House Reconciliation Bill Omits Deal to Fund Critical 9-1-1 Upgrades
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The following is a statement by Brian Fontes, CEO of NENA: The 9-1-1 Association, on last week's vote by the House Energy and Commerce Committee’s for a budget reconciliation bill for FY25 that omits essential funding for 9-1-1 system upgrades.
"Last week, NENA sent a letter to the committee reminding them of their prior bipartisan commitment to using a portion of Federal Communications Commission spectrum auction revenues to upgrade every community to Next Generation 9-1-1 (NG9-1-1). That commitment is absent in the legislation approved early Wednesday, leaving Americans stuck with antiquated, last-century 9-1-1 technology in their time of greatest need. Plus, the system itself is vulnerable to cyberattacks.
"Like any chain, the public safety system is only as strong as its weakest link, and today, the weakest link is 9-1-1. NG9-1-1 is too important to our nation’s security and safety to be left unfunded."
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