Our 9-1-1 system desperately needs federal money for upgrades

Since its inception, 9-1-1 has been a victim of its own success. Ninety-nine percent of the time, it just works, and people ignore it. Government leaders have an “if it’s not broke, why fix it” mentality.

Unfortunately, this approach is short-sighted and puts lives at risk. Simply put, 9-1-1 will increasingly fail to meet the needs of Kentuckians and Americans unless it is upgraded to Next Generation 9-1-1 technology (NG911) — and this can only be achieved through an infusion of federal funding.

Last year, the U.S. Congress had an opportunity to bring 9-1-1 fully into the digital era. However, a proposal that would have allocated $10 billion for NG911 funding was reduced to $470 million, and then set aside.

Now there’s a fresh effort in Congress to provide that funding, and it deserves the support of Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) and every member of the Kentucky delegation.

Every day we postpone the modernization of 9-1-1 is another day of unnecessary risks for all of us.

Historically, the legacy 9-1-1 system has done what it is supposed to do: field emergency calls and dispatch the appropriate response. For more than 50 years, the 9-1-1 community has done its best with an old wheel that ought to be replaced. If we continue to grease an old wheel, no one will hear it squeak. But it will provide a needlessly dangerous ride.

Kentucky is in the midst of its own statewide NG911 transition and can serve as an example of what NG911 can provide to the rest of the country, such as:

▪ Improved call routing and transfers. Automatic call transfers are impossible in a legacy 9-1-1 center. And 9-1-1 is plagued by “misroutes” in which calls to 9-1-1 from mobile phones are relayed to the wrong jurisdiction, which can mean life or death for people in risky situations.

▪ Better interoperability. 9-1-1 data cannot be shared quickly between emergency centers using legacy technology. NG911 would improve interoperability from one 911 center to another — even in another county or state — which would save lives when Kentucky is struck by tornadoes or any other kind of disaster.

▪ Multimedia accessibility. NG911 enables emergency communications centers to receive high-bandwidth files, such as photos or videos, which today must travel over the commercial internet and non-public-safety applications to reach 9-1-1.

▪ Better location accuracy. Legacy 9-1-1 struggles to provide data such as caller location, caller health history, or automated information from sensors or alarms. Mobile devices have robust data capabilities, and 9-1-1 should be able to tap into them.

▪ Increase resiliency and security. NG911 improves end-to-end resiliency, redundancy, and cybersecurity — even amid natural disasters, cyberattacks, or other network outages.

In 2018, the National 9-1-1 Program estimated that $12.7 billion in federal funding was needed to implement NG911 systems across the country. The costs have only risen since then. Anything less than full funding will leave millions of Americans on the wrong side of a 9-1-1 digital divide.

In fact, that’s exactly what we have today: a patchwork quilt of “haves” and “have-nots” in which some larger states and wealthier communities are getting NG911 much sooner than others. This is unacceptable, because citizens have the right to receive the same level of 9-1-1 service whether they are in Alexandria, Virginia or Alexandria, Kentucky.

Jeannie Gwynne is a retired emergency communications professional in the Lexington area and a former state chapter president of NENA-The 9-1-1 Association.