47 U.S.C. § 942
Section 942 · Coordination of E911 implementation
Current version, with additions and removals from the July 23, 2008 version.
(1) Establishment
The Assistant Secretary and the Administrator of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration shall—
(A) establish a joint program to facilitate coordination and communication between Federal, State, and local emergency communications systems, emergency personnel, public safety organizations, telecommunications carriers, and telecommunications equipment manufacturers and vendors involved in the implementation of E–911 services; and
(B) create an E–911 Implementation Coordination Office to implement the provisions of this section.
(2) Management plan
The Assistant Secretary and the Administrator shall jointly develop a management plan for the program established under this section. Such plan shall include the organizational structure and funding profiles for the 5-year duration of the program. The Assistant Secretary and the Administrator shall, within 90 days after December 23, 2004, submit the management plan to the Committees on Energy and Commerce and Appropriations of the House of Representatives and the Committees on Commerce, Science, and Transportation and Appropriations of the Senate.
(3) Purpose of Office
The Office shall—
(A) take actions, in concert with coordinators designated in accordance with subsection (b)(3)(A)(ii) of this section, to improve such coordination and communication;
(B) develop, collect, and disseminate information concerning practices, procedures, and technology used in the implementation of E–911 services;
(C) advise and assist eligible entities in the preparation of implementation plans required under subsection (b)(3)(A)(iii) of this section;
(D) receive, review, and recommend the approval or disapproval of applications for grants under subsection (b) of this section; and
(E) oversee the use of funds provided by such grants in fulfilling such implementation plans.
(4) Reports
The Assistant Secretary and the Administrator shall provide a joint annual report to Congress by the first day of October of each year on the activities of the Office to improve coordination and communication with respect to the implementation of E–911 services.
(1) Matching grants
The Assistant Secretary and the Administrator, after consultation with the Secretary of Homeland Security and the Chairman of the Federal Communications Commission, and acting through the Office, shall provide grants to eligible entities for the implementation and operation of Phase II E–911 services and for migration to an IP-enabled emergency network.
(2) Matching requirement
The Federal share of the cost of a project eligible for a grant under this section shall not exceed 50 percent. The non-Federal share of the cost shall be provided from non-Federal sources.
(3) Coordination required
In providing grants under paragraph (1), the Assistant Secretary and the Administrator shall require an eligible entity to certify in its application that—
(A) in the case of an eligible entity that is a State government, the entity—
(i) has coordinated its application with the public safety answering points (as such term is defined in section 222(h)(4) of this title) located within the jurisdiction of such entity;
(ii) has designated a single officer or governmental body of the entity to serve as the coordinator of implementation of E–911 services, except that such designation need not vest such coordinator with direct legal authority to implement E–911 services or manage emergency communications operations;
(iii) has established a plan for the coordination and implementation of E–911 services; and
(iv) has integrated telecommunications services involved in the implementation and delivery of phase II E–911 services; or
(B) in the case of an eligible entity that is not a State, the entity has complied with clauses (i), (iii), and (iv) of subparagraph (A), and the State in which it is located has complied with clause (ii) of such subparagraph.
(4) Criteria
The Assistant Secretary and the Administrator shall jointly issue regulations within 180 days after December 23, 2004, after a public comment period of not less than 60 days, prescribing the criteria for selection for grants under this section, and shall update such regulations as necessary. The criteria shall include performance requirements and a timeline for completion of any project to be financed by a grant under this section. Within 180 days after August 3, 2007, the Assistant Secretary and the Administrator shall jointly issue regulations updating the criteria to allow a portion of the funds to be used to give priority to grants that are requested by public safety answering points that were not capable of receiving 911 calls as of August 3, 2007, for the incremental cost of upgrading from Phase I to Phase II compliance. Such grants shall be subject to all other requirements of this section.
(1) Designated E–911 charges
For the purposes of this subsection, the term “designated E–911 charges” means any taxes, fees, or other charges imposed by a State or other taxing jurisdiction that are designated or presented as dedicated to deliver or improve E–911 services.
