911 Legislation Becomes Law -- Finally

The much anticipated Wireless Communications Public Safety Act of 1999 finally became law Oct. 26, but not everyone went away satisfied.

Among the key provisions are establishing 911 as the national wireless emergency number, requiring the FCC to support states' plans for deploying public-safety-answering-point (PSAP) infrastructure and giving wireless carriers the same liability protections as wireline carriers. The House passed the legislation 424-2.

Consumer advocates, public-safety groups and the industry all welcomed the national emergency number. CTIA said Congress recognized that exempting wireless carriers from 911 liability would speed the implementation of location-identification technologies. CTIA has long argued that monetary awards from state courts force carriers to raise rates.

However, not everyone agreed with the liability protections.

"The industry has been talking out of both sides of its mouth," said Patrick Daniels, Wireless Consumers Alliance counsel. "To the state courts, they've argued that awarding damages is rate-setting, and you don't have that authority under the Telecom Act. Then they go back to the FCC and say: 'We're getting killed in the courts. We're getting overrun by trial lawyers and awards of damages,' which is just illusory."

Congress passed a Senate version of the bill, which immediately pre-empts states from awarding monetary consequential damages. An earlier House version would have allowed states to decide whether to enact additional consumer protections.

"The industry is piece-by-piece assembling total immunity," Daniels said.

Rick Rubin, an FCC attorney designate, said he can understand the concerns of consumer advocates but believes it was time for Congress to take action for safety's sake. Too often, law enforcement and PSAPs played a dangerous game of hot potato with 911 calls after a carrier attempted to connect it to the proper authorities, he said.

"If it went to the state police, they would be reluctant to take the call because of liability concerns and would tell the carrier to pass the call along to a PSAP, and then the PSAP would say, 'No, it's the state police's call,'" Rubin said. "You can't afford that kind of delay with that kind of a call."

Passage was welcome news for E-911 vendors, as well.

"There's a burgeoning market for location-centric mobility," said Randy Miller, vice president of U.S. Wireless, which is offering a service-bureau solution that includes traffic, weather and roadside assistance. "We're actually taking on the risk of the technology financing for the deployment of a nationwide location network, and then we're going to sell carriers the actual information. Without the deployment of location technology for 911, I'm not sure we'd be seeing these other services coming into the market so quickly."