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Wireless 911 Caller Accuracy Update: Lawmakers Discuss How to Improve Wireless 911 to Protect the Public

Posted January 15, 2026 at 7:32 AM

5G Wireless Infrastructure and Small Cells Zoning, News & Events

As reported by Inside Towers, many of the nation’s 911 emergency call centers are still using legacy technology from the ‘60s and ‘70s. Some are beginning to transition to Next Generation 911 (NG911) via cloud-based systems, which will enable first responders to send and receive images, texts and more information to each other, and to hospital emergency rooms. This enhanced 911 communication upgrade will help save lives.

Significant additional funds are needed to convert all the nation’s 911 call centers to NG911. Access to 911 remains limited in some remote rural areas due to inadequate communications infrastructure, but satellite networks can help in these areas.

The importance of wireless connectivity and services to call 911 cannot be understated. Presently over 240 million calls are made to 911 annually in the United States. And of those 911 calls, nearly 80 percent are made from wireless devices.  Hopefully, US officials will continue to work on the 911 connectivity enhancements that first responders require in order to best serve the public in need of important medical attention.

Click here to read the full article by Inside Towers.

As noted by MM&C Telecommunications Attorney Sean Hughes, “Since the majority of 911 calls are from wireless phones and approximately 76% of adults live in wireless only homes, improving the location of individuals who call 911 from wireless phones is imperative for emergency services and all local governments need to help build telecommunications infrastructure to facilitate these efforts.”

To stay up to date on wireless communications trends, follow Miller, Miller & Canby on LinkedIn.

How MM&C Telecommunications Land Use Attorneys Can Help
The telecommunications land use attorneys at Miller, Miller & Canby are experienced in Maryland, D.C. and Virginia, assisting cell tower companies, wireless carriers, and property owners in processing conditional use applications and other land use/zoning entitlement applications relating to improved wireless and telecommunications infrastructure. We assist wireless infrastructure companies who provide the locations to enhance high speed broadband wireless connectivity and services to wireless customers for all essential, non-essential and emergency communications. 

Sean P. Hughes is an attorney in Miller, Miller & Canby’s Land Use practice group. His career spans more than three decades of focus in zoning and wireless telecommunications and he has represented clients in land use and zoning matters throughout Metropolitan Washington, D.C. To learn more about the firm’s telecommunications practice, click here.

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