FCC Approves NG911 Transition Proposal

The FCC approved a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking at its Open Meeting on June 8th aimed at expediting the transition to Next Generation 9-1-1 (“NG911”) (Vol. XX, Issue 21).  The NPRM proposes requiring originating service providers (“OSP”) to complete all translation and routing and to deliver all 911 calls to destination point(s) requested by a 911 authority.  The proposal would also make it the obligation of the OSP to cover the costs of delivering these 911 calls to the point of interconnection selected by the 911 authority.  Wireline and interconnected VoIP would be required to do so six months from the effective date of the IP service delivery requirement or six months after a valid request for IP-based service, whichever is later, while TRS providers would be required to do so twelve months from the later of the two dates.  

State Emergency Alert System Amendment Process Updates

The FCC’s Public Safety and Homeland Security Bureau issued a Public Notice last week announcing amendments to the process State Emergency Communications Committees (“SECCs”) use to amend State Emergency Alert System (“EAS”) Plans.  SECCs may now submit changes to their EAS Plans and seek the Bureau’s approval at any time throughout the year.  The Bureau also clarified that EAS Plans may contain monitoring assignments that are in the process of being carried out but have not yet been fully implemented.  

$151.5 Million in CPF Grants

The Department of the Treasury announced the award of $151.5 million in funding for Mississippi through the Capital Projects Fund (the “Fund”) to increase access to affordable, reliable high-speed internet across the state.  The Broadband Expansion and Accessibility of Mississippi (“BEAM”) fund is a new competitive grant program designed to fund large scale projects, line extensions, and community based broadband projects.  The BEAM fund will prioritize last-mile fiber applicants for the large scale and line extension projects. 

New York Senate Passes Data Privacy Act

Last week, the New York Senate passed the New York Privacy Act (the “Act”), which imposes new obligations on businesses when collecting and processing personal data and provides new rights for New York residents with regard to their data.  The Act outlines consumer rights such as notice of how their data is being processed and sold, the right to opt out, and the right to request access and obtain a copy of their data, among others.  The law would apply to businesses operating in the state with a gross revenue of $25 million or more, process data of over 50,000 consumers or more, or derive more than 50% of gross revenue from the sale of personal data.

Thomas B. Magee, Tracy P. Marshall, Kathleen Slattery Thompson, Sean Stokes and Wesley K. Wright contributed to this article