Congress·In Committee·H.R. 6505

Congress Proposes Upgrading 9-1-1 Systems to Support Text, Photos, and Video for Emergency Calls

Next Generation 9–1–1 Act

2 months ago·View on Congress.gov

Legislative Progress

House

Senate

President

Law

Key Points

This bill creates a grant program to help states and tribes upgrade their 9-1-1 systems to 'Next Generation' technology. This means emergency centers will be able to receive not just phone calls, but also texts, photos, and videos from people in distress.
To receive the funding, states must prove they are using their local 9-1-1 fees correctly and not spending that money on unrelated government projects. They must also create a plan to ensure their systems are reliable and can work seamlessly with neighboring areas.
The policy establishes a new national cybersecurity center specifically for 9-1-1 systems. This center will help local governments protect their emergency networks from hackers and share information about digital threats.
A new advisory board will be formed with 16 members, including police officers, firefighters, and paramedics. This group will provide expert advice on how to best set up these new systems in both big cities and rural towns.
The bill requires that any new technology used must follow open standards, meaning different brands of equipment can work together. This is intended to prevent emergency centers from getting locked into expensive contracts with a single company.

Technology DigitalInfrastructure TransportationNational Security Foreign Policy

Impact Analysis

Personal Impact

Who is affectedScoreImpactCertaintyScopeDurationSentiment

Scores: 1 = low, 5 = highSentiment: -5 to +5 (net benefit)

Milestones

3 milestones5 actions

Jan 15, 2026House

Forwarded by Subcommittee to Full Committee by Voice Vote.

Jan 15, 2026House

Subcommittee Consideration and Mark-up Session Held

Dec 29, 2025House

Referred to the Subcommittee on Communications and Technology.

Dec 9, 2025House

Referred to the House Committee on Energy and Commerce.

Dec 9, 2025

Introduced in House

What Happens Next

Projected impacts based on AI analysis

Within 180 days after enactment

Management plan for the grant program must be submitted to Congress and published online

The public and states will learn how the grant program will work, including how funding will be distributed across the years, setting the stage for applications.

Within 1 year after enactment

Rules for selecting grant recipients are issued after public comment

States, tribes, and other eligible entities will know the specific criteria they must meet to receive funding for upgrading their 9-1-1 systems.

End of fiscal year 2030

Grant funding authorization expires after fiscal year 2030

States and tribes have a window of roughly 5 years to apply for and use federal funds to upgrade their emergency call systems. After that, no new federal dollars are authorized under this program.

Related News

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IAFC The Washington Update·3 months ago

Next Generation 9-1-1 legislation introduced in the House

Representatives Richard Hudson and Troy Carter introduced H.R. 6505 to modernize emergency communications. The bill creates a framework for the NTIA to facilitate the transition to technology that supports voice, video, and text sharing among emergency centers and first responders.