BILL ANALYSIS
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | AB 912|
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THIRD READING
Bill No: AB 912
Author: Torres (D)
Amended: 8/17/09 in Senate
Vote: 21
SENATE ENERGY, U.&C. COMMITTEE : 9-2, 7/7/09
AYES: Padilla, Benoit, Calderon, Corbett, Kehoe,
Lowenthal, Simitian, Wiggins, Wright
NOES: Cox, Strickland
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE : 8-4, 8/17/09
AYES: Kehoe, Corbett, Hancock, Leno, Oropeza, Price, Wolk,
Yee
NOES: Cox, Denham, Walters, Wyland
NO VOTE RECORDED: Runner
ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 49-28, 6/3/09 - See last page for vote
SUBJECT : Emergency telephone systems
SOURCE : Author
DIGEST : This bill specifies that a minimum of 0.50
percent of the charges for intrastate telephone
communications services and Voice over Internet Protocol
(VoIP) service to which an existing surcharge applies, be
spent for the costs of administering, operating, and
maintaining the state 911 emergency telephone number
system, including, until December 31, 2011, a maximum of
0.25 percent of the charges for intrastate telephone
CONTINUED
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communications services and VoIP service to which the
surcharge applies for a one time payment to primary Public
Safety Answering Points for personnel costs.
ANALYSIS :
Existing law:
1. Establishes the Warren 911 Act of 1976, which funds for
the telecommunication service between a 911 caller and a
public safety dispatcher.
2. Imposes a surcharge on all intrastate telephone service
that shall be not less than .5 percent and not more than
.75 percent, to provide revenues sufficient to fund 911
emergency telephone system costs.
3. Provides that the Department of General Services (DGS)
determine the annual 911 budget requirement, and
calculates the surcharge.
4. Provides that the all of funds collected under the 911
surcharge account shall be spent solely for the
following purposes:
A. To pay refunds authorized under statute.
B. To pay the Board of Equalization for the cost of
the administration of the 911 funds.
C. To pay DGS for its costs in administration of the
911 emergency telephone system.
D. To pay service suppliers and communications
equipment companies for the installation and ongoing
expenses for systems necessary to operating the 911
energy telephone system.
5. Federal law and regulations require wireless telephone
providers to automatically route 911 calls from mobile
telephones to the appropriate local public safety
dispatcher and to provide the dispatcher with the
location of the telephone if the public safety agency
has requested the transfer of wireless calls.
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Comments
According to the author's office, the purpose of this bill
is to deliver on the promise of the Warren 911 Act to
create a seamless, responsive universal 911 emergency call
program without regard to the technology used by caller
accessing the system. This bill intends to address that
goal by giving local jurisdictions the resources and
incentives they need to accept 911 calls from mobile
telephones so that mobile calls are not initially routed to
the Department of the California Highway Portal before
being dispatched to local emergency officials.
FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: Yes
Local: No
SUPPORT : (Verified 6/1/09) (per Senate Energy, Utilities
and Communications Committee analysis)
Alameda County Sheriff's Office
California Chapter of the National Emergency Number
Association
California State Association of Counties
California State Sheriff's Association
Counties of Del Norte and Santa Cruz
Riverside Sheriff's Association
Sacramento County Sheriff's Department
Sheriff of Amador County
Sheriff of Mariposa County
Sheriff of San Bernardino
Sheriff of Santa Cruz County
Sheriff of Shasta County
Sheriff of Ventura County
Tuolumne County Sheriff's Office
Yolo County Sheriff's Department
OPPOSITION : (Verified 6/1/09) (per Senate Energy,
Utilities and Communications Committee analysis)
AT&T California
Association of Competitive Telecommunications Companies
California Cable and Telecommunications Association
California Communications Association
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CTIA - The Wireless Association
Verizon Wireless
ASSEMBLY FLOOR :
AYES: Ammiano, Arambula, Beall, Blumenfield, Brownley,
Caballero, Charles Calderon, Carter, Chesbro, Coto,
Davis, De La Torre, De Leon, Eng, Evans, Feuer, Fong,
Fuentes, Furutani, Galgiani, Gilmore, Hall, Hayashi,
Hernandez, Hill, Huber, Huffman, Jones, Krekorian, Lieu,
Bonnie Lowenthal, Ma, Mendoza, Monning, Nava, John A.
Perez, V. Manuel Perez, Portantino, Price, Ruskin, Salas,
Saldana, Skinner, Solorio, Swanson, Torlakson, Torres,
Torrico, Bass
NOES: Adams, Anderson, Bill Berryhill, Tom Berryhill,
Blakeslee, Conway, Cook, DeVore, Duvall, Emmerson,
Fletcher, Fuller, Gaines, Garrick, Hagman, Harkey,
Jeffries, Knight, Logue, Miller, Nestande, Niello,
Nielsen, Silva, Smyth, Audra Strickland, Tran, Villines
NO VOTE RECORDED: Block, Buchanan, Yamada
DLW:mw 8/19/09 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE
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