STAND. COM. REP. 3010

Honolulu, Hawaii

, 2004

RE: H.B. No. 2883

H.D. 2

S.D. 1

 

 

Honorable Robert Bunda

President of the Senate

Twenty-Second State Legislature

Regular Session of 2004

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committees on Transportation, Military Affairs, and Government Operations and Commerce, Consumer Protection and Housing, to which was referred H.B. No. 2883, H.D. 2, entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO WIRELESS ENHANCED 911 SERVICE,"

beg leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this measure is to enact a new law to provide for enhanced 911 services for mobile phones.

Testimony in support of this measure was received from the Department of Accounting and General Services (DAGS), Honolulu Police Department, Verizon Hawaii, Verizon Wireless, AT&T Wireless, T-Mobile USA, Inc., and American Heart Association. Testimony in opposition was received from the Department of Health (to the placing of the law under its administration). Comments were received from the Office of Information Practices.

This measure requires providers and resellers of commercial mobile radio services (wireless telephone communications) to bill and collect from their customers a monthly surcharge at the rate established under this measure. The moneys collected are deposited into a wireless enhanced 911 fund to be used for ensuring adequate cost recovery for the deployment of wireless enhanced 911 service in Hawaii.

This measure is intended to increase wireless 911 services. Your Committees find that statewide enhanced 911 has proven to be a lifesaving service and that routing a 911 call to the appropriate public safety answering point with a display of the caller's identification and location should be available for all users of telecommunications services, regardless of the technology used to make and transmit the 911 call. Your Committees further find that it is in the best public interest to ensure that there is adequate ongoing funding to support enhanced 911 service.

Testimony on this measure indicates that cellular phones have become an essential safety tool for many people, who purchase wireless service to have the benefit of calling 911 when they are away from home. There are many new technologies now available that allow 911 operators to determine the approximate location of a 911 caller from a cellular phone. This critical service, available in other parts of the United States, is not yet available in Hawaii. It is the intent of your Committees that this measure will enable the provision in Hawaii of such advanced technologies.

Your Committees have amended this measure by replacing it with the provisions of S.B. No. 3189, S.D. 1. The measure still provides for enhanced wireless 911 services, with the following changes:

(1) Providing that, for the wireless enhanced 911 board, if two board members have a parent company in common, then the two are entitled to only one vote together;

(2) Specifying that DAGS administer the board;

(3) Allowing DAGS to receive an administrative fee of five per cent of the deposits into the fund;

(4) Making the amount of the surcharge blank;

(5) Exempting land line companies from the audit provision;

(6) Providing for an unspecified allocations from the fund;

(7) Providing for an unspecified rate of surcharge for each commercial mobile radio service connection;

(8) Making the measure effective January 1, 2020; and

(9) Making technical, nonsubstantive amendments.

As affirmed by the records of votes of the members of your Committees on Transportation, Military Affairs, and Government Operations and Commerce, Consumer Protection and Housing that are attached to this report, your Committees are in accord with the intent and purpose of H.B. No. 2883, H.D. 2, as amended herein, and recommend that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as H.B. No. 2883, H.D. 2, S.D. 1, and be referred to the Committee on Ways and Means.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committees on Transportation, Military Affairs, and Government Operations and Commerce, Consumer Protection and Housing,

____________________________

RON MENOR, Chair

____________________________

CAL KAWAMOTO, Chair