S. 800

One Hundred Sixth Congress

of the

United States of America

AT THE FIRST SESSION

Begun and held at the City of Washington on Wednesday,

the sixth day of January, one thousand nine hundred and ninety-nine

An Act

To promote and enhance public safety through use of 9–1–1 as the universal

emergency assistance number, further deployment of wireless 9–1–1 service, support of States in upgrading 9–1–1 capabilities and related functions, encouragement of construction and operation of seamless, ubiquitous, and reliable networks

for personal wireless services, and for other purposes.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of

the United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Wireless Communications and

Public Safety Act of 1999’’.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSE.

(a) FINDINGS.—The Congress finds that—

(1) the establishment and maintenance of an end-to-end

communications infrastructure among members of the public,

emergency safety, fire service and law enforcement officials,

emergency dispatch providers, transportation officials, and hospital emergency and trauma care facilities will reduce response

times for the delivery of emergency care, assist in delivering

appropriate care, and thereby prevent fatalities, substantially

reduce the severity and extent of injuries, reduce time lost

from work, and save thousands of lives and billions of dollars

in health care costs;

(2) the rapid, efficient deployment of emergency telecommunications service requires statewide coordination of the

efforts of local public safety, fire service and law enforcement

officials, emergency dispatch providers, and transportation officials; the establishment of sources of adequate funding for

carrier and public safety, fire service and law enforcement

agency technology development and deployment; the coordination and integration of emergency communications with traffic

control and management systems and the designation of 9–

1–1 as the number to call in emergencies throughout the

Nation;

(3) emerging technologies can be a critical component of

the end-to-end communications infrastructure connecting the

public with emergency medical service providers and emergency dispatch providers, public safety, fire service and law

enforcement officials, and hospital emergency and trauma care

facilities, to reduce emergency response times and provide

appropriate care;
S. 800—2

(4) improved public safety remains an important public

health objective of Federal, State, and local governments and

substantially facilitates interstate and foreign commerce;

(5) emergency care systems, particularly in rural areas

of the Nation, will improve with the enabling of prompt notification of emergency services when motor vehicle crashes occur;

and

(6) the construction and operation of seamless, ubiquitous,

and reliable wireless telecommunications systems promote

public safety and provide immediate and critical communications links among members of the public; emergency medical

service providers and emergency dispatch providers; public

safety, fire service and law enforcement officials; transportation

officials, and hospital emergency and trauma care facilities.

(b) PURPOSE.—The purpose of this Act is to encourage and

facilitate the prompt deployment throughout the United States

of a seamless, ubiquitous, and reliable end-to-end infrastructure

for communications, including wireless communications, to meet

the Nation’s public safety and other communications needs.

SEC. 3. UNIVERSAL EMERGENCY TELEPHONE NUMBER.

(a) ESTABLISHMENT OF UNIVERSAL EMERGENCY TELEPHONE

NUMBER.—Section 251(e) of the Communications Act of 1934 (47

U.S.C. 251(e)) is amended by adding at the end the following

new paragraph:

‘‘(3) UNIVERSAL EMERGENCY TELEPHONE NUMBER.—The

Commission and any agency or entity to which the Commission

has delegated authority under this subsection shall designate

9–1–1 as the universal emergency telephone number within

the United States for reporting an emergency to appropriate

authorities and requesting assistance. The designation shall

apply to both wireline and wireless telephone service. In making

the designation, the Commission (and any such agency or

entity) shall provide appropriate transition periods for areas

in which 9–1–1 is not in use as an emergency telephone number

on the date of enactment of the Wireless Communications and

Public Safety Act of 1999.’’.

(b) SUPPORT.—The Federal Communications Commission shall

encourage and support efforts by States to deploy comprehensive

end-to-end emergency communications infrastructure and programs,

based on coordinated statewide plans, including seamless, ubiquitous, reliable wireless telecommunications networks and enhanced

wireless 9–1–1 service. In encouraging and supporting that deployment, the Commission shall consult and cooperate with State and

local officials responsible for emergency services and public safety,

the telecommunications industry (specifically including the cellular

and other wireless telecommunications service providers), the motor

vehicle manufacturing industry, emergency medical service providers and emergency dispatch providers, transportation officials,

special 9–1–1 districts, public safety, fire service and law enforcement officials, consumer groups, and hospital emergency and

trauma care personnel (including emergency physicians, trauma

surgeons, and nurses). The Commission shall encourage each State

to develop and implement coordinated statewide deployment plans,

through an entity designated by the governor, and to include representatives of the foregoing organizations and entities in development and implementation of such plans. Nothing in this subsection
S. 800—3

shall be construed to authorize or require the Commission to impose

obligations or costs on any person.

SEC. 4. PARITY OF PROTECTION FOR PROVISION OR USE OF WIRELESS SERVICE.

(a) PROVIDER PARITY.—A wireless carrier, and its officers, directors, employees, vendors, and agents, shall have immunity or other

protection from liability in a State of a scope and extent that

is not less than the scope and extent of immunity or other protection

from liability that any local exchange company, and its officers,

directors, employees, vendors, or agents, have under Federal and

State law (whether through statute, judicial decision, tariffs filed

by such local exchange company, or otherwise) applicable in such

State, including in connection with an act or omission involving

the release to a PSAP, emergency medical service provider or emergency dispatch provider, public safety, fire service or law enforcement official, or hospital emergency or trauma care facility of

subscriber information related to emergency calls or emergency

services.

