National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's Office of Emergency Medical Services National 911 Program Coordinator Laurie Flaherty retires, effective Dec. 31 ... Hogan Lovells adds Timothy Bergreen, ex-chief of staff to Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., as partner, Government Relations and Public Affairs practice, working on issues including cybersecurity, cryptocurrency, satellite and telecom ... Kirkland & Ellis appoints Candice Andalia from Orrick Herrington as litigation partner, working on "managing and coordinating national defense and strategy" including for technology clients.

The New York Public Service Commission agreed 6-0 to a $2.7 million Frontier Communications settlement for the carrier’s response to Tropical Storm Isaias, at a Thursday meeting livestreamed from Albany. Members also unanimously cleared a $425 million investment by Searchlight Capital Partners in Consolidated Communications to enhance customer service. The Frontier settlement resolves a notice of apparent liability against the carrier for failing to keep a critical central office operating and not providing timely, accurate notices to the Department of Public Service (see 2102110066). The pact will increase redundancy and ensures continuous 911 service in future severe weather, said DPS Assistant Counsel Nicholas Forst. This includes reporting requirements and a Frontier promise not to pass costs to customers, the official said. PSC Chair John Howard asked if staff is “satisfied that Frontier’s 911 systems are fully operational” and can be relied upon by customers. “We are very confident,” replied Forst, saying redundancies from the pact will “not only provide Frontier benefit but also other 911 service providers.” Commissioners praised the speed of the one-year investigation into energy and communications providers. “Utilities need to know that poor performance will be met with swift and effective regulatory action,” said Howard. Rory Christian, one of three new commissioners at the meeting, applauded getting new infrastructure and resiliency investments amid “increasing severe storms and operating conditions.” The PSC earlier adopted a $72 million settlement with Altice for Isaias response failures (see 2103180022). Frontier didn't comment.

Three Democratic senators criticized CTIA for lobbying efforts on states' implementation of the 988 suicide prevention hotline. "Telecom lobbyists appear to be pressing state legislatures to reduce the size of the fees assessed and the scope of the services to which the fees could apply, well beyond -- and in some cases contrary to -- the guardrails already written into law," Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley of Oregon and Chris Murphy of Connecticut wrote CEO Meredith Baker Thursday.

Telecom interests disagree about the feasibility of texting the 988 suicide prevention hotline by July 16, 2022, in docket 18-336 comments due Monday. Text-to-988 can be instituted by that implementation deadline for 988 voice service or within six months of when Lifeline is technically prepped to receive and handle texts, whichever is later, CTIA said. It said the FCC should rely on the text-to-911 definitions of 'covered providers" and "covered services" here. It said the FCC should keep evaluating the feasibility and policy considerations of such issues as a broader scope of supported messaging services and the provisioning of location information. Calling the 2022 deadline feasible, ATIS said covered text providers should have to route 988 text messages to Lifeline's current 10-digit number instead of a Lifeline local crisis center, because a text-to-911-type architecture "would require significantly more time to implement." ATIS said modeling text-to-988 after text-to-911 would mean nine to 12 months of updating specifications, and 12 to 18 months of implementation. Voice on the Net Coalition said text-to-988 should have the same exemptions as text-to-911 from non-interconnected texting applications and covered text providers in Wi-Fi-only locations requirements. It said new routing and technical standards for text-to-988 could make meeting the 2022 deadline difficult. It said the FCC instead should look at an implementation deadline of 12 months after the effective date of the order. Support enhanced funding and resources for 988 and the network of crisis centers answering those calls to ensure it has the capacity to respond to texts, the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention commented. Lack of support to receive, address and respond to text messages "will set [the texting] capacity up for failure," it said. Also citing funding concerns, the Association for Behavioral Health and Wellness said the FCC should collaborate with providers and payers on structuring operational functionality of the crisis line. An array of mental health organizations including the American Psychiatric Association, American Association of Suicidology and National Alliance on Mental Illness urged requiring automated bounceback messages when text-to-988 isn't answerable and that texting be available by the July 2022 988 voice call deadline. The National Association of the Deaf, National Disability Rights Network and others urged expanding the scope of the order to include real-time text, rich communications service and other successor formats and to cover all interconnected texting service providers.

