Home > 106th Congressional Bills > S. 800 (es) To promote and enhance public safety through use of 9-1-1 as the [Engrossed in Senate] ...S. 800 (es) To promote and enhance public safety through use of 9-1-1 as the [Engrossed in Senate] ...
S.800
One Hundred Sixth Congress
of the
United States of America
AT THE FIRST SESSION
Begun and held at the City of Washington on Wednesday,
the sixth day of January, one thousand nine hundred and ninety-nine
An Act
To promote and enhance public safety through use of 9-1-1 as the
universal emergency assistance number, further deployment of wireless 9-
1-1 service, support of States in upgrading 9-1-1 capabilities and
related functions, encouragement of construction and operation of
seamless, ubiquitous, and reliable networks for personal wireless
services, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Wireless Communications and Public
Safety Act of 1999''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSE.
(a) Findings.--The Congress finds that--
(1) the establishment and maintenance of an end-to-end
communications infrastructure among members of the public,
emergency safety, fire service and law enforcement officials,
emergency dispatch providers, transportation officials, and
hospital emergency and trauma care facilities will reduce response
times for the delivery of emergency care, assist in delivering
appropriate care, and thereby prevent fatalities, substantially
reduce the severity and extent of injuries, reduce time lost from
work, and save thousands of lives and billions of dollars in health
care costs;
(2) the rapid, efficient deployment of emergency
telecommunications service requires statewide coordination of the
efforts of local public safety, fire service and law enforcement
officials, emergency dispatch providers, and transportation
officials; the establishment of sources of adequate funding for
carrier and public safety, fire service and law enforcement agency
technology development and deployment; the coordination and
integration of emergency communications with traffic control and
management systems and the designation of 9-1-1 as the number to
call in emergencies throughout the Nation;
(3) emerging technologies can be a critical component of the
end-to-end communications infrastructure connecting the public with
emergency medical service providers and emergency dispatch
providers, public safety, fire service and law enforcement
officials, and hospital emergency and trauma care facilities, to
reduce emergency response times and provide appropriate care;
(4) improved public safety remains an important public health
objective of Federal, State, and local governments and
substantially facilitates interstate and foreign commerce;
(5) emergency care systems, particularly in rural areas of the
Nation, will improve with the enabling of prompt notification of
emergency services when motor vehicle crashes occur; and
(6) the construction and operation of seamless, ubiquitous, and
reliable wireless telecommunications systems promote public safety
and provide immediate and critical communications links among
members of the public; emergency medical service providers and
emergency dispatch providers; public safety, fire service and law
enforcement officials; transportation officials, and hospital
emergency and trauma care facilities.
(b) Purpose.--The purpose of this Act is to encourage and
facilitate the prompt deployment throughout the United States of a
seamless, ubiquitous, and reliable end-to-end infrastructure for
communications, including wireless communications, to meet the Nation's
public safety and other communications needs.
SEC. 3. UNIVERSAL EMERGENCY TELEPHONE NUMBER.
(a) Establishment of Universal Emergency Telephone Number.--Section
251(e) of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 251(e)) is amended
by adding at the end the following new paragraph:
``(3) Universal emergency telephone number.--The Commission and
any agency or entity to which the Commission has delegated
authority under this subsection shall designate 9-1-1 as the
universal emergency telephone number within the United States for
reporting an emergency to appropriate authorities and requesting
assistance. The designation shall apply to both wireline and
wireless telephone service. In making the designation, the
Commission (and any such agency or entity) shall provide
appropriate transition periods for areas in which 9-1-1 is not in
use as an emergency telephone number on the date of enactment of
the Wireless Communications and Public Safety Act of 1999.''.
(b) Support.--The Federal Communications Commission shall encourage
and support efforts by States to deploy comprehensive end-to-end
emergency communications infrastructure and programs, based on
coordinated statewide plans, including seamless, ubiquitous, reliable
wireless telecommunications networks and enhanced wireless 9-1-1
service. In encouraging and supporting that deployment, the Commission
shall consult and cooperate with State and local officials responsible
for emergency services and public safety, the telecommunications
industry (specifically including the cellular and other wireless
telecommunications service providers), the motor vehicle manufacturing
industry, emergency medical service providers and emergency dispatch
providers, transportation officials, special 9-1-1 districts, public
safety, fire service and law enforcement officials, consumer groups,
and hospital emergency and trauma care personnel (including emergency
physicians, trauma surgeons, and nurses). The Commission shall
encourage each State to develop and implement coordinated statewide
deployment plans, through an entity designated by the governor, and to
include representatives of the foregoing organizations and entities in
development and implementation of such plans. Nothing in this
subsection shall be construed to authorize or require the Commission to
impose obligations or costs on any person.
SEC. 4. PARITY OF PROTECTION FOR PROVISION OR USE OF WIRELESS SERVICE.
(a) Provider Parity.--A wireless carrier, and its officers,
directors, employees, vendors, and agents, shall have immunity or other
protection from liability in a State of a scope and extent that is not
less than the scope and extent of immunity or other protection from
liability that any local exchange company, and its officers, directors,
employees, vendors, or agents, have under Federal and State law
(whether through statute, judicial decision, tariffs filed by such
local exchange company, or otherwise) applicable in such State,
including in connection with an act or omission involving the release
to a PSAP, emergency medical service provider or emergency dispatch
provider, public safety, fire service or law enforcement official, or
hospital emergency or trauma care facility of
subscriber information related to emergency calls or emergency
services.