(2) Certification
Each applicant for a matching grant under this section shall certify to the Assistant Secretary and the Administrator at the time of application, and each applicant that receives such a grant shall certify to the Assistant Secretary and the Administrator annually thereafter during any period of time during which the funds from the grant are available to the applicant, that no portion of any designated E–911 charges imposed by a State or other taxing jurisdiction within which the applicant is located are being obligated or expended for any purpose other than the purposes for which such charges are designated or presented during the period beginning 180 days immediately preceding the date of the application and continuing through the period of time during which the funds from the grant are available to the applicant.
(3) Condition of grant
Each applicant for a grant under this section shall agree, as a condition of receipt of the grant, that if the State or other taxing jurisdiction within which the applicant is located, during any period of time during which the funds from the grant are available to the applicant, obligates or expends designated E–911 charges for any purpose other than the purposes for which such charges are designated or presented, all of the funds from such grant shall be returned to the Office.
(4) Penalty for providing false information
Any applicant that provides a certification under paragraph (1) knowing that the information provided in the certification was false shall—
(A) not be eligible to receive the grant under subsection (b) of this section;
(B) return any grant awarded under subsection (b) of this section during the time that the certification was not valid; and
(C) not be eligible to receive any subsequent grants under subsection (b) of this section.
(1) National plan required
No more than 270 days after July 23, 2008, the Office shall develop and report to Congress on a national plan for migrating to a national IP-enabled emergency network capable of receiving and responding to all citizen-activated emergency communications and improving information sharing among all emergency response entities.
(2) Contents of plan
The plan required by paragraph (1) shall—
(A) outline the potential benefits of such a migration;
(B) identify barriers that must be overcome and funding mechanisms to address those barriers;
(C) provide specific mechanisms for ensuring the IP-enabled emergency network is available in every community and is coordinated on a local, regional, and statewide basis;
(D) identify location technology for nomadic devices and for office buildings and multi-dwelling units;
(E) include a proposed timetable, an outline of costs, and potential savings;
(F) provide specific legislative language, if necessary, for achieving the plan;
(G) provide recommendations on any legislative changes, including updating definitions, that are necessary to facilitate a national IP-enabled emergency network;
(H) assess, collect, and analyze the experiences of the public safety answering points and related public safety authorities who are conducting trial deployments of IP-enabled emergency networks as of July 23, 2008;
(I) identify solutions for providing 9–1–1 and enhanced 9–1–1 access to those with disabilities and needed steps to implement such solutions, including a recommended timeline; and
(J) analyze efforts to provide automatic location for enhanced 9–1–1 services and provide recommendations on regulatory or legislative changes that are necessary to achieve automatic location for enhanced 9–1–1 services.
(3) Consultation
In developing the plan required by paragraph (1), the Office shall consult with representatives of the public safety community, groups representing those with disabilities, technology and telecommunications providers, IP-enabled voice service providers, Telecommunications Relay Service providers, and other emergency communications providers and others it deems appropriate.
(1) Authorization
There are authorized to be appropriated to the Department of Transportation, for the purposes of grants under the joint program operated under this section with the Department of Commerce, not more than $250,000,000 for each of the fiscal years 2005 through 2009, not more than 5 percent of which for any fiscal year may be obligated or expended for administrative costs.
(2) Termination
The provisions of this section shall cease to be effective on October 1, 2009.
As used in this section:
(1) Office
The term “Office” means the E–911 Implementation Coordination Office.
(2) Administrator
The term “Administrator” means the Administrator of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
(3) Eligible entity
(A) In general
The term “eligible entity” means a State or local government or a tribal organization (as defined in section 450b(l) of title 25).
(B) Instrumentalities
Such term includes public authorities, boards, commissions, and similar bodies created by one or more eligible entities described in subparagraph (A) to provide E–911 services.
(C) Exception
Such term does not include any entity that has failed to submit the most recently required certification under subsection (c) of this section within 30 days after the date on which such certification is due.
