Will California in This Age of E911 Hosted Solutions Do Away with 911 Call

If the only reason you keep a landline phone -- even with today’s E911 hosted solutions -- is to call 911 in an emergency, you're not alone. And Californians may soon have the option of discarding that entirely.

The Los Angeles Times has reported that California's telephone companies "are lobbying the Legislature to let them abandon large portions of the state's 911 emergency calling system."

“Providing this service under current law is costly and burdensome to the industry, local governments as well as the state,” State Sen. Curren Price, D-Los Angeles, said, contending that low-income residents can get low-cost phone telephone service.

AT&T Inc. and Verizon (News - Alert) Communications – in other words, 90 percent of California's wired phones – are backing a bill to "change a 1995 law that requires them to keep so-called warm lines, capable only of calling a 911 center."

The telephone companies

State legislators "unanimously support the telephone companies," The Times reports, adding that the Senate has passed the measure and the Assembly’s Utilities and Commerce Committee voted for it.

California political reporter John Howard writes that AT&T Spokesperson James Peterson notes that  "A warm line was never intended to be a long-term safety net. This legislation calls for a comprehensive education and outreach program to help ensure consumers who need it know how to access low cost phone service."

For low-income Californians, Peterson says, "the state offers the California Lifeline program, one of the most generous subsidy programs of its kind, with basic phone service for under $5 per month."

The migration to wireless

“As the migration to wireless and IP telephony continues, the challenge of attempting to make the outdated system work will continue to present itself,” Yandell added. “Along the way, provisions will need to be made to ensure that the safety of our nation's citizens is never compromised – not an easy task. 911 ETC is doing what it can to provide expertise and assistance, most recently there in California with the Public Utilities Commission hearing on enhanced 911 for multi-line telephone systems and VoIP within the state."