April 21, 2003

These are the talking points that NENA officers will be using with reporters in coming weeks [mid-April]. Please refer to these if local reporters call you for a comment on the local aspects of the 9-1-1 "crisis."We encourage you to “rehearse” these talking points with a colleague before speaking with reporters. And please report your media contacts to the NENA national media contacts listed below for follow-up action. To the extent that we can use common terminology and coordinate our local and national messages, it will greatly enhance our effectiveness.

• America’s 9-1-1 system is broken, putting lives and homeland security at risk.
• Far too often, the 9-1-1 system is outdated and poorly coordinated across jurisdictional boundaries.
• The aging system is stressed further by the demands of homeland security and the boom in wireless communications.
• The 9-1-1 system is seriously under-funded, with 9-1-1 fees and taxes being withheld or redirected in many states.
• Congress, the FCC, and the public are demanding solutions.
• If the stakeholders do not act to provide solutions, the government will.
• This issue is so important that members of Congress created a special Caucus to focus attention and action on it.
• Public-private partnerships are the only effective way to solve the crisis.
• The private sector must implement and sustain the technical solutions, in cooperation with the FCC and state and local agencies;
• Federal, state, and local leaders must create a more coordinated administrative framework that balances centralization and diversity;
• The public and private sectors must agree on fair, secure funding mechanisms to modernize and maintain E9-1-1.
• NENA’s members and allies are in the forefront of creating the public-private partnerships that will solve the E9-1-1 crisis.
• NENA has convened a panel of all the key stakeholders and decision makers to identify and implement solutions.
• NENA’s process will result in a detailed “action plan” to modernize and sustain 9-1-1 service with appropriate roles for private and public sectors.
• Representing local 9-1-1 agencies, NENA is committed to work with the stakeholders, the Congressional E9-1-1 Caucus, and the FCC to ensure the long-term viability of the E9-1-1 system.

Also download these materials in Acrobat (pdf) format from NENA's Web site:

• press release: "Local 9-1-1 Call Centers Face a Growing Crisis; Wireless Phones, Budget Strains and Homeland Security Pose Major Challenges"
• paper on "America's Growing 9-1-1 Crisis"
• paper on "'SWAT Team' Takes Aim at 9-1-1 Solutions"
• list of "Wireless 9-1-1 Tragedies"