[HISTORY: Adopted by the County Legislature of the County of Sullivan 4-18-2002
by L.L. No. 1-2002. Amendments noted where applicable.]
GENERAL REFERENCES
Emergency telephone service surcharge — See Ch. 110.
This chapter shall be known as the "Sullivan County Wireless 911 Call
Routing Law."
This chapter is enacted under authority of § 10 of the Municipal
Home Rule Law of the State of New York, Article IX of the State Constitution
of New York, the County Law, and other applicable statutory and decisional
law.
A.
The Sullivan County Legislature recognizes the paramount
importance of the health, safety and welfare of the citizens of the County
and further recognizes that when the lives or property of its citizens are
in imminent danger that appropriate assistance must be rendered as expeditiously
as possible.
B.
The Sullivan County Legislature recognizes further that
such assistance is increasingly summoned by wireless communications, including
but not limited to cellular phones, and that unintentional, though avoidable,
delays in reaching appropriate emergency aid can and do occur to the detriment
and jeopardy of life and property when such wireless 911 calls from within
Sullivan County are routed to anywhere other than directly to the Sullivan
County 911 Center (E911).
C.
The Sullivan County Legislature further finds that a
major obstacle to the prompt response to emergency wireless requests for assistance
in Sullivan County is the failure of one or more wireless telephone service
suppliers to directly route such calls to the Sullivan County 911 Center (E911).
D.
The Sullivan County Legislature further finds that the
Sullivan County 911 Center (E911) has the most accurate, current and extensive
knowledge of Sullivan County's geography, roadways, landmarks, emergency
service resources and similar information of critical importance in emergency
situations and can immediately dispatch the number and type of emergency services
the situation requires.
E.
The Sullivan County Legislature further finds and declares
that, by the enactment of the provisions of this chapter, it is the intent
of the Legislature to fulfill its obligation to provide for the health, safety
and welfare of the people of this County by mandating the direct routing of
all 911 calls, including wireless calls, by service suppliers directly to
the Sullivan County 911 Center (E911) so as to facilitate the rendering of
emergency services as expeditiously and effectively as possible.
As used in this chapter, the following terms shall have the meanings
indicated:
The site designated and operated by the County of Sullivan for the
purpose of receiving emergency calls (currently located at the Sullivan County
International Airport), including those from a wireless telephone service,
and dispatching needed emergency services.
All commercial mobile services, as that term is defined in Section
332(d) of Title 47, United States Code, including all broadband personal communications
services, wireless radio telephone services, geographic area specialized and
enhanced specialized mobile radio services, and incumbent wide-area specialized
mobile radio licenses, which offer real-time, two-way voice service that is
interconnected with the public switched telephone network.
Any corporation or person as defined in § 1080 of the Tax
Law, which provides wireless telephone service in New York State.
All wireless telephone service suppliers doing business in Sullivan
County shall route all 911 emergency calls to the Sullivan County 911 Center
(E911).
A.
No wireless telephone service supplier shall knowingly fail to route wireless 911 telephone calls originating within Sullivan County to the Sullivan County 911 Center (E911) as required by § 189-5 above.
B.
No owner, official, employee or agent of a wireless telephone supplier shall design, implement, arrange or cause, either directly or indirectly, a process or activity whereby 911 calls are routed other than as provided by § 189-5 above.
C.
No person or entity shall either directly or indirectly
solicit, suggest, implore, agree, or otherwise take action so as to cause
or seek to cause a wireless telephone service supplier to route wireless 911
calls from within Sullivan County to any destination other than the Sullivan
County 911 Center (E911).
Any person or entity violating this chapter shall be guilty of an unclassified
misdemeanor and shall be subject to a fine not exceeding five hundred dollars
and/or to a period of confinement in the Sullivan County Jail for a period
not to exceed three months for each offense. For purposes of this chapter,
each improperly routed 911 call shall constitute a separate offense.
