Description:
H.R. 1353 would require the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to allow an entity to apply to provide 9-1-1 emergency connectivity service to any area that has no provider of commercial mobile services capable of providing such service. The bill also would direct the FCC to report annually to the Congress on the provision of emergency connectivity service to unserved areas. Using information from the FCC, CBO expects that the commission would need two employees, at an average cost of $195,000 each, to issue rules in 2024 and 2025. On that basis, CBO estimates that it would cost the agency $1 million over the 2023-2028 period to implement H.R. 1353. CBO also estimates that the cost to administer applications and report to the Congress would be insignificant in every year after 2024. However, because the FCC is authorized to collect fees each year sufficient to offset the appropriated costs of its regulatory activities, CBO estimates that the net cost to the FCC would be negligible, assuming appropriation actions consistent with that authority. H.R. 1353 would impose intergovernmental and private-sector mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act (UMRA). CBO estimates that the aggregate cost would not exceed the thresholds established in UMRA for intergovernmental mandates ($99 million in 2023, adjusted annually for inflation), but CBO cannot determine whether the aggregate costs of the private-sector mandates would exceed the threshold ($198 million in 2023, adjusted annually for inflation).
