Today, the House Energy & Commerce Communications and Technology Subcommittee marked up the “Reinforcing and Evaluating Service Integrity, Local Infrastructure, and Emergency Notification for Today’s Networks Act (RESILIENT Networks Act).” The bill would improve network resiliency in times of emergency. Public Knowledge supports the bill and commends Committee Chairman Frank Pallone (D-NJ) and Rep. Jerry McNerney (D-CA) for refusing to leave any American behind in the digital era.
The following can be attributed to Jenna Leventoff, Senior Policy Counsel at Public Knowledge:
“For a resident facing a natural disaster, there is little scarier or more stressful than being unable to communicate with first responders and loved ones because communications networks are down. In some cases, the lack of communication can lead to death. For these reasons, we are thrilled to see the RESILIENT Networks Act voted through the Communications and Technology subcommittee and commend Reps. Pallone and McNerney for introducing legislation likely to save lives during times of emergency.
“This legislation will create a framework that helps communications providers and other providers of critical infrastructure work together so that everyone has access to communications services. This bill will increase the likelihood that when the power goes out, phones will stay on. It also ensures that 911 operators and public safety entities have the information they need to guide their disaster response efforts. We urge the full committee, as well as the full House, to pass this legislation.”
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