WASHINGTON-A total of 21 states have pending legislation regarding emergency service and its parameters scheduled for votes this year, according to a survey performed by wireless E911 equipment manufacturer Xypoint Corp. Respondents to the poll included wireless carriers, public-safety entities and state legislative aides nationwide.
Xypoint tracks the progress of E911 legislation for wireless carriers on a weekly basis.
Ten states approved such laws last year; 14 other states attempted new legislation but bills did not pass. According to Xypoint spokesman Roger Nyhus, states still without legislation “didn’t see the urgency” of E911 implementation, despite efforts by the public-safety industry to educate lawmakers.
But states should pick up the pace in 1998, now that the Federal Communications Commission completed final reconsiderations of its E911 report and order that says wireless carriers must provide such services by April 1. “The FCC’s deadlines weren’t looming last year, but now they are,” Nyhus said.
Included in many of the proposed bills are methods for cost recovery along with indemnification clauses aimed at protecting both wireless carriers and public-safety agencies from any glitches that may occur during the course of an emergency call. The average assessment that could show up on subscribers’ bills is 75 cents per month to support the E911 service.
“Wireless carriers clearly favor statewide systems, immunity from liability and low tax rates, while public-safety officials want to seamlessly integrate wireless calls into their existing E911 systems,” commented Reuven Carlyle, Xypoint’s vice president of external affairs. “All of these policy and political issues leave a lot of room for a win-win.”
Xypoint’s Tim Zenk, who works on legislative issues, said states with no legislation as yet “have been trying to assimilate at the PSAP (public safety answering point) and carrier levels how much money public safety needs to implement E911 services.” Besides being close to deadline, another reason various states are close to passing legislation is that many are using templates developed with the help of wireless carriers and public-safety entities. Zenk explained that states feel more comfortable with a new law if they know that one like it has been adopted elsewhere.
Besides subscriber surcharges, states are grappling with indemnification issues, although Zenk believes most roadblocks regarding this subject have been lifted. Xypoint’s research shows that 17 states have liability indemnification in place for public-safety officials and wireless carriers. Another 20 states have endorsed the concept for wireline providers, but so far not for wireless carriers. Twelve states have no indemnification; in Delaware, wireless carriers are liable for as much as $1 million per E911 incident.
“Indemnification in all 50 states is crucial for wireless carriers and the nation’s public-safety professionals because it encourages everyone to work day and night to improve the quality of technology used in E911 service,” said William Hinkle, operations director for Hamilton County, Ohio. Hinkle also serves as vice president of the National Emergency Number Association.
