For the millions of Americans who have dialed 911, these are the familiar and comforting words we hear upon placing the call.
asserted
we → dial → call
It is the question that guides us through a moment of chaos or crisis, the linchpin to saving lives and protecting health.
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that → guide → health
But in recent years, an increasing number of 911 callers have heard something a little different:
“911, where is your emergency?”
asserted
emergency → increase → something
It is very nearly the same question, but the slight change underscores vast differences in people’s experiences seeking help in an emergency.
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change → underscore → emergency
In an era when parents can monitor their children’s movements in real time, and ride-share drivers know the precise corner to stop, many Americans may be surprised to learn a sobering truth: the 911 professionals who answer the phone are often unable to automatically pinpoint a caller’s precise location, and cannot always rely on callers themselves to provide it.
uncertain
who → monitor → it
The extra time it takes to figure out exactly where to send help, even if it’s a few extra seconds, costs lives.
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it → take → lives
But the United States has let our 911 emergency response system languish for decades, failing to make the necessary investments to bring it into the digital age.
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system → let → age
Upgrading 911 technology should be a national priority, and Congress must provide sufficient funding to ensure it works in every community.
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it → upgrade → community
When America’s 911 system launched in 1968, it was built to serve people calling from landlines at fixed locations.
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it → launch → locations
Callers were tracked using address directories that listed the location of the phone they were calling from.
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they → track → phone
As a result, emergency personnel could be dispatched almost immediately.
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personnel → dispatch → result
It made sense, and it worked fast.
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it → make → sense
Nearly 60 years later, we are living in a completely different era.
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we → live → era
In 2024, more than three-quarters of 911 calls came via either cellphones or Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) and other wireless voice services.
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quarters → come → cellphones
Since some states do not break down calls by service type, that number is likely even higher.
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number → break → type
By contrast, only about 7% came from landlines.
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% → come → landlines
In many states, landlines now account for less than 5% of 911 calls.
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landlines → account → calls
That number is likely to decline further in the years ahead.
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number → decline → years
Our current 911 system isn’t built for this.
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system → build → this
Often, a 911 professional can trace a call only to the cell tower that received it, which can be a fair distance from a caller’s exact location.
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which → trace → location
As many as 20% or more of calls are traced to the wrong tower.
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20 → trace → tower
Unlike apps like Google Maps or Life360 that can continuously track a phone’s precise location, 911 call takers must rely on carrier data when the call was first made.
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call → track → data
Updates come in 20- to 30-second intervals.
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Updates → come → intervals
If the call needs to be transferred, this process must start from scratch.
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process → need → scratch
This wastes precious time.
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This → waste → time
Asking “where is your emergency” may sound like an easy fix, but that incorrectly assumes a caller can always answer the question.
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caller → ask → question
They may be navigating imminent danger, such as an intruder or attacker, that prevents them from sharing.
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that → navigate → them
They may give the wrong address, or they may move locations from the moment a call is placed to the time help arrives.
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help → give → time
Even the emergency data that may be stored in a person’s cell phone for precisely such a circumstance can’t be accessed by call takers or dispatchers.
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that → store → takers
Simply put, our nation’s 911 system is rapidly becoming obsolete.
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system → put → ?
Past attempts to fix these errors have failed.
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attempts → fix → errors
The ENHANCE 911 Act, enacted in 2004, authorized up to $250 million in annual federal grants to help states upgrade their 911 systems.
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states → enact → systems
But those appropriations were never made.
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appropriations → make → ?
Other funding opportunities for states wound up being far smaller.
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opportunities → wind → states
Ultimately, the legislation was not reauthorized by Congress, and national funding efforts dried up.
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efforts → reauthorize → Congress
In recent years, federal funding for 911 upgrades has ground to a halt.
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funding → grind → halt
Congress should right this wrong by fully funding NextGen 911 services, which would provide 911 professionals and Emergency Communications Centers with the life-saving information they need—such as accurate location information—to do their jobs.
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they → right → jobs
Thirty-eight states have pledged to upgrade to NextGen 911.
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states → pledge → NextGen
If fully implemented, 911 would shift from an analog relic to an Internet Protocol-based system.
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911 → implement → system
That would allow for more advanced communication technologies, including receiving 911 “calls” via text or video, that would be especially useful for 911 callers who are either unaware of or unable to share their location.
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who → allow → location
…and 6 more, not listed.
