A Review of the Commercial Mobile Radio Services Board
Executive Summary
The Commercial Mobile Radio Services (CMRS) Board was created in 1998 in response to a Federal Communications Commission mandate to implement throughout all states an enhanced emergency 911 telephone system for cell phone users. The board has the statutory duty to oversee the collection and distribution of a $1 surcharge on every Mississippi cell phone user’s bill. The wireless carriers collect the money from customers, keeping one percent for administrative costs, and remit the remainder to the CMRS Fund, an interest-bearing account.
The board oversees distribution of seventy percent of the funds collected monthly to county emergency communications districts (ECDs), based on the billing address of cell phone users in each county, and administers the cost recovery plan whereby wireless providers seek reimbursement of costs incurred to build a wireless Enhanced 911 (E911) system. An Enhanced 911 Phase I compliant system provides emergency dispatchers with the caller’s telephone number and, in the case of cellular users, the location of the transmitting tower from which the 911 call originates. A Phase II compliant system requires not only the cell phone number, but also the longitude and latitude of the origin of the call.
Weaknesses in Implementation of an Effective Wireless E911 System in Mississippi
Because the CMRS Board lacks express statutory authority to audit wireless providers, oversee county emergency communications district spending, and effectively coordinate implementation through providers, the board does not have the tools necessary to implement an effective wireless E911 system in Mississippi.
Accuracy of Surcharge Collection and Distribution
State law does not authorize the CMRS Board to require registration of wireless providers furnishing service in Mississippi, to verify the amount providers are paying, to charge interest to providers tardy in remitting the surcharge, or to initiate collection proceedings against providers. These factors hinder the CMRS Board in accurate collection and disbursement of surcharge funds.
The CMRS Board does not verify the identity of all providers delivering wireless service in Mississippi and who are thus subject to collecting the one-dollar wireless surcharge for each connection. The board is not authorized by law to verify the number of subscribers (connections) as reported by the providers. Therefore, the board cannot be sure it is receiving all monies due from all providers under Mississippi law.
The CMRS Board also does not have policies and procedures in place to provide assurance to the counties that surcharges are accurately distributed to the appropriate county, nor does it have authority to enforce collection or charge interest when a provider fails to pay in an accurate and timely manner.
Board’s Lack of Oversight Authority over Emergency Communications Districts’ Expenditures
The lack of spending guidelines for emergency communications districts allows use of wireless E911 funds for purposes unrelated to the provision of wireless E911 telephone service. Local emergency communications districts find some direction, however, in official Attorney General’s opinions that interpret wireline E911 laws.
Quicker emergency response time to citizens’ 911 calls was the purpose behind enactment of state 911 laws and thus provides the most direct measure of whether local emergency communications districts’ spending of wireless surcharge funds is appropriate.
The CMRS Board lacks statutory authority to oversee spending of county emergency communications districts. At least two of the ten districts reviewed by PEER have not been spending wireless E911 funds for items directly related to providing wireless E911 service. Although one of the districts has recently halted the practice, the other has continued to spend in this manner.
Board’s Administration of Provider Cost Recovery Process
The CMRS Board lacks statutory authority to coordinate the effective and efficient implementation of wireless E911 capability through the wireless providers’ cost recovery process. The board’s rules for handling cost recovery do not effectively provide for ECD participation, nor do the rules contain sufficient standards to guide the board’s actions. Also, the board has no authority to employ professional staff to assist in reviewing providers’ plans and project costs.
Board’s Accountability on Financial Audit and Reporting Requirements
The CMRS Board has not conducted timely annual audits, nor has it reported to the Legislature as required by law. Also, the board has not conducted a statutorily required cost study designed to compensate providers for actual costs incurred in meeting the FCC wireless E911 mandate. Furthermore, the board has not fully complied with several recommendations by outside auditors in the FY 1999 audit report.
The CMRS Board’s Coordination of Wireless E911 Implementation
The CMRS Board has not coordinated implementation of the E911 system by informing and educating local officials about state and federal law requirements, providers’ responsibilities under state and federal law, and the districts’ role in ensuring wireless E911 access. The lack of board communication with emergency communications districts has resulted in confusion over responsibilities under state and federal law and local districts’ role in designing and implementing wireless E911 systems through the state.
