WASHINGTON—Verizon Wireless today said it hopes to reach a deal soon with the Bush administration that would ensure mobile phone calls involving national security and rescue personnel during national emergencies are processed first.
“We are currently in discussions with the federal government about providing priority access to emergency workers during times of a national emergency,” said Verizon Wireless. “Some media reports suggesting a deal has been struck between Verizon and the government, however, are premature. Our hope is to reach an agreement with the government and to resolve technological and regulatory issues soon. We recognize that the government needs an industrywide priority access solution, and Verizon Wireless continues to be committed to working with federal authorities, including the National Communications Systems and the Federal Communications Commission, to implement an industry.
The NCS asked the FCC for wireless priority access rules in 1995. The FCC issued voluntary rules in 2000, but no mobile-phone carrier has yet implemented wireless priority access.
The arrangement being negotiated, which was prompted by terrorist attacks against the United States on Sept. 11, is expected to have Verizon Wireless providing wireless priority access to 2,000 federal, state and local government officials in Washington, D.C., New York and Salt Lake City.
Verizon Wireless likely will need a waiver of FCC technical rules, something the agency already has signaled it will grant. If all goes as planned, Verizon Wireless could have wireless priority access ready in the three cities within the two months or so.
Lt. Gen. Harry Raduege, head of NCS and the Defense Information Systems Agency National Communications Systems, said the Pentagon has received $20 million to begin immediate implementation of wireless priority access. Nationwide rollout of the wireless capability is expected to begin by the end of 2002.
