§ 12.4   Reliability of covered 911 service providers.

   (a) Definitions. Terms in this section shall have the following meanings:

   (1) Aggregation point. A point at which network monitoring data for a 911
   service area is collected and routed to a network operations center (NOC) or
   other location for monitoring and analyzing network status and performance.

   (2) Certification. An attestation by a certifying official, under penalty of
   perjury, that a covered 911 service provider:

   (i) Has satisfied the obligations of paragraph (c) of this section.

   (ii) Has adequate internal controls to bring material information regarding
   network  architecture,  operations,  and maintenance to the certifying
   official's attention.

   (iii) Has made the certifying official aware of all material information
   reasonably necessary to complete the certification.

   (iv) The term “certification” shall include both an annual reliability
   certification under paragraph (c) of this section and an initial reliability
   certification under paragraph (d)(1) of this section, to the extent provided
   under paragraph (d)(1) of this section.

   (3)  Certifying official. A corporate officer of a covered 911 service
   provider with supervisory and budgetary authority over network operations in
   all relevant service areas.

   (4) Covered 911 service provider.

   (i) Any entity that:

   (A)  Provides  911,  E911, or NG911 capabilities such as call routing,
   automatic location information (ALI), automatic number identification (ANI),
   or the functional equivalent of those capabilities, directly to a public
   safety  answering  point (PSAP), statewide default answering point, or
   appropriate local emergency authority as defined in § § 64.3000(b) and 20.3 of
   this chapter; and/or

   (B) Operates one or more central offices that directly serve a PSAP. For
   purposes of this section, a central office directly serves a PSAP if it
   hosts a selective router or ALI/ANI database, provides equivalent NG911
   capabilities, or is the last service-provider facility through which a 911
   trunk or administrative line passes before connecting to a PSAP.

   (ii) The term “covered 911 service provider” shall not include any entity
   that:

   (A) Constitutes a PSAP or governmental authority to the extent that it
   provides 911 capabilities; or

   (B) Offers the capability to originate 911 calls where another service
   provider delivers those calls and associated number or location information
   to the appropriate PSAP.

   (5) Critical 911 circuits. 911 facilities that originate at a selective
   router or its functional equivalent and terminate in the central office that
   serves  the  PSAP(s)  to  which the selective router or its functional
   equivalent  delivers 911 calls, including all equipment in the serving
   central office necessary for the delivery of 911 calls to the PSAP(s).
   Critical 911 circuits also include ALI and ANI facilities that originate at
   the ALI or ANI database and terminate in the central office that serves the
   PSAP(s) to which the ALI or ANI databases deliver 911 caller information,
   including all equipment in the serving central office necessary for the
   delivery of such information to the PSAP(s).

   (6)  Diversity audit. A periodic analysis of the geographic routing of
   network  components  to determine whether they are physically diverse.
   Diversity audits may be performed through manual or automated means, or
   through a review of paper or electronic records, as long as they reflect
   whether critical 911 circuits are physically diverse.

   (7)  Monitoring  links.  Facilities  that collect and transmit network
   monitoring data to a NOC or other location for monitoring and analyzing
   network status and performance.

   (8) Physically diverse. Circuits or equivalent data paths are Physically
   Diverse if they provide more than one physical route between end points with
   no common points where a single failure at that point would cause both
   circuits to fail. Circuits that share a common segment such as a fiber-optic
   cable or circuit board are not Physically diverse even if they are logically
   diverse for purposes of transmitting data.

   (9) 911 service area. The metropolitan area or geographic region in which a
   covered 911 service provider operates a selective router or the functional
   equivalent to route 911 calls to the geographically appropriate PSAP.

   (10) Selective router. A 911 network component that selects the appropriate
   destination PSAP for each 911 call based on the location of the caller.

   (11) Tagging. An inventory management process whereby critical 911 circuits
   are labeled in circuit inventory databases to make it less likely that
   circuit rearrangements will compromise diversity. A covered 911 service
   provider may use any system it wishes to tag circuits so long as it tracks
   whether critical 911 circuits are physically diverse and identifies changes
   that would compromise such diversity.

