The e-911 bill which passed into law in the 106th Congress provided the “road map” for wireless 9-1-1 by mandating 9-1-1 as the universal wireless emergency number and calling for closer coordination between the FCC, states and industry in building out “phase II” technology which would provide critical location information to public safety officials when emergency calls are made from cellphones. Still, much more needs to be done to make sure that location capability is made available to our first responders.
In survey after survey, consumers list safety as the number one reason for purchasing a cellphone. I would point to a recent excellent overview of the current status of e-911 deployment in the February edition of Consumer Reports, which I have distributed to all of my colleagues. As the article mentions, over one-third of all 911 calls are now made on cellphones. The overall number of 911 calls placed from cellphones has skyrocketed to over 57 million calls in 2001. As we see cellphones increasingly replace wireline phone for “lifeline” service, we need to do everything we can to make sure that lifesaving location technology is deployed everywhere in this nation. The current troubling reality, however, is that while the majority of cellphone users expect that public safety officials can locate them in the event of an emergency, this is in fact rarely the case.
Currently, e-911 is moving forward, but the pace of deployment needs to be quickened. To futher this goal, Sen. Clinton, Rep. Skimkus, Rep. Eshoo and I launched the e-911 Caucus last week to bring all of the various key actors in this area together to find solutions. I know my co-Chairs and I were encouraged by the huge level of support for the Caucus from both the public safety community and industry.
The wireless industry is a key player in the e-911 equation, but the responsibility for building out “phase II” capability is wide and does not rest with industry alone. Clearly, “public safety answering points” (PSAPs) also have a major role to play in the deployment of e-911. PSAPs must continue to upgrade their call centers and invest in technical training for their personnel. PSAPs must be able to properly utilize location information once it becomes available to them. All of these efforts require funding. Many PSAPs have not requested Phase II capability because of the related costs associated with equipment upgrades and associated per-call costs.
Unfortunately, at the very time our public safety infrastructure is facing major funding challenges, our state governments are experiencing a major budget crunch. My home state of Montana is certainly going though such a time, as the state legislature is wrestling with unprecedented deficits because of a tough economic climate. The state of California alone is facing a deficit of over $30 billion. In these sorts of situations, all too often the green eyeshades come out and result in public safety monies wind up being misallocated. While PSAPs depend on critical e-911 funds to upgrade their call centers, numerous examples abound of “state raids” on what are clearly marked as “911" fees on wireless phone bills being diverted into the general treasury. This situation is irresponsible, dangerous and cannot be tolerated.
The leadership of state public safety officials is often key in preventing the diversion of e-911 funding as well as coordinating the efforts of our fire councils, police officers, PSAP operators and all of the other factors that must operate together to provide an effective public safety effort. In Montana we benefit from the expertise and professionalism of Jenny Hansen, our Manager of the Public Safety Services Office. It is in large part because of Jenny’s tireless efforts on the Governor’s e-911 board, the TIER Council, that our state has not resorted to the dangerous and short-sighted approach of raiding our e-911 fund to deal with overall budget deficits.
Not every state enjoys such hard work and vision at the state level, however. In any case, every state could benefit from better national coordination in key areas of e-911 deployment, particularly where standards for technology and training are concerned. I will introduce legislation which will address this need and prevent the misallocation of state e-911 funds, which I view as a raw violation of citizens’ trust. I will be working closely with Sen. Clinton and my colleagues on the Committee to craft a bill which will address these issues and ensure that our nation continues to lead the world in emergency response.
I am confident that through a unified effort, we can achieve the goal all of us desire: the creation of a nationwide, seamless public safety communications infrastructure. I look forward to the testimony of the witnesses on today’s critical topic. Thank you.