Emergency Communications

Inexplicably, in many instances, officials under your leadership failed to respond to our last request for 9-1-1 information on fee collection and allocation. At the very least, given the importance of this information, you should have been aware of the impending failure to respond....[S]ince your states and territories have either been a self-admitted diverter of 9-1-1 fees in the past or guilty of failing to respond to a previous inquiry, it can only be assumed that your state or territory diverted 9-1-1 fees for 2016. Neither of these outcomes is appropriate or acceptable.

Establishing an integrated first-responder communications system is all about the details, not just the big picture overview and goals.  That reality became obvious as Michael Poth, CEO of The First Responder Network Authority (FirstNet), explained the agency's objectives to a Media Institute monthly luncheon in Washington on Feb 15. Poth cited "improved situational awareness" as a keystone of the FirstNet project, but also acknowledged that the near-term requirement is "getting technology to first responders using the technology that now exists."

Ken Sunseri, the Mayor of Haleyville (AL)  is here with us today. He’s here for a good reason. Fifty years ago today, the first 911 call was made from the Haleyville City Hall to the city’s police station. 

Each year, approximately 240 million 9-1-1 calls are answered by the calm, reassuring, and professional voices of our Nations public safety communicators. These emergency dispatchers stand ready to respond to crisis, ensuring their fellow citizens receive the life-saving assistance they need. On National 9-1-1 Telecommunicators Day, we honor the invaluable contributions made by the dedicated men and women in emergency call centers throughout our great country.

Today let’s celebrate the history of Hayleyville (AL)—and the present of 9-1-1 by bestowing honors on some dynamic individuals and organizations: Tamika Greer, Roger Marshall, Cheryl Kagan and the 9-1-1 programs from Monmouth County (NJ); Orange County (FL); and the District of Columbia. They deserve our righteous praise and deepest gratitude.  But I believe we celebrate 9-1-1 best by securing its future. I think that means three things:

[Commentary] Even as an estimated 240 million 911 calls continue to be placed annually, the systems that service them have grown obsolete, unable to handle photos, video, downloads, precise geo-locating and even, in most places, simple text messages. That’s a threat not just to public safety but also to national security. Worryingly, no one seems quite sure how to pay for a modernization to what’s known as Next Generation 911 (“NG911” in industry parlance), whose cost could exceed $20 billion.

[Commentary] On our individual phone bills a line item is typically included for 9-1-1 service. It’s a relatively small fee that states and localities charge to support emergency calling services. But too many states are stealing these funds and using them for other purposes, like filling budget gaps, purchasing vehicles, or worse.  It’s time for 9-1-1 fee diversion to stop.

US Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross announced the appointment of four members to serve on the Board of the FirstNet Responder Network Authority. The appointees are leading experts in the fields of public safety, wireless broadband technology, and network engineering. The Board will oversee the activities of FirstNet to ensure that AT&T develops, builds, and operates a nationwide broadband network that will best equip first responders to save lives and protect US communities. Secretary Ross appointed the following three individuals to the FirstNet Board for three-year terms:

A Puerto Rican journalists’ organization is suing the island’s Demographic Registry over what it says are under-reported death counts following Hurricane Maria. The Center for Investigative Journalism (CPI) filed the suit Feb 7, arguing that the registry did not provide statistical updates on the death count after the hurricane. The suit cites a right to “public information and high public interest for Puerto Rico."

Following the false emergency alert that went out across Hawai‘i on January 13 and caused widespread panic, Sens Brian Schatz (D-HI), Kamala Harris (D-CA), and Cory Gardner (R-CO) introduced the Authenticating Local Emergencies and Real Threats (ALERT) Act, legislation that would improve the emergency alert system and give the federal government the sole responsibility of alerting the public of a missile threat, prohibiting state and local governments from doing so.  The Schatz-Harris-Gardner legislation would strengthen the way states and local governments use the Integrated Public Alert a