| Introduced By: Representative Kilmartin |
| Date Introduced: January 22, 1997 |
| Referred To: House Committee on Corporations |
It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows
SECTION 1. Sections 39-21.1-3 and 39-21.1-14 of the General Laws in Chapter 39-21.1 entitled "911 Emergency Telephone Number Act" are hereby amended to read as follows:
39-21.1-3. Definitions. -- As used in this chapter:
(a) "Public agency" means the state government and any unit of local government or special purpose district located in whole or in part within the state which provides or has authority to provide firefighting, law enforcement, ambulance, medical, or other emergency services.
(b) "Public safety agency" means a functional division of a public agency which provides firefighting, law enforcement, ambulance, medical, or other emergency services.
(c) "Private safety agency" means a private entity which provides emergency fire, ambulance, or medical services.
(d) "Public safety answering point (PSAP)" means a communications facility operated on a twenty four (24) hour basis, assigned responsibility to transmit 911 calls to other public safety agencies. It is the first point of reception of a 911 call by a public safety agency and serves the entire state.
(e) "Relay method" means the method of responding to a telephone request for emergency service whereby a public safety answering point notes pertinent information and relays it by telephone to the appropriate public safety agency or other provider of emergency services for dispatch of an emergency service unit.
(f) "Transfer method" means the method of responding to a telephone request for emergency service whereby a public safety answering point transfers the call directly to the appropriate public safety agency or other provider of emergency service for dispatch of an emergency service unit.
(g) "The 911 authority" means the agency of the state government in which responsibility for administering the implementation and operation of 911 system is vested by the general assembly.
(h) "Selective call routing" means a feature that routes a 911 call from a central office to the designated public safety answering point based upon the telephone number of the calling party.
(i) "Automatic number identification (ANI)" means the system capability to identify automatically the calling telephone number and to provide a display of that number at a public safety answering point.
(j) "Automatic location identification (ALI)" means the system capability to identify automatically the geographical location of the telephone being used by the caller and to provide a display of the location information at a public safety answering point.
{ADD (k) "Billable cellular telephone set" means an individual voice or data transmission and reception device which is assigned a number to be used to activate transmission or reception through an intermediary which charges the subscriber-user for its services. For purposes of this chapter, the intermediary facility shall be deemed to be a telephone common carrier. ADD}
39-21.1-14. Funding. -- (a) A monthly surcharge of forty-seven cents ($.47) is hereby levied upon each residence and business main telephone exchange line, including PBX trunks and Centrex equivalent trunks, in the state {ADD and upon each billable cellular telephone set ADD} . The surcharge shall be billed by each telephone common carrier and shall be payable to the telephone common carrier by the subsriber-user of the telephone service.
(b) The amount of the surcharge shall not be subject to the tax imposed under chapter 18 of title 44 of the general laws nor be included within the telephone common carrier's gross earnings for the purpose of computing the tax under chapter 13 of title 44.
(c) Special account established. -- The telephone common carrier shall establish a special account to which it shall deposit on a monthly basis the amounts collected as a surcharge under this section. In determining the amount collected, the telephone common carrier may include a factor for uncollectible billings computed in accordance with its customary business practice.
(d) The money collected by the telephone common carrier shall be transferred within sixty (60) days after the initial imposition of the surcharge and every month thereafter, to the general treasury, together with the accrued interest. The amounts transferred to the general treasury shall be kept in a specifically designated account for the operation of the 911 system only.
(e) Every billed subscriber-user shall be liable for any surcharge imposed under this section until it has been paid to the telephone common carrier. Any surcharge shall be added to and may be stated separately in the billing by the telephone common carrier and shall be collected by the telephone common carrier.
(f) The telephone common carrier shall annually provide the 911 authority or any other agency that may replace it, with a list of amounts uncollected together with the names and addresses of its subscriber-users who can be determined by the common carrier to have not paid the surcharge.
SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon passage.
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This act would include cellular telephone subscribers within the surcharge provisions for the funding of the 911 Emergency Telephone Number Act.
This act would take effect upon passage.