(4) E–911 services
The term “E–911 services” means both phase I and phase II enhanced 911 services, as described in section 20.18 of the Commission's regulations (47 C.F.R. 20.18), as in effect on December 23, 2004, or as subsequently revised by the Federal Communications Commission.
(5) Phase II E–911 services
The term “phase II E–911 services” means only phase II enhanced 911 services, as described in such section 20.18 (47 C.F.R. 20.18), as in effect on December 23, 2004, or as subsequently revised by the Federal Communications Commission.
(6) State
The term “State” means any State of the United States, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the Northern Mariana Islands, and any territory or possession of the United States.
The Assistant Secretary and the Administrator of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration shall—
establish and further a program to facilitate coordination and communication between Federal, State, and local emergency communications systems, emergency personnel, public safety organizations, telecommunications carriers, and telecommunications equipment manufacturers and vendors involved in the implementation of 9–1–1 services; and
establish a 9–1–1 Implementation Coordination Office to implement the provisions of this section.
The Assistant Secretary and the Administrator shall develop a management plan for the grant program established under this section, including by developing—
plans related to the organizational structure of such program; and
funding profiles for each fiscal year of the duration of such program.
Not later than 90 days after February 22, 2012, the Assistant Secretary and the Administrator shall submit the management plan developed under subparagraph (A) to—
the Committees on Commerce, Science, and Transportation and Appropriations of the Senate; and
the Committees on Energy and Commerce and Appropriations of the House of Representatives.
The Office shall—
take actions, in concert with coordinators designated in accordance with subsection (b)(3)(A)(ii), to improve coordination and communication with respect to the implementation of 9–1–1 services, E9–1–1 services, and Next Generation 9–1–1 services;
develop, collect, and disseminate information concerning practices, procedures, and technology used in the implementation of 9–1–1 services, E9–1–1 services, and Next Generation 9–1–1 services;
advise and assist eligible entities in the preparation of implementation plans required under subsection (b)(3)(A)(iii);
receive, review, and recommend the approval or disapproval of applications for grants under subsection (b); and
oversee the use of funds provided by such grants in fulfilling such implementation plans.
The Assistant Secretary and the Administrator, acting through the Office, shall provide grants to eligible entities for—
the implementation and operation of 9–1–1 services, E9–1–1 services, migration to an IP-enabled emergency network, and adoption and operation of Next Generation 9–1–1 services and applications;
the implementation of IP-enabled emergency services and applications enabled by Next Generation 9–1–1 services, including the establishment of IP backbone networks and the application layer software infrastructure needed to interconnect the multitude of emergency response organizations; and
training public safety personnel, including call-takers, first responders, and other individuals and organizations who are part of the emergency response chain in 9–1–1 services.
The Federal share of the cost of a project eligible for a grant under this section shall not exceed 60 percent.
In providing grants under paragraph (1), the Assistant Secretary and the Administrator shall require an eligible entity to certify in its application that—
in the case of an eligible entity that is a State government, the entity—
has coordinated its application with the public safety answering points located within the jurisdiction of such entity;
has designated a single officer or governmental body of the entity to serve as the coordinator of implementation of 9–1–1 services, except that such designation need not vest such coordinator with direct legal authority to implement 9–1–1 services, E9–1–1 services, or Next Generation 9–1–1 services or to manage emergency communications operations;
has established a plan for the coordination and implementation of 9–1–1 services, E9–1–1 services, and Next Generation 9–1–1 services; and
has integrated telecommunications services involved in the implementation and delivery of 9–1–1 services, E9–1–1 services, and Next Generation 9–1–1 services; or
in the case of an eligible entity that is not a State, the entity has complied with clauses (i), (iii), and (iv) of subparagraph (A), and the State in which it is located has complied with clause (ii) of such subparagraph.
Not later than 120 days after February 22, 2012, the Assistant Secretary and the Administrator shall issue regulations, after providing the public with notice and an opportunity to comment, prescribing the criteria for selection for grants under this section. The criteria shall include performance requirements and a timeline for completion of any project to be financed by a grant under this section. The Assistant Secretary and the Administrator shall update such regulations as necessary.
