;

·         How many and what kind of 911 calls occur every year;

·         The number and type of public-safety answering points (PSAPs) nationwide;

·         The status of 911 progress in states and counties across the nation, including which systems provide basic, enhanced or next-generation 911 (NG911) services, as well as wireless and text-to-911 services; and

·         Financial implications of 911, such as how much it costs to provide 911 services or the cost of each call within a jurisdiction.

Without this basic information, the 911 community finds it hard to “make the case” for changes needed to continue delivering traditional and enhanced 911 services, not to mention the changes required to transition to a more modern, scalable, redundant and resilient IP-based NG-911 system.

If 911 systems can provide aggregated statistics such as these, it will allow the community to “paint a picture” of 911 services across the nation. This overview will help national policymakers identify specific ways to support state 911 programs and justify opportunities to collaborate on initiatives for the advancement of 911 services. Finally, tracking this data regularly—to identify trends over time—will help ensure that 911 is treated as an essential public-safety service.

At the state level, access to the collected data may provide 911 leaders with enhanced credibility and visibility within the state. Data demonstrating the value of a state’s program can be used to garner more support from those unfamiliar with 911 systems, including state and local leadership. This will continue to be important, as funding and legislative modifications are needed to provide optimal 911 services.

At a system level, the database can provide helpful information for making programmatic decisions. Access to data about successful program models used in other states will allow 911 leaders to make their own useful comparisons.

State and local 911 leaders recognize the importance of collecting this 911 system data, which is evident in current efforts to submit 2013 data to the National 911 Profile Database.

A project of the National 911 Program, the National 911 Profile Database effort began in 2008 by bringing the community together to decide which 911 system statistics should be measured and to attain agreement upon data definitions. In cooperation with the National Association of State 911 Administrators (NASNA), state data submission began in 2011, and the collected statistics began to address the community’s information needs for 911 demographics and NG-911 planning and transition status.