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Homeland security warns removing local carrier seat could hollow NG911 expertise from EMS oversight
Summary
The homeland security office urged the legislature not to strip the incumbent local exchange carrier seat, arguing carrier expertise is essential for NG911 resilience and life‑safety communications restoration during disasters.
Esther JC Agague, homeland security adviser, told the committee that removing the incumbent local exchange carrier seat from the EMS Commission risks leaving the body without technical expertise for the NG911 transition and for communications restoration after disasters. "If the call does not connect, nothing downstream matters," Agague said, urging at least an advisory role for the carrier to preserve network resilience and restoration knowledge.
Agague proposed that the commission either retain carrier representation or include a defined advisory role for carrier technical expertise in the bill’s language. Committee members asked whether contractor arrangements or current NG911 providers (Agague named DOCOMO as the NG911 provider) would substitute for a statutory carrier seat; the committee agreed to review language that preserves technical input while balancing licensing board functions.
