Rau Baum's Act
In 2018, the U.S. Congress passed the Consolidated Appropriations Act in 2018 (H.R. 1625), which included an amended version of the Repack Airwaves Yielding Better Access for Users of Modern Services (RAY BAUM’S) Act of 2018 (H.R. 4986). Also, on August 2, 2019, the FCC released a report and order adopting 911 requirements for multi-line telephone systems (MLTS) related to two federal statutes, Kari’s Law and RAY BAUM’s Act.
RAY BAUM requires telecom service providers to provide their customers with the ability to update their Automatic Location Identification (ALI) street address, with enhanced location data for 911 dispatch usage. This is called dispatchable location, which is the street address of the calling party, and additional information such as room number, floor number, or similar information necessary to adequately identify the location of the calling party.
Begining January 6th, 2021 a communication system must automatically provide the PSAP (the 9-1-1 dispatcher) a “dispatchable location," so the dispatcher can more efficiently and effectively guide first responders to the site of an emergency.
What “dispatchable location” means for your enterprise, as well as how to incorporate this ability into existing communication systems is different for each location and organization.
The Official definition of a “Dispatchable Location” reads as follows: “Section 506 of RAY BAUM’S Act defines “dispatchable location” as “the street address of the calling party, and additional information such as room number, floor number, or similar information necessary to adequately identify the location of the calling party ( Federal Communications Commission (2019)).”
Then & Now
