Representative Fred Upton (MI-06)

Upton Subcommittee Clears Legislation to Enable First Responders to Locate 911 Calls Placed on Cell Phones

E911 bill now moves to full committee; Telecom Chair urges swift action on this important, bipartisan legislation

For Immediate Release September 23, 2003

Contact: Sean Bonyun
(202) 225-3761

Washington, DC- Congressman Fred Upton (R-St. Joseph), chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Telecommunications and the Internet, today convened a hearing to mark-up H.R. 2898, legislation to improve homeland security, public safety, and citizen activated emergency response capabilities through the use of enhanced 911 wireless services. Upton is a leading supporter of this important, bipartisan legislation that would establish a national E-911 office within the Department of Commerce and create a block grant program to assist states and localities in building their E-911 systems.

Upton made the following statements during today�s mark-up:

Opening Statement
Hon. Fred Upton
Chairman
House Energy and Commerce
Subcommittee on Telecommunications and the Internet
Mark-Up
H.R. 2898, the �E-911 Implementation Act of 2003�
September 23, 2003

Good afternoon. Today we meet to consider H.R. 2898, the �E-911 Implementation Act of 2003�, which was introduced by our able colleagues, John Shimkus and Anna Eshoo.

I want to mention that Anna Eshoo could not be with us today due to an illness her family. Of course, our prayers and thoughts are with her as she is back home during this trying time.

At its core, H.R. 2898 will provide a much-needed boost to our nation�s PSAPs as they meet the challenges facing them -- both in terms of resources and coordination -- in the provision of Phase II services to our constituents.

More specifically, the bill as introduced establishes an E-911 Implementation and Coordination Office at the NTIA to facilitate coordination and communications between federal, state, and local emergency personnel that are involved in the implementation of E-911 services and serve as a central body for coordinating E-911 implementation nationwide.

In addition, the bill as introduced establishes a grant program to assist states and municipalities with implementation of Phase II E-911 services.

Also, the bill as introduced addresses challenges faced by carriers attempting to provide Phase II services in rural areas, particularly as it relates to the FCC�s accuracy requirements.

Finally, as introduced, the bill penalizes states that raid E-911 funds derived from surcharges on our constituents� phone bills.

On Thursday, September 11th, the Subcommittee held a legislative hearing on H.R. 2898. The subcommittee heard testimony from one panel of witnesses which included: the Honorable Tim Berry, State Treasurer, State of Indiana; John Muleta, Chief of the FCC's Wireless Telecommunications Bureau; Anthony Haynes, Executive Director, Tennessee Emergency Communications Board; and Terry Addington, President and CEO, First Cellular of Southern Illinois.

In response to several issues raised at the hearing by witnesses and by Members of the subcommittee, I intend to offer an Amendment in the Nature of a Substitute (ANS) today, which I will describe in greater detail later.

However, at this time, I do want to say a word about the needs of smaller carriers serving rural areas. This bill, rightly in my opinion, acknowledges some legitimate concerns about the real world challenges facing smaller carriers seeking to deploy Phase II service, particularly concerns regarding compliance with the timelines associated with the FCC's accuracy requirements. At our legislative hearing two weeks ago, the message received by this Subcommittee from our witnesses was that the FCC's waiver process is the most prudent mechanism to address those legitimate concerns -- while still ensuring that carriers are making best efforts toward deploying Phase II to our constituents.

Along these lines, the Amendment in the Nature of a Substitute deletes the requirement in Section 5 that the FCC conduct a proceeding regarding the applicability of the E-911 Phase 2 accuracy standards in rural areas. Instead, the amendment would require the FCC to produce a report to Congress within 90 days of the bill�s enactment regarding the E-911 Phase 2 waiver process for Tier III carriers. The report will help Congress determine whether the FCC is doing an adequate job addressing case-by-case waiver requests by Tier III carriers, and what E911 Phase 2 technologies are the most effective for Tier III carriers.

And in the meantime, today, Chairman Tauzin, the original sponsors of the bill, and I are sending a letter to Chairman Powell requesting an immediate reply as to the steps the FCC is taking to ensure expeditious consideration of smaller carriers' waivers. I have heard from a number of smaller carriers who appear to have done everything in their power to deploy Phase II, but still may not meet the accuracy requirements on the timelines set out by the FCC. As such, many have applied, or will be applying, for waivers in this regard. Given the potential lack of staff resources to process each and every waiver on a case-by-case basis in a timely fashion, I would encourage the FCC to consider developing criteria by which it will review the wave of waivers it is receiving from smaller carriers, so that they can have a better sense -- up front -- of the standards by which they will be judged.

On a separate note, I anticipate that, either today or tomorrow, we will receive the official views of the Bush Administration with respect to the bill, particularly its views on the placement of the new E-911 office established under the bill. Of course, we will take the views of the Bush Administration under strong advisement as this bill continues to make its way through the legislative process, and we look forward to considering them once received.

Again, I want to commend both John Shimkus and Anna Eshoo for their leadership on this bill, and I also want to thank our Subcommittee Ranking Member Ed Markey, Chairman Tauzin, and our full Committee Ranking Member John Dingell for their bipartisan cooperation in moving this bill. I am hopeful that we can continue to move this bill through the entirety of the legislative process in an expeditious fashion.
AMENDMENT STATEMENT
As I indicated in my opening statement, I am offering an Amendment in the Nature of a Substitute. The Amendment addresses the following issues:

It clarifies that the single officer or governmental body designated by a state to serve as the E911 coordinator does not necessarily have direct legal authority over E911 implementation in the state or management responsibility for emergency communications operations.

It expands the definition of eligible entities to include instrumentalities such as boards and commissions created by states, local governments, or tribal organizations.

It eliminates the requirement that a state certify annually to the FCC that the state is not diverting E911 funds. In addition, H.R. 2898 eliminates the requirement that the FCC audit state books twice a year to determine whether funds are being diverted. Instead, the amendment requires each applicant to certify annually to the NTIA Administrator that no E911 funds are being diverted by the state and/or other taxing jurisdictions in which the applicant is located.

It punishes any grant applicant that falsely certifies that no funds are being diverted by depriving that applicant of grant eligibility and requiring the entity to return any grant awarded under false pretenses.

It deletes Section 4 of H.R. 2898, which would have prevented a PSAP from making a valid Phase 2 request if the PSAP�s state was diverting E911 funds.

And, as I explained it my opening statement, the amendment deletes the requirement in Section 5 that the FCC conduct a proceeding regarding the applicability of the E911 Phase 2 accuracy standards in rural areas. Instead, the amendment would require the FCC to produce a report to Congress within 90 days of the bill�s enactment regarding the E911 Phase 2 waiver process for Tier III carriers. The report will help Congress determine whether the FCC is doing an adequate job addressing case-by-case waiver requests by Tier III carriers, and what E911 Phase 2 technologies are the most effective for Tier III carriers.

I worked very closely with Mr. Shimkus, Ms. Eshoo, Mr. Markey, Mr. Dingell, and Chairman Tauzin on the Amendment, and it shares their support. I believe the Amendment makes a good bill even better, and I would urge support for it.

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