[Congressional Bills 106th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 800 Introduced in Senate (IS)]







106th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                 S. 800

   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.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             April 14, 1999

    Mr. Burns (for himself, Mr. McCain, Mr. Dorgan, and Mr. Wyden) 
introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the 
           Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
   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 9-1-1 
              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--
            (1) development, design, installation, operation, 
        maintenance, performance, or provision of telecommunications 
        service (including 9-1-1 service);
            (2) transmission errors, failures, network outages, or 
        other technical difficulties that may arise in the course of 
        handling emergency calls or providing telecommunications 
        services (including 9-1-1 service); or
            (3) 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
                    (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 (h)(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 non-
        governmental providers of emergency dispatch services.
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