(b) User Parity.--A person using wireless 9-1-1 service shall have
immunity or other protection from liability of a scope and extent that
is not less than the scope and extent of immunity or other protection
from liability under applicable law in similar circumstances of a
person using 9-1-1 service that is not wireless.
(c) PSAP Parity.--In matters related to wireless 9-1-1
communications, a PSAP, and its employees, vendors, agents, and
authorizing government entity (if any) shall have immunity or other
protection from liability of a scope and extent that is not less than
the scope and extent of immunity or other protection from liability
under applicable law accorded to such PSAP, employees, vendors, agents,
and authorizing government entity, respectively, in matters related to
9-1-1 communications that are not wireless.
(d) Basis for Enactment.--This section is enacted as an exercise of
the enforcement power of the Congress under section 5 of the Fourteenth
Amendment to the Constitution and the power of the Congress to regulate
commerce with foreign nations, among the several States, and with
Indian tribes.
SEC. 5. AUTHORITY TO PROVIDE CUSTOMER INFORMATION.
Section 222 of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 222) is
amended--
(1) in subsection (d)--
(A) by striking ``or'' at the end of paragraph (2);
(B) by striking the period at the end of paragraph (3) and
inserting a semicolon and ``and''; and
(C) by adding at the end the following:
``(4) to provide call location information concerning the user
of a commercial mobile service (as such term is defined in section
332(d))--
``(A) to a public safety answering point, emergency medical
service provider or emergency dispatch provider, public safety,
fire service, or law enforcement official, or hospital
emergency or trauma care facility, in order to respond to the
user's call for emergency services;
``(B) to inform the user's legal guardian or members of the
user's immediate family of the user's location in an emergency
situation that involves the risk of death or serious physical
harm; or
``(C) to providers of information or database management
services solely for purposes of assisting in the delivery of
emergency services in response to an emergency.''.
(2) by redesignating subsection (f) as subsection (h) and by
inserting the following after subsection (e):
``(f) Authority To Use Wireless Location Information.--For purposes
of subsection (c)(1), without the express prior authorization of the
customer, a customer shall not be considered to have approved the use
or disclosure of or access to--
``(1) call location information concerning the user of a
commercial mobile service (as such term is defined in section
332(d)), other than in accordance with subsection (d)(4); or
``(2) automatic crash notification information to any person
other than for use in the operation of an automatic crash
notification system.
``(g) Subscriber Listed and Unlisted Information for Emergency
Services.--Notwithstanding subsections (b), (c), and (d), a
telecommunications carrier that provides telephone exchange service
shall provide information described in subsection (i)(3)(A) (including
information pertaining to subscribers whose information is unlisted or
unpublished) that is in its possession or control (including
information pertaining to subscribers of other carriers) on a timely
and unbundled basis, under nondiscriminatory and reasonable rates,
terms, and conditions to providers of emergency services, and providers
of emergency support services, solely for purposes of delivering or
assisting in the delivery of emergency services.'';
(3) by inserting ``location,'' after ``destination,'' in
subsection (h)(1)(A) (as redesignated by paragraph (2)); and
(4) by adding at the end of subsection (h) (as redesignated),
the following:
``(4) Public safety answering point.--The term `public safety
answering point' means a facility that has been designated to
receive emergency calls and route them to emergency service
personnel.
``(5) Emergency services.--The term `emergency services' means
9-1-1 emergency services and emergency notification services.
``(6) Emergency notification services.--The term `emergency
notification services' means services that notify the public of an
emergency.
``(7) Emergency support services.--The term `emergency support
services' means information or data base management services used
in support of emergency services.''.
SEC. 6. DEFINITIONS.
As used in this Act:
(1) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary of
Transportation.
(2) State.--The term ``State'' means any of the several States,
the District of Columbia, or any territory or possession of the
United States.
(3) Public safety answering point; psap.--The term ``public
safety answering point'' or ``PSAP'' means a facility that has been
designated to receive 9-1-1 calls and route them to emergency
service personnel.
(4) Wireless carrier.--The term ``wireless carrier'' means a
provider of commercial mobile services or any other radio
communications service that the Federal Communications Commission
requires to provide wireless 9-1-1 service.
(5) Enhanced wireless 9-1-1 service.--The term ``enhanced
wireless 9-1-1 service'' means any enhanced 9-1-1 service so
designated by the Federal Communications Commission in the
proceeding entitled ``Revision of the Commission's Rules to Ensure
Compatibility with Enhanced 9-1-1 Emergency Calling Systems'' (CC
Docket No. 94-102; RM-8143), or any successor proceeding.
(6) Wireless 9-1-1 service.--The term ``wireless 9-1-1
service'' means any 9-1-1 service provided by a wireless carrier,
including enhanced wireless 9-1-1 service.
(7) Emergency dispatch providers.--The term ``emergency
dispatch providers'' shall include governmental and nongovernmental
providers of emergency dispatch services.
Speaker of the House of Representatives.
Vice President of the United States and
President of the Senate.
Pages: 1 Other Popular 106th Congressional Bills Documents:
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