On Wednesday the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) announced that it has commenced a proceeding to investigate ways to fight against 911 fee diversion, “the practice by some states and other jurisdictions of using 911 fees that consumers pay on their phone bills for non-911 purposes.” The FCC noted that Americans place more than 200 million emergency 911 calls each year and in order “(t)o ensure that that the 911 system provides the public with the life-saving services they need in times of crisis, 911 center must be adequately funded.”
The FCC adopted a Notice of Inquiry, which “seeks comment on the effect that 911 fee diversion has had on the provision of 911 services and the transition to Next Generation 911.” Furthermore, the agency has asked for input on ways to hinder 911 fee diversion, for example, by “restricting federal grant funding for diverting states.” Additionally, the FCC seeks comment on regulation that it could take to impede 911 fee diversion, including “limiting the availability of FCC licenses and other benefits based on fee diversion or using the Commission’s truth-in-billing authority to increase consumer awareness of fee diversion where it occurs.”
The FCC noted that each year it sends a report to Congress regarding 911 fee collection and expenditure in U.S. states and territories. Specifically, the reports illustrate “that despite the critical importance of funding for 911 services, some states divert a portion of the funds collected for 911 to other purposes.” For example, between 2012 and 2018 more than $1.275 billion was diverted to a state’s general fund or non-911 service. The FCC is exploring if it could improve its annual 911 fee diversion reporting to deter this conduct.
“In 2020, we have been reminded many times of the life-saving work performed by our nation’s first responders,” FCC Chairman Ajit Pai said. “While there are still three months left in the year, it seems we’ve already had enough disasters to last a lifetime, from the COVID-19 pandemic to raging wildfires in the West, and from Hurricanes Laura and Sally to the Iowa Derecho. But whenever disaster has struck, our first responders have answered the call and put their lives on the line to serve the American people. And more times than not, that call has come through our nation’s 911 system. That’s why it is so important that our 911 system receives the funding it needs. And that’s why it is outrageous that some money earmarked for 911 is being diverted for other purposes.”
Additionally, the FCC stated that funding is necessary to help pay for the migration of “911 networks from legacy technology to advanced, Internet Protocol-enabled next generation technology that will make the 911 system more resilient and support advanced capabilities, such as text messaging and streaming video.” The Commission added that these efforts are partially funded by the committed 911 fee for each state or territory which appears on consumers’ phone bills.
This effort comes after FCC Commissioner Michael O’Rielly commented on 911 fee diversion in July while addressing the New Jersey and New York Wireless Associations.
