NENA 2009: The 9-1-1 Conference & Trade Show
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NENA APPLAUDS SENATE CONFIRMATIONS
“NENA is pleased with the Senate’s unanimous confirmation of Julius Genachowski, Chairman of the Federal Communications Commission and Robert M. McDowell for his re-appointment as FCC Commissioner, as well as Larry Strickling, Assistant Secretary for Communications and Information at the Department of Commerce (DOC),” said Craig Whittington, ENP, NENA President.
In his DOC role, Strickling will serve as Administrator of the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA).
"These appointees bring a wealth of government and private sector experience to their positions," Craig Whittington added. "NENA looks forward to working with these leaders to improve our nation's important emergency communications capabilities."
ANSI Approves NENA/APCO Standard for TERT Deployment
Today, NENA and APCO announced the approval of the American National Standard (ANS) to assist public safety answering points (PSAPs) and governing 9-1-1 authorities with the information required for developing, training, equipping and deploying a Telecommunicator Emergency Response Taskforce (TERT) team. The Standard for TERT Deployment, APCO/NENA ANS 1.105.1-2009, was approved by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) on May 29.
NG9-1-1 Integration Demonstrations
NENA Provides NG9-1-1(?) Related Vendor Integration Demonstrations
Enhance 911 Act Rules
National 9-1-1 Office Announces Final Rules for ENHANCE 911 Act Grant Program
Best Practices for Wireline Call Volume Testing
The Alliance for Telecommunications Industry Solutions', (ATIS) Network Interconnection and Interoperability Forum (NIIF) has published a testing process related to Emergency Notification System (ENS) Call Volume over wireline networks. This procedure is available for free from the ATIS NIIF Document Page - click here.
Draft Standard Available for Review
NENA Standard for NG9-1-1 Additional Data is now available for Public Review. With the implementation of NG9-1-1 there will be many forms of additional data available to emergency responders. This document covers the use of additional data associated with a call, a location, a caller and a PSAP.
NENA signs Alliance with IJIS
NENA has signed an Alliance agreement with the IJIS Institute.
The IJIS Institute fosters relationships between industry and government by delivering services and facilitating programs that promote national information technology standards and improve information sharing across jurisdictions at all levels.
NENA Releases Missing Persons Online Course
Earlier this week, NENA introduced the first class in the association’s new Online Education Program. The Missing Persons for Telecommunicators course is designed to give public safety telecommunicators the knowledge and tools necessary to handle calls involving abductions, missing persons, runaway children, or found persons.
NENA Responds to FCC National Broadband Plan Notice
Report: NENA Working to Halt 9-1-1 Fund Raids
From Urgent Communications: Commercial wireless trade association CTIA and NENA have sent a joint letter to Wisconsin Gov. Jim Doyle in an attempt to stop a proposal to transfer $20 million in 911 funds to the state's general fund.... To read the full article, click here.
Proper use of 9-1-1
If you are on the phone and hear “9-1-1, what is your emergency?” the correct answer is never going to be “I don’t have an emergency, but…” As the weather warms up and school lets out, misuse of the 9-1-1 emergency number increases, tying up the phone lines and preventing attention to real emergencies.
“If you know it is not an emergency, then you should be looking up phone numbers or calling Information,” said local dispatcher Zoe Middleton. “Remember you are tying up an emergency line when someone with a true emergency may be trying to call us.”
She said an emergency is an event in progress requiring immediate attention of medical, fire or law enforcement professionals. Examples include a heart attack, serious injury, fire, car accident or burglary in progress.
However, there are plenty of times when 9-1-1 should not be called. A person should think about whether or not there is an immediate danger. If a few extra minutes won’t make a difference, 9-1-1 is the wrong number to use. For example, it is usually inappropriate to call 9-1-1 for information, a ride to an appointment or for an officer to come “scare” a little child into doing their chores.
The remainder of this article is at The Dallas Chonicle

