RedSky Blog

The FCC adopted a Report and Order on August 1, 2019. These regulations, which provide rules for Kari's Law and Ray Baum's Act, may be more stringent than current Michigan E911 legislation. 

However, if your state's regulations are in fact more stringent than federal legislation, the state law then takes precedence. In essence, always aim to comply with the more stringent regulations. 

The new FCC regulations are MORE STRINGENT than the current Michigan state law outlines, which we discuss below.

Countdown to Federal E911 Legislation…

Are you prepared for when the new federal E911 legislation goes into effect this September? We will be discussing a different state every Thursday, so you can get the most up-to-date E911 information about your state's requirements, what this means for you, and what you can do to become compliant. This week we are highlighting Pure Michigan. 

Michigan currently requires...

Requirements vary based on number of buildings and square footage. Generally, the specific location of each communications device needs to be provided unless an alternative method of notification and adequate means of signaling and responding to emergencies is maintained 24-hours a day.

MLTS operators in violation of the act after December 31, 2011 may be assessed a fine by the Michigan Public Utilities Commission from $500.00 to $5,000.00 per offense. * E911 legislation is currently in effect in Michigan with a compliance deadline of December 31, 2019. - MCL 484.901 et seq.*

*The House and Senate have approved the extension of this legislation to EOY 2019.

All states now require…

On August 1, 2019, the FCC adopted a Report and Order detailing rules for Kari's Law and the Ray Baum Act. We, at RedSky, are still in the process of distilling every detail outlined in the Report and Order, however it is clear that there will be requirements for automatically providing “dispatchable location” for 9-1-1 calls from MLTS devices.

Additionally, all phones must be able to directly dial 9-1-1 without any additional digit, prefix, or trunk-access code beforehand, such as ‘9'. Furthermore, capable MLTS devices from which 9-1-1 is dialed must provide a notification to a central location at the facility where the system is installed alerting another person or organization to the existence of an emergency call. 

What this means for you and your business...

If you are a business in Michigan, and someone calls 9-1-1 from a phone within your enterprise, there is legislation in place that requires you to provide the exact location of that phone call to the PSAP by the end of the year. The FCC regulations strengthen these rules, and will further outline liabilities in terms of providing direct dialing to 9-1-1 and notification to internal security teams.

Also, as businesses are trending toward mobility, a solution that tracks soft-phone locations and routes remote calls becomes even more imperative. RedSky Technologies does exactly this for your company, so you can continue to expand your business without boundaries while complying with your state, and now federal, legislation. 

We cover…

RedSky works with some of the largest companies in the world, equipping them with technology to confidently grow into the future. We protect some of the largest organizations in the country. The largest insurance companies, banks, governments at local, state, and federal levels, school districts and universities, medical centers, and even airlines all trust RedSky to provide them with comprehensive E911 protection. These companies work with us because we allow them to focus on running and growing their unique organizations, while we focus on building and providing the best E911 solutions.

Are you prepared for E911? Ask your Director of IT / HR about what your plans are for this legislation, and emergency preparedness.