House bill would give VoIP companies direct access to 911 system

Computerworld - Anyone making a 911 call in the U.S. today using a voice-over-IP (VoIP) telephone isn't directly calling the local 911 center. Instead, the call has to go through a third party, such as a competitive local exchange carrier, who then connects that emergency call to the local 911 operator.

The reason for a middleman is simple -- current Federal Communications Commission (FCC) rules only allow traditional telephone service carriers to connect directly with the 911 system backbone to avoid swamping the service during emergencies. That leaves VoIP phone companies without a direct way to provide 911 service on their own.

A new bill introduced recently in the U.S. House of Representatives aims to change that to allow VoIP companies to offer 911 services to customers.

The 911 Modernization and Public Safety Act (H.R. 3403), which is being pushed by Rep. Bart Gordon (D-Tenn.), would give VoIP companies and other news-related services direct access to 911 systems.

VoIP service providers have been required by the FCC since 2005 to provide 911 service for their customers, but because doing so isn't always technically viable -- especially in rural areas that lack broadband service -- VoIP service isn't an option in every part of the country. Requiring VoIP providers to route 911 calls through third parties is also costly, another hindrance in expanding the service nationwide.

"This bill just gives them the tools to actually provide 911 access," said Dana Lichtenberg, legislative director for Gordon. "They've been limping along" without these abilities.

The bill would also extend good Samaritan liability protection to VoIP companies that directly handle 911 calls, providing liability protection that is already in place for traditional phone companies.

In 1999, Congress passed a similar right to cellular phone service carriers, giving them liability protection when handling 911 calls on wireless networks. "Basically, this is a 'me, too,'" Lichtenberg said. "We're just adding VoIP to the list."

Gordon offered up the legislation at the prompting of public safety officials in Tennessee who told him it is a problem. He sponsored a similar bill last year that did not advance.

This year, the bill has already been cleared by the House Committee on Energy and Commerce's Subcommittee on Telecommunications and the Internet. It goes next to the full House Committee on Energy and Commerce for consideration, and if approved there, could go to a vote by the full House before the end of the year.

Patrick Halley, government affairs director at the National Emergency Number Association, a 911 advocacy group in Arlington, Va., said his group supports the bill's goals, but has not yet endorsed it since it could be changed in committee before going to the House. "There's a lot of important provisions in this legislation for 911," Halley said. "I'd like to make it clear that this bill builds on the original [2005] FCC order and nothing in the bill can be construed as undoing anything in that order."