Fed Agency, NENA Tackle Lack of 911 System Data

Despite the widespread availability of 911 service in the United States, a just-issued report says a conspicuous lack of detailed data about 911 networks makes it difficult to manage and improve local systems, or to create a national 911 network. In a 24-page report, the National 911 Program office says no one knows precisely how many 911 calls are made, how many public safety answering points (PSAP) answer them, or how much it costs to operate 911 systems. Without that data, the report stays, “It is difficult to know where to focus resources to improve service.” Now the National 911 Office and the National Emergency Number Association (NENA) have begun to tackle this absence of data, adding to the existing National 911 Profile Database and Wireless Deployment Profile maintained by the two groups. The 911 Office and NENA are also working to combine the two collections of data with other sources, and hope to create a more useful view of 911. They also hope to improve 911 data collection—not all states report 911 data to the federal office. Download (pdf) the entire report here for more statistics.

This map is based on the best available data on a county level. Click on the image for a larger view.

This map is based data originally collected in 2011.