A South Dakota Senate committee unanimously advanced a bill that would revamp funding and administration of E-911 in the state. SB-143 would extend the responsibility to bill and collect E-911 surcharges to providers of wireless, VoIP and prepaid telecom services, and any other technology capable of reaching a public safety answering point. The bill advanced by the Senate State Affairs Committee also would revamp 911 administration by creating a new state 911 Coordination Board to disburse 911 funds to local authorities, set 911 operation standards and oversee coordination among 911 systems around the state. The new board would be appointed by the governor and include representatives from telecom carriers and public safety agencies, among others.

Consumers requested 3,811,200 DTV converter box coupons through midnight Jan. 25, according to NTIA data. The data run by state and “ZIP3,” the first three digits of ZIP codes. Texans requested the most coupons, 336,176, followed by Californians (320,997) and Michiganders (195,695). Other states in the top 10: Pennsylvania (193,782); Illinois (191,652); Ohio (188,996); Florida (184,841); New York (176,087); Indiana (123,911); and Missouri (118,495). The northern suburbs of Dallas in the 750 code requested 50,030 coupons, by far the most of any ZIP3, the data show. Next was Chicago (606), requesting 39,436 coupons. Texas was the only state with three ZIP3 codes in the top 10. Portland, Ore., in the 972 ZIP3, placed fourth nationally, though Oregon as a state ranked 13th. Portland is where IBM subcontractor Epiq Systems bases its coupon request operations. We asked NTIA if Portland’s ranking was coincidence. “No way to tell,” a spokesman said. He speculated that perhaps the Portland media gave the coupon program “bigger play” than in other markets.

Taxpayer groups in Pasadena are mobilizing to oppose a city ballot initiative on the Feb. 5 primary ballot that would update the city’s 8.28 percent telecom service tax, saying it would expand the tax base to include wireless voice and text services and Internet data services. The city’s definition of taxable telecom services referred to the definitions of the federal telephone excise tax act, which was repealed last year. The city said the telecom tax generates about $10 million annually to support 911, public safety agencies, city libraries, street repairs, parks, after-school programs and other non-telecom-related services. The city said the tax code needs to be updated because the obsolete reference to the federal excise tax act has allowed telecom companies to challenge in court the legality of the tax base. The ballot proposal would amend the city tax ordinance to specify the tax applied to any type of voice, data, video, or information service transmitted electronically between points. Opponents say Measure D doesn’t just update obsolete language regarding taxable services but is a sneaky way to extend the city tax to wireless and Internet services. Meanwhile, Los Angeles has a similar ballot question going before its voters Feb. 5. Proposition S would cut the tax rate to 9 percent from 10 percent while updating the legal definition of taxable services and expanding the tax base to include wireless and IP-based telecom services. Los Angeles said defeat of the ballot question could cost the city $270 million that now supports city public safety agencies.

T-Mobile will seek a stay in federal court of new location-accuracy requirements for wireless carriers unless the FCC itself puts the order on hold, T-Mobile said in a filing at the commission. The Rural Cellular Association Monday also asked the FCC to stay the rules, which the agency approved last September (CD Jan 18 p1). The group likewise threatened court action. Sprint Nextel also is expected to ask the agency for a stay.

The 911 provision in the Senate version of the farm bill would help state and local governments, 911 emergency response organizations said in a letter Friday to leaders of the House Agriculture Committee. “We respectfully request that the Expansion of 911 Access provision… be included in the final bill that emerges from conference,” the letter said. The provision would allow the Agriculture Department to make loans to improve 911 access to entities eligible to borrow from the Rural Utilities Service, including state or local governments or other public entities, Indian tribes and emergency communications equipment providers. Such loans can be used for facilities and equipment to expand or improve 911 access and interoperable emergency communications. Additionally, government imposed fees, including state or local 911 fees, can be used as security for a loan, said the letter. It was signed by the National Emergency Number Association, the 911 Industry Alliance and the National Association of State 911 Administrators.

An FCC ruling on telecom relay services “goes beyond legitimate FCC concerns,” an attorney for Hands On Video Relay Services told FCC aides in an ex parte visit. Hands On said the FCC’s Nov. 19 declaratory ruling was good in some ways, for example barring “abusive marketing practices.” But it also “impedes legitimate outreach efforts by providers, violates providers’ rights of free speech and the rights of consumers to access vital information necessary to make informed communications choices,” Hands On attorney George Lyon said in a filing Tuesday describing the meeting Jan. 14. Hands On objected to a part of the ruling that bars a provider from contacting consumers that have registered with it “for any reason… including informing them of service offerings or current FCC proceedings that may affect the availability and quality of video service.” This provision “plunges a dagger into the very heart of First Amendment free speech values,” Lyon told aides to Commissioners Jonathan Adelstein, Robert McDowell and Deborah Tate. The restrictions amount to “a gag order” and are “blatantly paternalistic,” Lyon wrote in the ex parte filing. It “assumes deaf and hard of hearing persons need protection from information provided by relay providers,” he said. Hands On also questioned a ban on “incenting consumers to register with a provider.” The group doesn’t disagree with a ban on financial incentives but “nominal” incentives such as “allowing a consumer to watch a movie in return for registering, or having a free cup of coffee” goes too far, the filing said. Registering has benefits such as providing location information that relay providers can use to direct 911 calls, Hands On said.

The Idaho Public Utilities Commission told Verizon to report monthly on outages and repair intervals in its Orofino, Peck, Pierce and Weippe exchanges and give customers credits when outage repairs take longer than 24 hours. The PUC acted on an unusually high number of complaints by businesses and consumers since summer about laggard repairs. Complaining parties include Clearwater Valley Hospital in Orofino, which cited a three-day June outage that complicated patient care. Another complaint came from the Upper Fords Creek Rural Fire Department, citing a four-day interruption of 911 service in September. As of next month, Qwest must file monthly outage repair reports with the PUC for the four exchanges until it has installed upgraded facilities to serve customers there.

The Rural Cellular Association (RCA) will seek a federal court stay of new location-accuracy requirements for wireless carriers, which the FCC approved last September, the group said in a filing Thursday at the commission. The association said it will ask the court to review the rules. At least one large carrier is considering supporting the lawsuit.

The FCC Public Safety Bureau plans a summit on the use of next-generation 911 technology and the coordination of those efforts among public safety answering points on Feb. 6, the FCC said Friday. The meeting will be 9 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. ET in the commission meeting room. A detailed agenda is to follow. The FCC plans to webcast the meeting.

Ohio’s largest incumbent local exchange carriers and Intrado, a major national enhanced 911 provider, have locked horns over whether Intrado can be authorized as a competitive local exchange carrier (CLEC). At issue is the fact that Intrado provides only next-generation E-911 services to a selected class of customers and doesn’t offer common-carrier dial tone to the general public. Ohio regulators said the clash “raises unique regulatory issues” that merit hearings, which are expected to open early in 2008.