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<section article="gps" article_name="Public Safety" number="1-306" title_number="1" title_name="Definitions; General Provisions" subtitle_number="3" subtitle_name="9-1-1 Emergency Telephone System">
  <level label="a">
    <text>The Board shall coordinate the enhancement of county 9–1–1 systems.</text>
  </level>
  <level label="b">
    <text>The Board’s responsibilities include:</text>
    <level label="1">
      <text>establishing planning guidelines for enhanced 9–1–1 system plans and deployment of wireless enhanced 9–1–1 service in accordance with this subtitle;</text>
    </level>
    <level label="2">
      <text>establishing procedures to review and approve or disapprove county plans and to evaluate requests for variations from the planning guidelines established by the Board;</text>
    </level>
    <level label="3">
      <text>establishing procedures for the request for reimbursement of the costs of enhancing a 9–1–1 system by a county or counties in which a 9–1–1 system is in operation, and procedures to review and approve or disapprove the request;</text>
    </level>
    <level label="4">
      <text>transmitting the planning guidelines and procedures established under this section, and any amendments to them, to the governing body of each county;</text>
    </level>
    <level label="5">
      <text>submitting to the Secretary each year a schedule for implementing the enhancement of county or multicounty 9–1–1 systems, and an estimate of funding requirements based on the approved county plans;</text>
    </level>
    <level label="6">
      <text>developing, with input from counties, and publishing on or before July 1, 2004, an implementation schedule for deployment of wireless enhanced 9–1–1 service;</text>
    </level>
    <level label="7">
      <text>reviewing and approving or disapproving requests for reimbursement of the costs of enhancing 9–1–1 systems, and submitting to the Secretary each year a schedule for reimbursement and an estimate of funding requirements;</text>
    </level>
    <level label="8">
      <text>reviewing the enhancement of 9–1–1 systems;</text>
    </level>
    <level label="9">
      <text>providing for an audit of county expenditures for the operation and maintenance of 9–1–1 systems;</text>
    </level>
    <level label="10">
      <text>ensuring inspections of public safety answering points;</text>
    </level>
    <level label="11">
      <text>reviewing and approving or disapproving requests from counties with operational enhanced 9–1–1 systems to be exempted from the expenditure limitations under § 1–312 of this subtitle;</text>
    </level>
    <level label="12">
      <text>authorizing expenditures from the 9–1–1 Trust Fund that:</text>
      <level label="i">
        <text>are for enhancements of 9–1–1 systems that:</text>
        <level label="1">
          <text>are required by the Board;</text>
        </level>
        <level label="2">
          <text>will be provided to a county by a third party contractor; and</text>
        </level>
        <level label="3">
          <text>will incur costs that the Board has approved before the formation of a contract between the county and the contractor; and</text>
        </level>
      </level>
      <level label="ii">
        <text>are approved by the Board for payment:</text>
        <level label="1">
          <text>from money collected under § 1–310 of this subtitle; and</text>
        </level>
        <level label="2">
          <text>directly to a third party contractor on behalf of a county;</text>
        </level>
      </level>
    </level>
    <level label="13">
      <text>establishing planning guidelines for Next Generation 9–1–1 services system plans and deployment of Next Generation 9–1–1 services in accordance with this subtitle;</text>
    </level>
    <level label="14">
      <text>establishing minimum standards for records retention guidelines for 9–1–1 audio, pictures, video, text messages, and data;</text>
    </level>
    <level label="15">
      <text>establishing training standards for public safety answering point personnel based on national best practices, including training concerning:</text>
      <level label="i">
        <text>Next Generation 9–1–1 topics;</text>
      </level>
      <level label="ii">
        <text>individual psychological well–being and resilience; and</text>
      </level>
      <level label="iii">
        <text>subject to subsection (e)(2) of this section, implicit bias training;</text>
      </level>
    </level>
    <level label="16">
      <text>establishing minimum standards for cybersecurity, oversight, and accountability of service level agreements between counties and core service providers of Next Generation 9–1–1 services; and</text>
    </level>
    <level label="17">
      <text>supporting 9–1–1 specialist recruitment activities consisting of:</text>
      <level label="i">
        <text>a database that offers information on recruitment guidance, best practices, and strategies;</text>
      </level>
      <level label="ii">
        <text>recruitment projects, including recruitment projects designed to reach minorities; and</text>
      </level>
      <level label="iii">
        <text>a website that contains links to job opportunities throughout the State for 9–1–1 specialists.</text>