Currently no mechanism exists in state law or practice for determining the status of wireless E911 access throughout the state; therefore, there is no way to assure that the system meets the needs of the local districts or the state as a whole in complying with the federal mandate.
Recommendations
Recommendations for Legislative Action
To help assure effective implementation of Federal Communication Commission mandates regarding access of wireless users to Enhanced 911 emergency communications services, the Legislature should amend MISS. CODE ANN. Section 19-5-333 (1) (1972) to change composition of the CMRS Board by allowing for gubernatorial appointment of a six-member board. The board would be composed of two emergency 911 administrators or coordinators, two wireless provider representatives, one user, and one at-large member. The members should be chosen one from each of five Congressional Districts as existing on January 1, 2001, except for the member chosen at-large. All board members should be appointed with the advice and consent of the Senate. The Executive Director of the Mississippi Department of Information Technology Services should serve as an ex officio member with all voting privileges.
In order to improve board oversight over district expenditures, the Legislature should amend Section 19-5-333, Section 19-5-335, and Section 19-5-307 of MISS. CODE ANN. (1972) to:
Authorize the CMRS Board to develop and administer a statewide wireless E911 implementation plan to achieve the goals of FCC mandate 94-102 and subsequent federal orders regarding wireless E911.
Authorize the CMRS Board to procure administrative staff support contractually, as well as the services of consultants and other professionals, to achieve implementation of FCC wireless E911 requirements. Such arrangements could include contracts with the Mississippi Department of Information Technology Services for technical advisory services (e.g., establishing assistance for the cost recovery subcommittee).
The Legislature should amend MISS. CODE ANN. Section 19-5-307 (1972) to provide that all emergency communications district equipment purchases, including leases or lease-purchases, for implementation or upgrade and enhancement of 911 or E911 services, be made from a products list maintained by the Mississippi Department of Information Technology Services.
The Legislature should amend state law to expressly allow emergency communications districts the power to enter into multi-district agreements, pursuant to a state emergency communications plan, in order to provide wireless E911 service as economically and efficiently as possible to the largest number of subscribers.
To assure accurate and timely collection of surcharges, the Legislature should amend MISS. CODE ANN. Section 19-5-333 (1972) to:
Require all providers supplying wireless telephone service in Mississippi to register annually and upon termination of services with the CMRS Board. Each provider should provide to the CMRS Board its corporate name, the name in which it is marketing services and products to the public, name of a contact person, physical and mailing addresses, and status of E911 capability in those counties in which it provides services.
Authorize audit of providers to assure that each provider is remitting the one-dollar surcharge per connection per month. The audit should be conducted annually of each CMRS provider, with cost to be borne by the provider. The CMRS Board should have discretion as to whether the audit costs shall be reimbursable as part of recurring costs under the cost recovery mechanism established by the CMRS Board.
Authorize the CMRS Board to charge interest to providers who do not remit the surcharge within thirty days of due date. Interest will accrue from the date remittance is due. The CMRS Board should be authorized to initiate legal action against providers who fail to remit the surcharge as and when due. Providers against whom the CMRS Board takes legal action should be liable for all attorneys’ fees in such cases.
Authorize the CMRS Board to reimburse wireless providers for the “reasonable costs” of implementing and upgrading to accommodate wireless E911 service, as outlined by the FCC in 94-102 and subsequent orders, rather than “actual costs,” so that the CMRS Board will have the discretion and flexibility to determine what constitutes reasonable costs and so reimburse providers.
Recommendations for Administrative Action
The CMRS Board should secure the official minutes from the previous board secretary.
The CMRS Board should comply with statutory requirements to complete its annual audit within sixty days of the end of the state fiscal year, as required by law, and report to the chairs of the public utilities committees in each chamber of the Mississippi Legislature, as required by law.
Using existing resources, the CMRS Board should develop its own web site and post each Public Safety Answering Point (PSAP), the wireless E911 capability, and carriers who provide service in each county, so that members of the public can be aware of where wireless E911service is available. The board should also post its administrative rules and regulations on the web site.
The State Department of Audit should develop guidelines to assist emergency communications districts in the appropriate spending of wireless E911 monies, with the parameters of official Attorney General’s opinions in mind as spending limitations.