Political Quotes

“Madam Speaker, I rise in strong support of H.R. 7624, the Spectrum Innovation Act, which includes an updated version of my legislation, the Next Generation 9-1-1 Act. 9-1-1 is a lifeline for Americans in their greatest hour of need. In an emergency, few things are more important than these three numbers when it comes to getting help. And it can often be the difference between life and death. After the horrific attacks on September 11, 2001, I co-founded the E-911 Caucus with Representative John Shimkus and Senators Hillary Clinton and Conrad Burns to support first responders and the public safety community by moving our nation's 9-1-1 services into the 21st Century. Unfortunately, we have not reached our goal and most of the United States' 9-1-1 call centers continue to use legacy technology developed over 50 years ago. The Spectrum Innovation Act will provide $10 billion for states and localities to adopt NG911 technology and help modernize most of our call centers. Next Generation 9-1-1 will harness the power of 21st Century technology to respond to 21st century emergencies. It will allow our 9- 1-1 emergency communication centers to receive real-time location information, text messages, photos, and video from individuals at the scene of an emergency, and to share that information with first responders. It will also make our emergency communication centers more secure, resilient, interoperable, and reliable. The benefits of this technology will help save lives.…”