New Bill to give direct 911 access to VoIP companies.
Source: snapvoip.blogspot.com
If approved, the 911 Modernization and Public Safety Act (H.R. 3403), which is being introduced by Rep. Bart Gordon (D-Tenn.), would give VoIP companies and other news-related services a direct path to 911 service.
They will be able to by pass cumbersome e911 requirements easily without going through incumbent CLECs. The 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. So all the VoIP companies have to pay big boys to be able to access 911.
COAT, The Coalition of Organizations for Accessible Technology, also active in supporting this bill.
"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.
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."
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.