   (b) Provision of reliable 911 service. All covered 911 service providers
   shall take reasonable measures to provide reliable 911 service with respect
   to circuit diversity, central-office backup power, and diverse network
   monitoring. Performance of the elements of the certification set forth in
   paragraphs (c)(1)(i), (c)(2)(i), and (c)(3)(i) of this section shall be
   deemed to satisfy the requirements of this paragraph. If a covered 911
   service provider cannot certify that it has performed a given element, the
   Commission may determine that such provider nevertheless satisfies the
   requirements of this paragraph based upon a showing in accordance with
   paragraph (c) of this section that it is taking alternative measures with
   respect to that element that are reasonably sufficient to mitigate the risk
   of failure, or that one or more certification elements are not applicable to
   its network.

   (c) Annual reliability certification. One year after the initial reliability
   certification described in paragraph (d)(1) of this section and every year
   thereafter, a certifying official of every covered 911 service provider
   shall submit a certification to the Commission as follows.

   (1) Circuit auditing. (i) A covered 911 service provider shall certify
   whether it has, within the past year:

   (A) Conducted diversity audits of critical 911 circuits or equivalent data
   paths to any PSAP served;

   (B)  Tagged  such  critical  911 circuits to reduce the probability of
   inadvertent loss of diversity in the period between audits; and

   (C) Eliminated all single points of failure in critical 911 circuits or
   equivalent data paths serving each PSAP.

   (ii) If a covered 911 service provider does not conform with the elements in
   paragraph (c)(1)(i)(C) of this section with respect to the 911 service
   provided to one or more PSAPs, it must certify with respect to each such
   PSAP:

   (A)  Whether it has taken alternative measures to mitigate the risk of
   critical 911 circuits that are not physically diverse or is taking steps to
   remediate any issues that it has identified with respect to 911 service to
   the  PSAP,  in which case it shall provide a brief explanation of such
   alternative  measures  or such remediation steps, the date by which it
   anticipates such remediation will be completed, and why it believes those
   measures are reasonably sufficient to mitigate such risk; or

   (B)  Whether  it believes that one or more of the requirements of this
   paragraph are not applicable to its network, in which case it shall provide
   a brief explanation of why it believes any such requirement does not apply.

   (2) Backup power. (i) With respect to any central office it operates that
   directly serves a PSAP, a covered 911 service provider shall certify whether
   it:

   (A) Provisions backup power through fixed generators, portable generators,
   batteries, fuel cells, or a combination of these or other such sources to
   maintain  full-service  functionality,  including  network  monitoring
   capabilities, for at least 24 hours at full office load or, if the central
   office hosts a selective router, at least 72 hours at full office load;
   provided,  however, that any such portable generators shall be readily
   available within the time it takes the batteries to drain, notwithstanding
   potential demand for such generators elsewhere in the service provider's
   network.

   (B) Tests and maintains all backup power equipment in such central offices
   in accordance with the manufacturer's specifications;

   (C) Designs backup generators in such central offices for fully automatic
   operation and for ease of manual operation, when required;

   (D) Designs, installs, and maintains each generator in any central office
   that is served by more than one backup generator as a stand-alone unit that
   does  not  depend  on  the  operation  of another generator for proper
   functioning.

   (ii) If a covered 911 service provider does not conform with all of the
   elements  in paragraph (c)(2)(i) of this section, it must certify with
   respect to each such central office:

   (A) Whether it has taken alternative measures to mitigate the risk of a loss
   of service in that office due to a loss of power or is taking steps to
   remediate any issues that it has identified with respect to backup power in
   that office, in which case it shall provide a brief explanation of such
   alternative  measures  or such remediation steps, the date by which it
   anticipates such remediation will be completed, and why it believes those
   measures are reasonably sufficient to mitigate such risk; or

   (B)  Whether  it believes that one or more of the requirements of this
   paragraph are not applicable to its network, in which case it shall provide
   a brief explanation of why it believes any such requirement does not apply.

