R48015 — Funding the Transition to Next Generation 911 (NG911): Considerations for Congress

In times of crisis, people call 911 to receive emergency assistance. For decades, the 911 system has operated using legacy infrastructure (i.e., telephone calls through the public switched telephone network). In the 2000s, local governments and public safety officials identified the need to keep pace with emerging communications technologies and communication formats that consumers use in daily life (e.g., texts, videos, photos). As such, some public safety answering points (PSAPS, also known as 911 centers) are upgrading their infrastructure to Internet Protocol (IP)-based systems—referred to as Next Generation 911 (NG911). When fully transitioned, NG911 is anticipated to enhance emergency response service, making it easier for the public to report emergency needs and for first responders to receive rich information. This includes multimedia transmissions—such as text messages, streaming video, and photos—directly from the public to PSAPs, which can enhance situational awareness for 911 telecommunicators in dispatching emergency response. Additionally, NG911 allows for interoperability with other PSAPs so that calls can be transferred to other centers for response—for example, in the event of call overload during a disaster—and also for interconnection with the First Responder Network Authority (FirstNet) to seamlessly transfer data directly from PSAPs to first responders in the field. State and local governments exercise authority over 911 system funding and operations, leading to varying levels of progress across the United States toward NG911 upgrades. Some states have fully transitioned 911 networks to IP-based systems, others are in the midst of doing so, and a few have not yet begun the transition. Although most of the funding for upgrades comes from state and local sources (i.e., surcharge fees and general funds), the federal government has occasionally provided grant funding to support local 911 upgrades. In 2004, the Ensuring Needed Help Arrives Near Callers Employing 911 Act of 2004 (ENHANCE 911 Act; P.L. 108-494) provided $43.5 million to states to improve 911 services. In 2012, in the Middle Class Tax Relief and Job Creation Act of 2012 (P.L. 112-96, Title VI), Congress authorized the use of $115 million in future spectrum auctions for a grant program to improve 911 services. It is uncertain how much a full, nationwide transition from legacy 911 infrastructure to NG911 will ultimately cost. A 2018 report to Congress by two federal agencies estimated costs of between $9.5 billion and $12.7 billion over 10 years to expand NG911 capabilities to all 911 call centers in the United States, which is currently estimated to be $12.8 billion to $16.9 billion when adjusted for inflation. A full nationwide transition may require financial resources beyond amounts collected by states through surcharge fees and general funds. Members have introduced legislation to provide federal funding for NG911 in the 118th Congress. These legislative proposals include the Next Generation 911 Act of 2023 (H.R. 1784), which would appropriate $15 billion for NG911 grants; S. 2712 (“A bill to provide funding for the deployment of Next Generation 911, and for other purposes”), which would appropriate $10 billion for NG911 grants; and the Spectrum Auction Reauthorization Act of 2023 (H.R. 3565), which would set aside $14.8 billion in spectrum auction proceeds in a trust fund for NG911 grants. There are potential considerations for Congress if it were to provide transition funding through appropriations or spectrum auction proceeds. If Congress chooses to provide funding, options include providing a large, one-time appropriation that concludes once the funding is expended and supporting NG911 through annual appropriations. If Congress chooses to use spectrum auction proceeds to support the transition to NG911, it would need to reinstate the Federal Communications Commission’s spectrum auction authority, which expired in March 2023. Other policy issues for Congress may include appropriate federal agency roles in a NG911 grant program; 911 fee diversion by states for non-public-safety uses—which could negatively affect public safety operations and make states ineligible for federal NG911 grants; and interconnection with FirstNet, an IP-based nationwide broadband network dedicated to public safety use, to enhance public safety by providing a seamless communications environment connecting the public, PSAPs, and first responders.

Curated by CRS — every bill listed in this report's relatedMaterials. Edge type cited_in_report, gold confidence.

• HR 3565 — Spectrum Auction Reauthorization Act of 2023 · 118th Cong
• S 2712 — A bill to provide funding for the deployment of Next Generation 9-1-1, and for other purposes. · 118th Cong
• HR 1784 — Next Generation 9–1–1 Act of 2023 · 118th Cong
• HR 2617 — Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2023 · 117th Cong