FCC Wireless Bureau released separate orders Thurs. that require Nextel and AT&T Wireless, which have requested Enhanced 911 Phase 2 implementation waivers, to provide more information related to Phase 2 location technology testing. Nextel in Nov. had asked Commission for waiver of implementation of E911 Phase 2 services in advance of Oct. 1 deadline for making certain location-based information was available to public safety answering points. Nextel had sought waiver of implementation deadline to deploy its handset-based assisted GPS technology. Carrier has told FCC that field trials had shown that technology was only accurate E911 Phase 2 technology available to it. FCC order said Nextel didn’t describe field trials it had carried out, including results. Order sets out questions it wants answered as part of agency’s “ongoing evaluation” of readiness of E911 technologies. Information FCC is seeking includes: (1) List of all tests and studies of E911 Phase 2 location technologies Nextel conducted, including field testing, lab trials, feasibility studies to ascertain whether certain technologies complied with FCC requirements. (2) Results of tests and studies, including accuracy and reliability levels demonstrated in each test. (3) Current and expected availability of each location technology solution tested. (4) Publicly announced plans by Nextel to change air interface standards to CDMA from existing iDEN standard and how those changes would affect E911 Phase 2 deployment. Bureau said it would make that information available to public. Wireless Bureau is seeking similar information from AT&T Wireless, which also has waiver request pending. In separate order on AT&T, bureau also denied carrier’s request that certain information on tests and field evaluations be kept confidential. Bureau said AT&T didn’t meet procedural requirements for confidentiality and didn’t demonstrate by “preponderance of the evidence that the materials in question were entitled to confidential treatment.” Information sought from AT&T Wireless included data supporting its selection of mobile-assisted network location system technology for Phase 2 for its TDMA network. Other details carrier is ordered to provide include: (1) Information on what Phase 2 location technology solution AT&T plans to use for analog wireless phones and test results. (2) “Further information” on planned rollout of GSM network, including timeline, planned discontinuance of service on TDMA network, how GSM network would comply with Phase 2.

Subcommittee of House Transportation & Infrastructure Committee stressed at hearing Wed. need for better data on driver distractions such as cellphones, but generally shied away from advocating restrictions on drivers themselves. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) Exec. Dir. Robert Shelton told panel that federal legislation implementing requirements such as hands-free devices “would be premature” because of lack of data on impact of such distractions. “At this point we don’t have data that show this would be the answer,” he said.

La. House passed bill that would restrict public access to audiotapes of 911 calls. Under legislation (HB-825), tapes of 911 calls would be confidential information that could be made public only if subpoenaed. Bill has been sent to Senate. State Rep. Lydia Jackson (D-Shreveport), bill’s sponsor, said it was needed to eliminate widely varying privacy standards that now existed among state’s 64 emergency 911 districts and to deter lurid exploitation of 911 calls. Without subpoena, 911 tapes could be used only by law enforcement agencies and for training of 911 personnel. Tapes also would be available to caller or to parents or guardians of child that called 911. Nothing in legislation would prohibit callers or their families from making tape of their call available to media. Opponents argued that closing 911 records would impair public’s ability to monitor emergency services’ responses to calls, but supporters said other public records could provide such data.

FCC Wireless Bureau clarified Mon. where line is to be drawn for allocating costs of Enhanced 911 Phase 1 network and database components. Bureau Chief Thomas Sugrue, in letter to King County, Wash., E911 program, said “proper demarcation point” for funding between wireless carriers and public safety answering points (PSAPs) was input to 911 selective routers that ILECs maintain. Routers receive 911 calls from LEC central offices and forward them to specific PSAP that serves area of emergency caller. FCC sought comment last year on request of King County E911 entity that wanted clarification on whether financing of certain network and database components of Phase 1 and interface of those elements to existing 911 system was duty of wireless carriers or PSAPs. Under E911 rules, wireless carriers bear costs of hardware and software components that precede 911 selective router, including trunk from carrier’s mobile switching center to 911 router and particular elements needed to implement certain signaling methods for delivering E911 Phase 1 information to PSAPs. PSAPs bear costs of maintaining and upgrading E911 components and functions beyond input to 911 Selective Router, Sugrue said. In comments to FCC, most wireless carriers had argued that PSAP was responsible for upgrades needed to deliver Phase 1 information compatible with existing 911 network, so appropriate demarcation point for funding would be carrier’s mobile switching center. But PSAPs contended appropriate line for determining funding was dedicated 911 selective routers of ILECs. Sugrue stressed to county that FCC still favored negotiations between parties as most efficient way to resolve such cost-allocation disputes. He said Bureau was providing guidance in this instance because King County dispute had remained unresolved since county filed request nearly year ago. Interpretation of FCC’s rules must account for existing E911 wireline network, maintained by ILECs and paid for by PSAPs via tariffs, letter said. “For wireless carriers to satisfy their obligation… to provide Phase 1 information to the PSAP, carriers must deliver that information to the equipment that analyzes and distributes,” Sugrue said, referring to 911 selective router. “We thus agree with parties who believe that the appropriate demarcation point for allocating responsibilities and costs between wireless carriers and PSAPs is the input to the 911 selective router.” Letter said that because rates of wireless carriers weren’t regulated, they had option of covering such Phase 1 costs through charges to customers. Letter said decision didn’t place “entire cost burden” for Phase 1 implementation on wireless carriers, but imposed portion on PSAPs. Sugrue also cited “concerns” of Bureau whether any carrier would choose technology that couldn’t be used by PSAPs in particular area or couldn’t be used to meet upcoming Phase 2 obligations in order to shift costs to PSAPs.

