FCC Issues NPRM Regarding VoIP 911 Requirements

On August 25th the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) to implement the requirements of the New and Emerging Technologies 911 Improvement Act of 2008 (NET 911 Act), which was signed into law on July 23, 2008. In sum, the NET 911 Act requires that an “IP-enabled voice service provider that seeks capabilities to provide 911 and enhanced 911 [i.e., E911] service from an entity with ownership or control over such capabilities…shall…have a right of access to such capabilities, including interconnection, to provide 911 and [E911] service on the same rates, terms, and conditions that are provided to a provider of commercial mobile service [CMS].” No later than October 21, 2008, the FCC is required to issue regulations implementing the Act.

With regard to the “capabilities” referenced in the NET 911 Act, the FCC asked for comment on some of the following issues:

• What capabilities are necessary for mobile interconnected Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) providers to comply with their obligations under the NET 911 Act?
• What requirements should be imposed on mobile VoIP providers and their roaming partner when offering mobile VoIP service in a roaming area outside its CMS footprint?
• What requirements should be placed on the roaming partners of dual-mode service providers to provide access to information necessary to employ “last known cell” in a roaming area in the same manner that dual-mode providers use such information when in their own network?
• What capabilities should roaming partners make available to mobile VoIP providers to ensure compliance with applicable 911 and E911 requirements?
• Should wireless carriers be required to provide roaming partners with last-known caller location information necessary for the proper routing of wireless VoIP calls to 911?

With regard to the terms “ownership,” “control,” and “right of access,” as used in the Act, the FCC asked for comment on some of the following issues:

• Who owns and controls each of the capabilities identified in response to the questions above?
• What are the implications of Congress’s direction that IP-enabled voice service providers shall have a right of access to these capabilities “for the exclusive purpose of complying with” their obligations under the NET 911 Act?

With regard to the “rates, terms and conditions” referenced in the NET 911 Act, the FCC asked for comment on some of the following issues:

• Assuming that similar capabilities have varying rates, terms, and conditions, how should the FCC determine what rates, terms, and conditions are to be placed on certain capabilities?
• Is it enough to mandate that those entities owning or controlling the capabilities needed for IP-enabled voice service providers must provide such capabilities at the same rates, terms and conditions offered to CMS providers?

Finally, the FCC asked for comment on some of the following issues specific to IP-enabled services:

• What technical, network security, or information privacy requirements specific to IP-enabled voice services must be taken into account when ensuring that capabilities are available to IP-enabled voice service providers?
• What network security issues do providers of IP-enabled voice services pose for the 911 and E911 networks?
• What steps should the FCC take to ensure IP-enabled voice service providers’ customers’ information is protected during and after a 911 or E911 call?
• Are there particular issues relating to the FCC’s jurisdiction, federal, state, local and private initiatives, or other issues that the FCC should take into consideration when adopting rules?
• Should the FCC delegate authority to enforce any regulations to State commissions or other State or local agencies or programs with jurisdiction over emergency communications?