   (3) Network monitoring. (i) A covered 911 service provider shall certify
   whether it has, within the past year:

   (A) Conducted diversity audits of the aggregation points that it uses to
   gather network monitoring data in each 911 service area;

   (B) Conducted diversity audits of monitoring links between aggregation
   points and NOCs for each 911 service area in which it operates; and

   (C) Implemented physically diverse aggregation points for network monitoring
   data in each 911 service area and physically diverse monitoring links from
   such aggregation points to at least one NOC.

   (ii) If a Covered 911 service provider does not conform with all of the
   elements in paragraph (c)(3)(i)(C) of this section, it must certify with
   respect to each such 911 service area:

   (A)  Whether it has taken alternative measures to mitigate the risk of
   network monitoring facilities that are not physically diverse or is taking
   steps to remediate any issues that it has identified with respect to diverse
   network monitoring in that 911 service area, in which case it shall provide
   a brief explanation of such alternative measures or such remediation steps,
   the date by which it anticipates such remediation will be completed, and why
   it believes those measures are reasonably sufficient to mitigate such risk;
   or

   (B)  Whether  it believes that one or more of the requirements of this
   paragraph are not applicable to its network, in which case it shall provide
   a brief explanation of why it believes any such requirement does not apply.

   (d) Other matters. (1) Initial reliability certification. One year after
   October  15,  2014, a certifying official of every covered 911 service
   provider  shall certify to the Commission that it has made substantial
   progress  toward  meeting  the  standards  of  the  annual reliability
   certification  described in paragraph (c) of this section. Substantial
   progress in each element of the certification shall be defined as compliance
   with standards of the full certification in at least 50 percent of the
   covered 911 service provider's critical 911 circuits, central offices that
   directly serve PSAPs, and independently monitored 911 service areas.

   (2) Confidential treatment. (i) The fact of filing or not filing an annual
   reliability certification or initial reliability certification and the
   responses on the face of such certification forms shall not be treated as
   confidential.

   (ii) Information submitted with or in addition to such certifications shall
   be presumed confidential to the extent that it consists of descriptions and
   documentation  of  alternative  measures  to  mitigate  the  risks  of
   nonconformance with certification elements, information detailing specific
   corrective  actions  taken  with respect to certification elements, or
   supplemental information requested by the Commission or Bureau with respect
   to a certification.

   (3) Record retention. A covered 911 service provider shall retain records
   supporting the responses in a certification for two years from the date of
   such certification, and shall make such records available to the Commission
   upon request. To the extent that a covered 911 service provider maintains
   records in electronic format, records supporting a certification hereunder
   shall be maintained and supplied in an electronic format.

   (i) With respect to diversity audits of critical 911 circuits, such records
   shall include, at a minimum, audit records separately addressing each such
   circuit,  any internal report(s) generated as a result of such audits,
   records  of  actions  taken pursuant to the audit results, and records
   regarding any alternative measures taken to mitigate the risk of critical
   911 circuits that are not physically diverse.

   (ii) With respect to backup power at central offices, such records shall
   include, at a minimum, records regarding the nature and extent of backup
   power  at each central office that directly serves a PSAP, testing and
   maintenance records for backup power equipment in each such central office,
   and records regarding any alternative measures taken to mitigate the risk of
   insufficient backup power.

   (iii) With respect to network monitoring, such records shall include, at a
   minimum, records of diversity audits of monitoring links, any internal
   report(s) generated as a result of such audits, records of actions taken
   pursuant  to  the audit results, and records regarding any alternative
   measures taken to mitigate the risk of aggregation points and/or monitoring
   links that are not physically diverse.

   [ 79 FR 3131 , Jan. 17, 2014, as amended at  79 FR 7589 , Feb. 10, 2014;  80 FR 10619 , Feb. 27, 2015]

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