Bringing the nation’s 9-1-1 system into the digital age is moving forward but slowly, according to a report released Tuesday by a public safety and emergency communications company.
In its 2025 State of the 9-1-1 Report, Longmont, Colo.-based Intrado Life & Safety noted that the transition from legacy to next-generation 9-1-1 (NG9-1-1) is well underway in the United States, but implementation has been gradual. Only a portion of the country is covered by at least some features of NG9-1-1 service.
Full nationwide coverage of NG9-1-1 is an ongoing process, it added, with some states and counties issuing RFPs regularly for almost a decade.
NG9-1-1 incorporates digital and internet-based technologies delivered via IP-based networks. It expands emergency communications services beyond the core functionality of legacy 9-1-1, facilitating the use of enhanced capabilities of IP-based devices and networks.
“Today we have limited information coming across what we call E911 or enhanced 9-1-1 systems,” said April Heinze, vice president and chief of 9-1-1 operations at the National Emergency Number Association (NENA), in Alexandria, Va.