RTNDA joined other media groups in protesting bill in Ore. legislature that would exempt 911 calls from state’s public records law. Measure passed Ore. House and is awaiting Senate action. RTNDA Pres. Barbara Cochran and former Chmn. John Sears, news dir. of KPTV Portland, Ore., wrote Gov. John Kitzhaber (D) and state senators, arguing that purpose of state’s open records law “is to pierce the veil of administrative secrecy and to open agency action to the light of public scrutiny.” Advocates of legislation say it’s needed to protect privacy of 911 callers.

Fla. in fall expects to implement nation’s first comprehensive state telecom tax reform that would consolidate most current state and local telecom taxes into single line item on customer bills. Fla. legislature sent tax bill designed to accomplish reform (SB-1878) to Gov. Jeb Bush (R) along with companion measures that would set up administrative machinery for collecting and distributing consolidated telecom taxes (SB-1540), and safeguard proprietary company information (SB-1836). Bush is expected to sign legislatiion.

Kan. House and Senate conferees said they had reconciled chambers’ differing versions of wireless E-911 funding bill (HB- 2034). They had been divided on whether program to provide funds for automatic location identification on 911 calls from wireless phones should be administered locally (House) or centrally at state level (Senate). Under compromise, wireless companies and local govts. each would get 22.5% of roughly $9 million per year expected from bill’s new 75-cent monthly surcharge per wireless number. Balance of fund would be controlled by administrator named by Kan. Corp. Commission and approved by current Kan. E 911 Board. If both chambers accept compromise, bill will be sent to governor.

Ida. PUC said Qwest had complied with only 3 items on Sec. 271 open market checklist’s requirements that weren’t related to operation support systems (OSS). PUC said Qwest met requirement for nondiscriminatory number administration (item 9), access to network databases for signaling and call routing (10), and local dialing parity (12). Agency said Qwest party met operator access requirement (7) insofar as access to 911 and call-completion goes, but hadn’t met directory assistance access standard of that checklist item. PUC made its decision after reviewing Qwest’s Ida. record and studying report from Liberty Consulting Group, which was chosen by Ida. and 6 other Qwest states as facilitator for joint proceeding on Qwest’s compliance with non-OSS-related requirements of Telecom Act’s 14-point competitive checklist. Besides Ida., other participating states are Ia., Utah, N.M., N.D., Mont., Wyo. Other states in group plan to issue their own evaluations soon. Wyo. PSC plans May 10 hearing on checklist compliance and Mont. PSC is planning a workshop session to be announced later this week. OSS-related checklist items are subject of regionwide test now under way by KPMG Consulting that will wrap up in late summer.

Sprint PCS appears to be in best position among major wireless carriers to comply with FCC’s Oct. 1 deadline for Enhanced 911 Phase 2 implementation, Pulver.com research report said. Report said carriers that were first to implement more specific location information requirements of Phase 2 were likely to exploit that position in advertising. It also said: (1) Verizon Wireless hadn’t asked for waiver of E911 Phase 2 requirements, so it didn’t appear to be off track for implementation. (2) It’s difficult to judge whether Cingular Wireless will meet deadline because carrier has raised possibility of waiver request but hasn’t asked for one. (3) “AT&T Wireless seems to have the least coherent location strategy.” Carrier has requested waiver on accuracy for Mobile Assisted Network Location System technology, report said. (4) Nextel’s initial deployment of Phase 2 is likely to start in Oct. 2002, one year behind original FCC schedule. Report said Sprint PCS appeared to be in best position because it provided detailed implementation information to FCC last Nov. and since then had made several supplier announcements. “Even if one of the major carriers will be ready on Oct. 1, 2001, to fully comply with the FCC E911 directive, the others would have no choice but move quickly and catch up,” Pulver report said.

Wireless carriers lined up at FCC to oppose petition by Richardson, Tex., which wants agency to clarify process by which requests for Phase 2 Enhanced 911 service are made by public safety answering points (PSAPs). Richardson, in petition filed earlier this month, wants Commission to confirm that PSAP makes valid request for such service by informing carrier that necessary equipment upgrades for Phase 2 service will be finalized before delivery of E911 data by carrier and by having adequate cost- recovery mechanism in place to upgrade equipment. Echoing comments of other carriers, Verizon Wireless urged FCC this week to deny petition. PSAPs must be able to receive and use E911 data as condition of valid request, Verizon argued. PSAP must have capability to receive this enhanced location information at time that it makes request to carrier, Verizon told FCC. In part, Verizon said Richardson’s petition doesn’t acknowledge that FCC requirements “balanced the objective of rapid E911 deployment with that of mitigating carrier’s costs and ensuring that PSAPs timely upgrade their own networks.” CTIA also urged Commission to reject Richardson request. “Richardson’s request should be denied because it is bad public policy, it conflicts with the Commission’s rules and the Commission already has addressed the matter.” CTIA argues in comments that policy based on PSAPs’ intention to upgrade their equipment would be faulty, because sometimes such plans don’t materialize and carriers are left sorting through requests from agencies that both have and haven’t completed upgrades.