Georouting of Text Messages Could Follow 988 Calls Draft Order

The FCC's 988 wireless call georouting draft order on its Oct. 17 open meeting agenda (see 2409250041) opens the possibility of the agency also requiring georouting of text messages. The georouting draft order and the other October agenda item -- a draft order requiring that all wireless handsets be hearing-aid compatible -- were released Thursday. Also on the agenda is an unspecified restricted adjudicatory Media Bureau matter.

The 988 call georouting draft order notes that it doesn't specify a method for aggregating location data, leaving the means to wireless carriers as long as their approaches are compatible with the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline systems. The order gives nationwide carriers 30 days following the effective date of the rule to comply, while non-nationwide providers have a 24-month implementation deadline.

According to the FCC, the estimated cost for implementation of georouting 988 wireless calls is "relatively small." The order said, "Cost-effective 988 wireless call georouting solutions exist in theory and in practice." The agency said the 24-month deadline for non-nationwide providers was aimed at minimizing their financial burden.

Competitive Carriers Association emailed us it "appreciates that the Commission took our members’ input and provides 24 months for non-nationwide provider compliance. This helps members focus their attention and limited resources on implementing all the other regulatory requirements they are working to meet. Hopefully, during those 24 months, consensus 988 georouting methods and reasonable vendor solutions for non-nationwide providers will become available and facilitate deployment.”

Verizon and T-Mobile georoute wireless calls to 988, according to the FCC. AT&T emailed that it "understand[s] the importance of mental health resources and [is] proud to support 988. We’re working diligently to implement geo-routing, so 988 users can access more localized support. While that work proceeds, customers can still access 988 resources based on their phone number’s area code.”

The draft hearing-aid compatibility order provides details about how the U.S. will reach 100% compatibility, with timelines of 24 months for handset makers, 30 months for nationwide carriers and 42 months for non-nationwide providers. The rules are largely based on recommendations of the HAC Task Force, which included representatives of consumers and the wireless industry (see 2212160063). The HAC draft says benefits will exceed costs.

The draft proposed a Bluetooth coupling requirement designed to “benefit consumers by ensuring more universal connectivity between handset models and hearing aids, including over-the-counter hearing aids, and reduces the issue of certain handset models only being able to pair with certain hearing aids.” It proposes a 100% volume control requirement for new handset models after the end of the transition period but also allows manufacturers and carriers to offer models certified under older standards in some cases.

“We are committed to continuing to ensure that our wireless hearing aid compatibility provisions evolve to keep pace with technological advances in the ways handset models pair with hearing aids, and we will continue to monitor and update our ... rules as circumstances warrant,” the draft argues.