For the purposes of this subsection, the term “designated 9–1–1 charges” means any taxes, fees, or other charges imposed by a State or other taxing jurisdiction that are designated or presented as dedicated to deliver or improve 9–1–1 services, E9–1–1 services, or Next Generation 9–1–1 services.
Each applicant for a matching grant under this section shall certify to the Assistant Secretary and the Administrator at the time of application, and each applicant that receives such a grant shall certify to the Assistant Secretary and the Administrator annually thereafter during any period of time during which the funds from the grant are available to the applicant, that no portion of any designated 9–1–1 charges imposed by a State or other taxing jurisdiction within which the applicant is located are being obligated or expended for any purpose other than the purposes for which such charges are designated or presented during the period beginning 180 days immediately preceding the date of the application and continuing through the period of time during which the funds from the grant are available to the applicant.
Each applicant for a grant under this section shall agree, as a condition of receipt of the grant, that if the State or other taxing jurisdiction within which the applicant is located, during any period of time during which the funds from the grant are available to the applicant, obligates or expends designated 9–1–1 charges for any purpose other than the purposes for which such charges are designated or presented, eliminates such charges, or redesignates such charges for purposes other than the implementation or operation of 9–1–1 services, E9–1–1 services, or Next Generation 9–1–1 services, all of the funds from such grant shall be returned to the Office.
Any applicant that provides a certification under paragraph (2) knowing that the information provided in the certification was false shall—
not be eligible to receive the grant under subsection (b);
return any grant awarded under subsection (b) during the time that the certification was not valid; and
not be eligible to receive any subsequent grants under subsection (b).
From the amounts made available to the Assistant Secretary and the Administrator under section 1457(b)(6) of this title, the Assistant Secretary and the Administrator are authorized to provide grants under this section through the end of fiscal year 2022. Not more than 5 percent of such amounts may be obligated or expended to cover the administrative costs of carrying out this section.
Effective on October 1, 2022, the authority provided by this section terminates and this section shall have no effect.
In this section, the following definitions shall apply:
The term “9–1–1 services” includes both E9–1–1 services and Next Generation 9–1–1 services.
The term “E9–1–1 services” means both phase I and phase II enhanced 9–1–1 services, as described in section 20.18 of the Commission’s regulations (47 C.F.R. 20.18), as in effect on February 22, 2012, or as subsequently revised by the Commission.
The term “eligible entity” means a State or local government or a tribal organization (as defined in section 5304(l) of title 25).
The term “eligible entity” includes public authorities, boards, commissions, and similar bodies created by one or more eligible entities described in subparagraph (A) to provide 9–1–1 services, E9–1–1 services, or Next Generation 9–1–1 services.
The term “eligible entity” does not include any entity that has failed to submit the most recently required certification under subsection (c) within 30 days after the date on which such certification is due.
The term “emergency call” refers to any real-time communication with a public safety answering point or other emergency management or response agency, including—
through voice, text, or video and related data; and
nonhuman-initiated automatic event alerts, such as alarms, telematics, or sensor data, which may also include real-time voice, text, or video communications.
The term “Next Generation 9–1–1 services” means an IP-based system comprised of hardware, software, data, and operational policies and procedures that—
provides standardized interfaces from emergency call and message services to support emergency communications;
processes all types of emergency calls, including voice, data, and multimedia information;
acquires and integrates additional emergency call data useful to call routing and handling;
delivers the emergency calls, messages, and data to the appropriate public safety answering point and other appropriate emergency entities;
supports data or video communications needs for coordinated incident response and management; and
provides broadband service to public safety answering points or other first responder entities.
The term “Office” means the 9–1–1 Implementation Coordination Office.
The term “public safety answering point” has the meaning given the term in section 222 of this title.
The term “State” means any State of the United States, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, American Samoa, Guam, the United States Virgin Islands, the Northern Mariana Islands, and any other territory or possession of the United States.