The FCC released an order and Further NPRM Tuesday requiring the disabling of contraband wireless devices detected in correctional facilities. The order addresses oversight, carrier liability and how 911 calls are handled. It was OK’d 4-0 Monday. It establishes a two-phase process for authorizing contraband interdiction systems (CISs) to detect contraband devices and establishes a “rule-based process” for disabling contraband devices. “Although wireless providers continue to prefer a court order process, more recently they acknowledged certain jurisdictions don't have the time or resources to issue court orders and that a rule-based framework could be designed in a way that is efficient, straightforward, and that replicates the accuracy and accountability of the court order process,” the order said. The framework provides rules for certifying CIS providers and for testing systems. The FCC said it decided against reporting requirements for stakeholders: “The two-step certification process we adopt … will provide the Commission with a substantial amount of information on the general operating design of CISs as well as the specific deployment plans for particular correctional facilities.” The FCC said carriers won't be reimbursed for disabling devices, as had been urged by T-Mobile, saying the costs should be minimal. The FNPRM asked about “quiet zones” in and around prisons “in which wireless communications are not authorized such that contraband wireless devices in correctional facilities would not receive service.” It asked about geofencing. It asked about the efficacy of using beacon systems to disable contraband devices. “Addressing this problem is not easy,” said acting Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel: “The incentive to bring these devices into prisons and jails will not simply go away with better contraband interdiction." Commissioner Brendan Carr told reporters he witnessed “truckloads” of contraband devices pulled out of one prison. “Any time we’re making even any progress," he said, "it’s something that gets my support.” The wireless industry "has a longstanding commitment to collaborating with all stakeholders to find effective solutions," a CTIA spokesperson emailed. "An FCC process for terminating service to contraband phones can further that goal.”

The FCC 911 fee diversion strike force will meet virtually Aug. 2 at 10 a.m. EDT, says Monday's Federal Register. The group will be briefed by its working groups.

FCC Commissioner Brendan Carr is in the Pacific Northwest this week, in Washington, Oregon and Idaho, said a Wednesday news release. Stops include a high-tech manufacturing plant, a 911 call center and a wireless ISP. In eastern Washington, Carr will “visit a health care provider that has utilized FCC funding to expand their telehealth offerings during COVID-19” and other projects with House Commerce Committee ranking member Cathy McMorris Rodgers, R-Wash.

The FCC wants comments by July 30, replies by Aug. 30, on an NPRM to standardize how information is conveyed to public service answering points and the public during a 911 outage, says Wednesday's Federal Register. Commissioners approved the NPRM in April (see 2104220036).

FTC confirms Chair Lina Khan names three officials, who have been advisers to Commissioner Rohit Chopra, to new posts: Holly Vedova as acting director, Competition Bureau; Sam Levine for acting director, Consumer Protection Bureau; and Erie Meyer is the agency’s chief technologist and policy adviser to Khan ... Covington & Burling taps Brian Nester, ex-Sidley Austin, as partner, Patent Litigation Practice; his telecom and chip clients included Intel, Microsoft, Nokia and Samsung.

The FCC unanimously approved 911 fee diversion rules, as expected (see 2106210022). They largely mirror statutory language in the Don’t Break Up the T-Band Act of 2020, and are “reasonably broad given the diverse and evolving nature of the 911 ecosystem.” Rules take effect 60 days after Federal Register publication and fee report data collection compliance takes effect after OMB OK. The commission defined a 911 levy Friday as “a fee or charge applicable to commercial mobile services, IP-enabled voice services, or other emergency communications services specifically designated by a state or taxing jurisdiction for the support or implementation of 911 services.” The definition included multipurpose fees that support “public safety, emergency services, or similar purposes.” Replacement of 911 systems is OK. Diversion is what's used to support a political subdivision or other non-911 related purposes. Examples include “equipment or infrastructure for constructing or expanding non-public safety communications networks” and transferring money to a general fund. States will be held responsible for local jurisdictions that divert fees. The 911 strike force will consider and provide recommendations on what types of radio expenditures constitute diversion. The rules establish a procedure for jurisdictions to petition the Public Safety Bureau for determination an expenditure should be treated as acceptable. The jurisdiction must demonstrate this supports public safety answering point functions or directly affects a PSAP's ability to “receive or respond to 911 calls.” The FCC clarified that “only employees of a diverting jurisdiction” are ineligible to participate on advisory committees. Representatives of non-diverting localities within a diverting state remain eligible. An individual employed by a diverting jurisdiction may still serve on an advisory committee as a representative of a public safety organization or association. The FCC “took a big step towards eliminating the unacceptable practice of 911 fee diversion,” said CTIA Vice President-Regulatory Affairs Matt Gerst. The new rules “provide much-needed clarity on what does and does not constitute 911 fee diversion, which is essential as the stakes for diversion are raised with the potential federal NG-911 transition funding,” emailed National Emergency Number Association Director-Government Affairs Dan Henry. “To the extent that edge cases remain in certain states’ fee models, the 911 community will have to be proactive in seeking determinations from the Commission.”