An act to amend the Communications Act of 1934 to require multi-line telephone systems to have a configuration that permits users to directly initiate a call to 9-1-1 without dialing any additional digit, code, prefix, or post-fix, and for other purposes
PL 115-127 (H.R.582), enacted 02/16/2018

132 STAT. 326 
PUBLIC LAW 115–127—FEB. 16, 2018 
Public Law 115–127 
115th Congress 
An Act 
To amend the Communications Act of 1934 to require multi-line telephone systems 
to have a configuration that permits users to directly initiate a call to 9–1– 
1 without dialing any additional digit, code, prefix, or post-fix, 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 ‘‘Kari’s Law Act of 2017’’. 
SEC. 2. CONFIGURATION OF MULTI-LINE TELEPHONE SYSTEMS FOR 
DIRECT DIALING OF 9–1–1. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Title VII of the Communications Act of 1934 
(47 U.S.C. 601 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the 
following: 
‘‘SEC. 721. CONFIGURATION OF MULTI-LINE TELEPHONE SYSTEMS FOR 
DIRECT DIALING OF 9–1–1. 
‘‘(a) SYSTEM MANUFACTURE, IMPORTATION, SALE, AND LEASE.— 
A person engaged in the business of manufacturing, importing, 
selling, or leasing multi-line telephone systems may not manufac-
ture or import for use in the United States, or sell or lease or 
offer to sell or lease in the United States, a multi-line telephone 
system, unless such system is pre-configured such that, when prop-
erly installed in accordance with subsection (b), a user may directly 
initiate a call to 9–1–1 from any station equipped with dialing 
facilities, without dialing any additional digit, code, prefix, or post- 
fix, including any trunk-access code such as the digit ‘9’, regardless 
of whether the user is required to dial such a digit, code, prefix, 
or post-fix for other calls. 
‘‘(b) SYSTEM INSTALLATION, MANAGEMENT, AND OPERATION.— 
A person engaged in the business of installing, managing, or oper-
ating multi-line telephone systems may not install, manage, or 
operate for use in the United States such a system, unless such 
system is configured such that a user may directly initiate a call 
to 9–1–1 from any station equipped with dialing facilities, without 
dialing any additional digit, code, prefix, or post-fix, including any 
trunk-access code such as the digit ‘9’, regardless of whether the 
user is required to dial such a digit, code, prefix, or post-fix for 
other calls. 
‘‘(c) ON-SITE NOTIFICATION.—A person engaged in the business 
of installing, managing, or operating multi-line telephone systems 
shall, in installing, managing, or operating such a system for use 
in the United States, configure the system to provide a notification 
47 USC 623 note. 
Kari’s Law Act 
of 2017. 
47 USC 609 note. 
Feb. 16, 2018 
[H.R. 582] 
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132 STAT. 327 
PUBLIC LAW 115–127—FEB. 16, 2018 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY—H.R. 582 (S. 123): 
SENATE REPORTS: No. 115–124 (Comm. on Commerce, Science, and Transporta-
tion) accompanying S. 123. 
CONGRESSIONAL RECORD: 
Vol. 163 (2017): Jan. 23, considered and passed House. 
Vol. 164 (2018): Feb. 5, considered and passed Senate, amended. 
Feb. 8, House concurred in Senate amendment. 
to a central location at the facility where the system is installed 
or to another person or organization regardless of location, if the 
system is able to be configured to provide the notification without 
an improvement to the hardware or software of the system. 
‘‘(d) EFFECT ON STATE LAW.—Nothing in this section is intended 
to alter the authority of State commissions or other State or local 
agencies with jurisdiction over emergency communications, if the 
exercise of such authority is not inconsistent with this Act. 
‘‘(e) ENFORCEMENT.—This section shall be enforced under title 
V, except that section 501 applies only to the extent that such 
section provides for the punishment of a fine. 
‘‘(f) MULTI-LINE TELEPHONE SYSTEM DEFINED.—In this section, 
the term ‘multi-line telephone system’ has the meaning given such 
term in section 6502 of the Middle Class Tax Relief and Job Creation 
Act of 2012 (47 U.S.C. 1471).’’. 
(b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made by subsection (a) 
shall apply with respect to a multi-line telephone system that 
is manufactured, imported, offered for first sale or lease, first sold 
or leased, or installed after the date that is 2 years after the 
date of the enactment of this Act. 
Approved February 16, 2018. 
47 USC 623 note. 
Applicability. 
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