The House Communications Subcommittee will mark up the Extending America’s Spectrum Auction Leadership Act (HR-7783), a significantly modified version of the Simplifying Management, Reallocation and Transfer of Spectrum Act (HR-5486) and five other telecom bills Wednesday, as expected (see 2206100001), the Commerce Committee said Monday. The markup includes a revised version of the Spectrum Innovation Act (HR-7624) that proposes to use proceeds from the 3.1-3.45 GHz auction it authorizes to pay for next-generation 911 tech upgrades and additional money for the FCC’s Secure and Trusted Communications Networks Reimbursement Program to repay U.S. carriers for removing from their networks equipment made by companies deemed a national security risk.

Top members of the House and Senate Commerce committees are having varying levels of success in moving forward in the coming weeks on spectrum legislation. The House Communications Subcommittee plans to mark up a revised version of the Extending America’s Spectrum Auction Leadership Act (HR-7783) Wednesday along with other legislation, subpanel Chairman Mike Doyle, D-Pa., said in an interview. Senate Commerce leaders, meanwhile, told us they're still grappling with how to move forward on the Improving Spectrum Coordination Act (S-1472) after an amendment fight prompted them to remove it from a markup last month (see 2205250063).

The Colorado Public Utilities Commission could post revised draft rule changes on emergency service network reliability next month. At a partially virtual hearing Thursday, Administrative Law Judge Conor Farley ordered a July 15 report on ongoing workshops to find consensus on changes meant to improve basic emergency service (BES) network reliability and set a tariff-based mechanism for funding network improvements. Farley said he hopes the report will include final redlined rules reflecting an agreement among parties in docket 22R-0122T. If it does, the ALJ plans to seek written comments by July 22 and replies by July 29, then take oral comments at a hearing Aug. 5 at 11:30 a.m. MDT, he said. If no consensus is reached by July 15, staff should file a status report that day, with next steps to be discussed at the Aug. 5 hearing, he said. Under proposed rules in a March NPRM, BES providers would have to submit a network reliability improvement plan and seek PUC certification every 10 years. “Requiring recertification is intended to better enable periodic reviews such that the Commission, customers, and other stakeholders can better ensure that a [provider] remains accountable in maintaining and updating its services to support statewide emergency service networks,” it said. The Colorado PUC convened three workshops last month on “foundational concepts,” said State 911 Program Manager Daryl Branson in a Monday filing. The group met again earlier this week to start digging into possible revisions to the draft rules, with a goal of finishing them by July 18, Branson said at Thursday’s hearing. Workshops are expected to continue through July 12, said the filing: Participants have included Lumen, Intrado, CTIA, Colorado Council of Authorities, Boulder Regional Emergency Telephone Service Authority (BRETSA) and the state utility consumer advocate.

The FCC’s public notice seeking a record refresh on improving how wireless 911 calls are routed to the appropriate first responders got only minor changes over the draft version, based on a side-by-side comparison. Commissioners approved the notice Wednesday (see 2206080040), and released it Thursday. Officials said Wednesday they didn’t adopt all the language proposed by APCO (see 2206060052) on emergency services IP networks (ESInets), but some was added. In an added sentence, the FCC now seeks comment “on whether wireless carrier plans and timelines for implementing location-based routing vary depending on whether PSAPs are using legacy E911 technology, are transitioning to NG911 (i.e., have implemented discrete NG911 elements, such as ESInets, but have not fully implemented NG911), or have achieved full end-state NG911 with all elements included.” The final version makes eight references to ESInets, compared with one in the draft. A new sentence asks: “How if at all is location-based routing different for [public safety answering points] that are not connected to an ESInet?” The FCC also added comment dates -- July 11 for initial comments, July 25 for replies -- which were based on the release date.

The FCC unanimously approved a public notice seeking to refresh the record on improving how wireless 911 calls are routed to the appropriate first responders (see 2206060052), as expected. Commissioners at Wednesday's meeting also agreed to propose a $34,000 fine against an Idaho man for allegedly interfering with emergency communications as firefighters took on a wildfire, the largest fine of its kind, officials said.

Facing the July 16 deadline for carriers and text providers to support routing 988 traffic to the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline, much of Lifeline's focus is making sure there's the capacity to handle that traffic, its administrator and its funder told an FCBA CLE Wednesday.

An FCC record refresh on improving how wireless 911 calls are routed to the appropriate first responders is expected to be approved 4-0 by commissioners at their monthly meeting Wednesday. The final version is likely to incorporate some language sought by APCO (see 2206010027), said FCC and industry officials. The National Emergency Number Association doesn’t support those changes. APCO was the lone party to file comments in docket 18-62 after the FCC posted the draft.

AT&T, T-Mobile and Verizon filed certifications at the FCC saying they're in compliance with a requirement they provide vertical-location information on wireless calls to 911, as required by a June 2021 consent decree (see 2106030086). The filings were due at the FCC Thursday and posted in docket 17-78 (see here, here and here). The National Emergency Number Association, meanwhile, applauded a CTIA report saying nationwide wireless carriers, working with Apple and Google, can provide accurate vertical location information on wireless calls to 911 (see 2206020068). “NENA is pleased that the 9-1-1 Location Technologies Test Bed … filing reported that device-based hybrid (DBH) z-axis location solutions were successful in improving location accuracy consistent with” FCC requirements, emailed President Brian Fontes: “NENA continues to support aligning commercial research and development for location services with the needs of improved location accuracy used for public safety purposes.”

CTIA told the FCC Thursday nationwide wireless carriers, working with Apple and Google, can provide accurate vertical location information on wireless calls to 911, based on tests by the industry’s 911 Location Technologies Test Bed. CTIA said AT&T, T-Mobile and Verizon also verified the results independently. “We are proud to report the testing validates that device-based hybrid (DBH) z-axis location technology solutions, Google’s Android Emergency Location Service (ELS) and Apple’s Hybridized Emergency Location (HELO), together achieve ± 3-meter accuracy for at least 80 percent of wireless 9-1-1 calls,” said a filing in docket 07-114. The companies faced a 2021 deadline to be able to deliver vertical location data in the top 25 cellular market areas. CTIA said the COVID-19 pandemic delayed testing. “Despite the challenges of the pandemic, including building access, delayed permissions to enter, a compressed testing schedule, and more, the 9-1-1 Location Technologies Test Bed completed testing across more than 1,000 test points,” CTIA Chief Technology Officer Tom Sawanobori blogged: “The tests were more extensive than any previous test campaign, including a greater variety of test regions -- from dense, urban environments to rural communities -- a broader diversity of test buildings (taking into account various heights, construction materials, and building uses), 15 test devices, and more test points per building.”

APCO proposed some edits to the proposed record refresh on improving how wireless 911 calls are routed to the appropriate first responders, teed up for a vote at the June 8 FCC commissioners' meeting (see 2205180065). “The edits we offer are intended to improve the record to be developed by clarifying that ‘Next Generation 9-1-1,’ as defined by the public safety community, has not yet been fully deployed, and that ‘transitional NG9-1-1’ environments entail the deployment of emergency services IP networks (ESInets) that are intended to implement some call-delivery elements of an end-state NG9-1-1 environment,” said a filing posted Wednesday in docket 18-64. AT&T’s recent announcement it will provide location-based routing nationwide “illustrates, as APCO has previously commented, that wireless carriers can implement location-based routing regardless of whether an ESInet is in place,” APCO said.