Read Full Article | View Source
RSSFCC Approves 10 Temporary Waivers of 9-1-1 Location Accuracy Rules
The FCC approved waivers of its wireless E9-1-1 location accuracy standards and reporting requirements for 10 rural wireless providers.
Each waiver will terminate six months after the provider receives a request for Phase 2 location data from a public-safety answering point (PSAP). Each waiver is conditioned on the carrier notifying the commission within 30 days of receipt of a valid request for Phase 2 location information from a PSAP.
Under the rules, commercial mobile radio service (CMRS) providers must meet increasingly stringent wireless 9-1-1 location accuracy metrics at periodic benchmarks. Providers must also periodically report aggregated data on the location technologies used in their networks for live 9-1-1 calls, both indoor and outdoor.
Nationwide CMRS providers must file quarterly reports aggregating live 9-1-1 call data from six representative cities, known as test cities. Every six months, non-nationwide CMRS providers must report live 9-1-1 call data, either for one or more of the test cities or for the largest county in their footprint, depending on the area served by the provider. Within 60 days after each location accuracy benchmark date, all CMRS providers must certify their compliance with the location accuracy requirements as of the benchmark date.
The carriers who requested the waivers are small, rural wireless providers and said that the PSAPs in their service areas are either not capable of receiving E9-1-1 Phase 2 location data or have not requested that the carriers provide Phase 2 location data. The carriers said they will provide the location data required by the rules upon request from a capable PSAP, but until then, they requested a waiver of the indoor location accuracy benchmarks and reporting requirements.
The FCC determined that the public interest would not be served by requiring the carriers to supply the enhanced location information to PSAPs that are incapable of receiving it and therefore, approved the petitions.
The carriers receiving the waivers are AST Telecom, Bristol Bay Cellular Partnership, Choice Wireless, Copper Valley Wireless, Docomo Pacific, Manti Tele Communications, PTI Pacifica, TelAlaska Cellular, Windy City Cellular and WUE.
Find the full order here.
Would you like to comment on this story? Find our comments system below.