(b) USER PARITY.—A person using wireless 9–1–1 service shall

have immunity or other protection from liability of a scope and

extent that is not less than the scope and extent of immunity

or other protection from liability under applicable law in similar

circumstances of a person using 9–1–1 service that is not wireless.

(c) PSAP PARITY.—In matters related to wireless 9–1–1 communications, a PSAP, and its employees, vendors, agents, and authorizing government entity (if any) shall have immunity or other

protection from liability of a scope and extent that is not less

than the scope and extent of immunity or other protection from

liability under applicable law accorded to such PSAP, employees,

vendors, agents, and authorizing government entity, respectively,

in matters related to 9–1–1 communications that are not wireless.

(d) BASIS FOR ENACTMENT.—This section is enacted as an exercise of the enforcement power of the Congress under section 5

of the Fourteenth Amendment to the Constitution and the power

of the Congress to regulate commerce with foreign nations, among

the several States, and with Indian tribes.

SEC. 5. AUTHORITY TO PROVIDE CUSTOMER INFORMATION.

Section 222 of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C.

222) is amended—

(1) in subsection (d)—

(A) by striking ‘‘or’’ at the end of paragraph (2);

(B) by striking the period at the end of paragraph

(3) and inserting a semicolon and ‘‘and’’; and

(C) by adding at the end the following:

‘‘(4) to provide call location information concerning the

user of a commercial mobile service (as such term is defined

in section 332(d))—

‘‘(A) to a public safety answering point, emergency

medical service provider or emergency dispatch provider,

public safety, fire service, or law enforcement official, or

hospital emergency or trauma care facility, in order to

respond to the user’s call for emergency services;

‘‘(B) to inform the user’s legal guardian or members

of the user’s immediate family of the user’s location in

an emergency situation that involves the risk of death

or serious physical harm; or
S. 800—4

‘‘(C) to providers of information or database management services solely for purposes of assisting in the delivery

of emergency services in response to an emergency.’’.

(2) by redesignating subsection (f) as subsection (h) and

by inserting the following after subsection (e):

‘‘(f) AUTHORITY TO USE WIRELESS LOCATION INFORMATION.—

For purposes of subsection (c)(1), without the express prior

authorization of the customer, a customer shall not be considered

to have approved the use or disclosure of or access to—

‘‘(1) call location information concerning the user of a

commercial mobile service (as such term is defined in section

332(d)), other than in accordance with subsection (d)(4); or

‘‘(2) automatic crash notification information to any person

other than for use in the operation of an automatic crash

notification system.

‘‘(g) SUBSCRIBER LISTED AND UNLISTED INFORMATION FOR EMERGENCY SERVICES.—Notwithstanding subsections (b), (c), and (d),

a telecommunications carrier that provides telephone exchange

service shall provide information described in subsection (i)(3)(A)

(including information pertaining to subscribers whose information

is unlisted or unpublished) that is in its possession or control

(including information pertaining to subscribers of other carriers)

on a timely and unbundled basis, under nondiscriminatory and

reasonable rates, terms, and conditions to providers of emergency

services, and providers of emergency support services, solely for

purposes of delivering or assisting in the delivery of emergency

services.’’;

(3) by inserting ‘‘location,’’ after ‘‘destination,’’ in subsection

(h)(1)(A) (as redesignated by paragraph (2)); and

(4) by adding at the end of subsection (h) (as redesignated),

the following:

‘‘(4) PUBLIC SAFETY ANSWERING POINT.—The term ‘public

safety answering point’ means a facility that has been designated to receive emergency calls and route them to emergency

service personnel.

‘‘(5) EMERGENCY SERVICES.—The term ‘emergency services’

means 9–1–1 emergency services and emergency notification

services.

‘‘(6) EMERGENCY NOTIFICATION SERVICES.—The term ‘emergency notification services’ means services that notify the public

of an emergency.

‘‘(7) EMERGENCY SUPPORT SERVICES.—The term ‘emergency

support services’ means information or data base management

services used in support of emergency services.’’.

SEC. 6. DEFINITIONS.

As used in this Act:

(1) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means the Secretary

of Transportation.

(2) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ means any of the several

States, the District of Columbia, or any territory or possession

of the United States.

(3) PUBLIC SAFETY ANSWERING POINT; PSAP.—The term

‘‘public safety answering point’’ or ‘‘PSAP’’ means a facility

that has been designated to receive 9–1–1 calls and route

them to emergency service personnel.
S. 800—5

(4) WIRELESS CARRIER.—The term ‘‘wireless carrier’’ means

a provider of commercial mobile services or any other radio

communications service that the Federal Communications

Commission requires to provide wireless 9–1–1 service.

(5) ENHANCED WIRELESS 9–1–1 SERVICE.—The term

‘‘enhanced wireless 9–1–1 service’’ means any enhanced 9–

1–1 service so designated by the Federal Communications

Commission in the proceeding entitled ‘‘Revision of the Commission’s Rules to Ensure Compatibility with Enhanced 9–1–1

Emergency Calling Systems’’ (CC Docket No. 94–102; RM–

8143), or any successor proceeding.

(6) WIRELESS 9–1–1 SERVICE.—The term ‘‘wireless 9–1–1

service’’ means any 9–1–1 service provided by a wireless carrier,

including enhanced wireless 9–1–1 service.

(7) EMERGENCY DISPATCH PROVIDERS.—The term ‘‘emergency dispatch providers’’ shall include governmental and nongovernmental providers of emergency dispatch services.

Speaker of the House of Representatives.

Vice President of the United States and

President of the Senate.