      </level>
    </level>
  </level>
  <level label="c">
    <text>The guidelines established by the Board under subsection (b)(1) and (13) of this section:</text>
    <level label="1">
      <text>shall be based on available technology and equipment;</text>
    </level>
    <level label="2">
      <text>shall require Next Generation 9–1–1 services systems to be interconnected and interoperable, as determined by the Board; and</text>
    </level>
    <level label="3">
      <text>may be based on any other factor that the Board determines is appropriate, including population and area served by 9–1–1 systems.</text>
    </level>
  </level>
  <level label="d">
    <text>The standards established by the Board under subsection (b)(14) of this section shall include procedures for:</text>
    <level label="1">
      <text>the security of the records;</text>
    </level>
    <level label="2">
      <text>the establishment and revision, in accordance with the regulations, of record retention and disposal schedules to ensure the prompt and orderly disposition of records, including electronic records, that are no longer needed for operation; and</text>
    </level>
    <level label="3">
      <text>the maintenance of inventories of records series that are accurate and complete.</text>
    </level>
  </level>
  <level label="e">
    <level label="1">
      <level label="i">
        <text>The standards established by the Board under subsection (b)(15) of this section shall include onboarding standards for newly hired 9–1–1 specialists and minimum continuing education standards for 9–1–1 specialists.</text>
      </level>
      <level label="ii">
        <text>The Board shall develop criteria and approve the initial and ongoing training curriculum for the training required under subsection (b)(15) of this section.</text>
      </level>
    </level>
    <level label="2">
      <text>Public safety answering point personnel shall be provided the implicit bias training required under subsection (b)(15)(iii) of this section:</text>
      <level label="i">
        <text>on or before October 1, 2024, for personnel hired by the public safety answering point on or before October 1, 2022;</text>
      </level>
      <level label="ii">
        <text>at the time of hire for personnel hired by the public safety answering point after October 1, 2022; and</text>
      </level>
      <level label="iii">
        <text>on a recurring basis with updates as determined by the Board, but at least once every 4 years.</text>
      </level>
    </level>
    <level label="3">
      <level label="i">
        <text>At least once each year, the Board shall provide for an audit of each public safety answering point in order to ensure that 9–1–1 specialists and other personnel employed by the public safety answering point have satisfied the training requirements established in accordance with subsection (b)(15) of this section.</text>
      </level>
      <level label="ii">
        <text>The audit described under subparagraph (i) of this paragraph may be conducted concurrently with an inspection of the public safety answering point in accordance with subsection (b)(10) of this section.</text>
      </level>
      <level label="iii">
        <level label="1">
          <text>If the Board determines that the personnel employed by a public safety answering point have not satisfied the training requirements established in accordance with subsection (b)(15) of this section, the Board and public safety answering point shall jointly develop a remediation plan and implementation timeline.</text>
        </level>
        <level label="2">
          <text>The Board may impose sanctions on a public safety answering point if the public safety answering point fails to comply with a remediation plan or implementation timeline developed under this subparagraph.</text>
        </level>
      </level>
    </level>
  </level>
  <level label="f">
    <text>The Board shall establish standards governing the processing of 9–1–1 requests for assistance that:</text>
    <level label="1">
      <text>minimize the transfer of those requests from the public safety answering point that received the request to other public safety answering points within or outside the State or federal emergency communication centers; and</text>
    </level>
    <level label="2">
      <text>follow best practices for transferring requests to public safety agencies to ensure the optimal public safety response.</text>
    </level>
  </level>
  <level label="g">
    <text>The Board shall:</text>
    <level label="1">
      <text>establish minimum standards for 9–1–1 systems, enhanced 9–1–1 systems, and Next Generation 9–1–1 services that ensure improved access for individuals with disabilities and individuals who use assistive technologies, including mandatory connectivity requirements for core service providers for Next Generation 9–1–1 services to device–based and cloud–based data repositories; and</text>
    </level>
    <level label="2">
      <text>update the standards adopted in accordance with item (1) of this subsection based on available technology and equipment.</text>
    </level>
  </level>
  <level label="h">
    <text>The Board may adopt regulations to implement and enforce this subtitle.</text>
  </level>
</section>
