Register of Copyrights Shira Perlmutter announces Miriam DeChant, ex-Patent and Trademark Office, as associate register-copyrights and director-public information and education … National Highway Traffic Safety Administration names Brian Tegtmeyer, from DuPage (Illinois) Public Safety Communications, as 911 program coordinator, succeeding Laurie Flaherty, retired … Wireless Infrastructure Association promotes Stephen Keegan to counsel-government affairs.

AT&T said Tuesday it's the first carrier to launch location-based routing to automatically transmit wireless 911 calls to the appropriate public safety answering point, using technology from Intrado. “AT&T can quickly and more accurately identify where a wireless 9-1-1 call is coming from using device GPS and hybrid information to route the call to the correct 9-1-1 call center,” the company said: “With location-based routing, a device can be located and routed within 50 meters of the device location. Prior to this launch, wireless 9-1-1 calls were routed based on the location of cell towers, which can cover up to a 10-mile radius.” The carrier rolled out the service to 16 states and Guam, with full nationwide coverage expected to be completed by the end of next month, it said.

Public Knowledge and other groups urged FCC action on a March petition asking the regulator to classify interconnected VoIP as a Communications Act Title II service (see 2203020052), in a webinar Friday. With revised net neutrality rules on hold at a 2-2 FCC, Public Knowledge Senior Vice President Harold Feld said the FCC faces a dilemma, and the time to provide clarity is now.

Alabama and Illinois lawmakers passed emergency-call bills last week. The Alabama legislature sent the governor HB-414 Thursday to authorize the statewide 911 board to certify public safety telecommunicators, require 911 operators to stay on the line until a person is connected with emergency services and to require communications districts to provide an alternative method for responding to emergency calls. Illinois House members unanimously concurred Thursday with the Senate on HB-5502 to require that multi-line telephone systems and other services route 911 calls to the correct jurisdiction.

California legislators urged the Public Utilities Commission to pause before approving rules for a $2 billion last-mile federal funding account (FFA) required by the state’s $6 billion broadband law. At a hearing livestreamed Wednesday, Assembly Communications Committee members grilled CPUC Communications Division Director Rob Osborn on a proposed rule to prevent ISPs from increasing prices for FFA-funded plans for 10 years.

With three months to go before the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline begins accepting calls and texts via 988, promotion and efforts at raising public awareness will be decentralized, with a national campaign geared to the public possible next year. 988 services are to be available nationwide effective July 16. The federal Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) told us 988 won't be available nationally before then, so it recommends not promoting its use to the public in advance.

FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel cautioned House Communications Subcommittee members that some sales from upcoming auctions of the 2.5 GHz band and “construction permits for new full power television stations in communities with no license for the allotted station” will be on hold “pending reauthorization” of the commission’s auction authority if the current statute lapses Sept. 30 without a renewal. CTIA CEO Meredith Baker, meanwhile, urged the leaders of the House and Senate Commerce committees to adopt a stopgap renewal due to the limited legislative time before Sept. 30. The issue was a major focus of House Communications’ FCC oversight hearing last week (see 2203310060).

Some states are opting for general fund appropriations, not a dedicated fee, to support 988 suicide prevention hotline services. Mental health advocates say that states creating a funding stream is to be applauded, but 988 services need multiple funding sources that include such a fee. CTIA has repeatedly pushed that message at statehouses.

Southern Linc asked the FCC for a waiver until April 3, 2026, to deploy z-axis technology for providing vertical location information for wireless 911 calls throughout its network. The carrier said it’s the only Tier III non-nationwide provider required to meet a deadline of Sunday because it serves customers in a top 25 market. Southern Linc’s “limited resources as a smaller Tier III provider, and the unavailability of a compliant vertical location solution altogether present unique and unusual factual circumstances that make full compliance with the applicable deployment deadlines unfeasible,” said a filing posted Wednesday in docket 07-114.

The FCC Communications Security, Reliability and Interoperability Council working groups reported on their progress during a virtual meeting Wednesday, CSRIC’s first since December. FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel reshaped the council last year (see 2104150056), with more emphasis on 5G security and open radio access networks.