STAND. COM. REP. NO. 378

                                   Honolulu, Hawaii
                                                     , 1999

                                   RE:  S.B. No. 778
                                        S.D. 1




Honorable Norman Mizuguchi
President of the Senate
Twentieth State Legislature
Regular Session of 1999
State of Hawaii

Sir:

     Your Committee on Commerce and Consumer Protection, to which
was referred S.B. No. 778 entitled: 

     "A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO ENHANCED WIRELESS EMERGENCY
     911 SERVICE,"

begs leave to report as follows:
     
     The purpose of this measure is to establish enhanced 911
service for mobile phones.

     The Police Department of the City and County of Honolulu and
Honolulu Cellular Telephone Company presented testimony in
support of this measure.  The Department of Health and GTE
presented supportive testimony and recommended amendments.  The
Police Department of the County of Kauai and VoiceStream
Wireless, while not present, submitted testimony in support of
the measure.  The Consumer Advocate presented testimony in
opposition.  The Office of Information Practices submitted
written comments.

     Your Committee finds that wireless telephone service and its
usage have become fairly common in Hawaii.  In recognition of the
public service and safety benefits, wireless carriers allow their
customers to make 911 calls without any airtime charges and many
wireless users take advantage of this service.

     However, unlike landline telephone networks with enhanced
911 systems that provide the location and telephone number of the
caller, wireless calls to 911 currently do not have that

 
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capability.  For these calls, the emergency dispatchers must rely
solely on the information provided by the caller in order to
respond to and treat life-threatening situations.

     Passage of this measure will provide significant benefits to
both the wireless phone user and to emergency police, fire, and
ambulance service personnel who must respond in the timeliest
manner possible.

     Your Committee has amended this measure to make technical,
nonsubstantive amendments to reflect the preferred style of
drafting.

     As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your
Committee on Commerce and Consumer Protection that is attached to
this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and
purpose of S.B. No. 778, as amended herein, and recommends that
it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B.
No. 778, S.D. 1, and be referred to the Committee on Ways and
Means.

                                   Respectfully submitted on
                                   behalf of the members of the
                                   Committee on Commerce and
                                   Consumer Protection,



                                   ______________________________
                                   BRIAN KANNO, Co-Chair



                                   ______________________________
                                   BRIAN T. TANIGUCHI, Co-Chair

 
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