The Emergency Number Systems Board shall coordinate the implementation, enhancement, maintenance, and operation of county or multicounty 9-1-1 systems. In this chapter, the following terms have the meanings indicated. Terms Defined. “Additional charge” has the meaning stated in Public Safety Article, §1-301, Annotated Code of Maryland. “Board” means the Emergency Number Systems Board. "9-1-1 system" means a telephone service or any other communication service that meets the planning guidelines under Public Safety Article, §1-306, Annotated Code of Maryland, and automatically connects an individual dialing the digits 9-1-1 to a public safety answering point. “Public safety answering point” has the meaning stated in Public Safety Article, §1-301, Annotated Code of Maryland. The Emergency Number Systems Board is under the direction of the Secretary of Public Safety and Correctional Services. Board membership shall be according to Public Safety Article, §1-305, Annotated Code of Maryland. The Board shall meet as necessary, but not less than quarterly each calendar year. The Board requires a majority of confirmed members present at a meeting to constitute a quorum. The Board requires a majority vote of members present at a meeting before taking action. The Board shall coordinate enhancement of county or multicounty 9-1-1 systems according to provisions under Public Safety Article, §1-306, Annotated Code of Maryland. A county or multicounty area shall maintain an enhanced 9-1-1 system that: Uses the digits 9-1-1 as the published emergency telephone number for access to emergency services; Has public safety answering points that provide 24-hour public access and dispatch service; Provides transfer and referrals to related public safety services; Provides for staffing all public safety answering points with personnel trained as required by this chapter; Provides for equipping all public safety answering points with adequate access to TTY equipment to facilitate use by an individual with a speech or hearing disability; Provides access to services for an individual who does not speak or understand the English language; May provide access to local emergency management centers for all public safety answering points; Permits a county to designate a public safety answering point using cooperative arrangements acceptable to the participating agencies; Permits public safety answering points to transfer or relay emergency calls received requiring services outside of the jurisdiction of the system receiving the call; Maintains a current master street address guide and communicates updated information to parties responsible for an automatic number identification (ANI) and automatic location identification (ALI) system; Uses telephone equipment and services that provide: A visual or audible indication, or both, of an incoming call; The capability for the call taker to monitor a transferred call to ensure that the call is properly transferred; Annual telephone company monitoring of service to determine the grade of service and, if appropriate, to make recommendations to ensure that not more than one busy signal in every 100 incoming calls during an average busy hour is maintained; and Documentation of the date and time a 9-1-1 call is received; and Has a sufficient number of call takers and equipment to consistently answer incoming calls on a daily average of 10 seconds or less. A county with a plan for more than one public safety answering point in the county shall submit the plan to the Board for consideration subject to the following: The county administration submitting the plan and not the individual agency within the county shall receive and distribute funding; and The plan shall meet the criteria established under this chapter, unless the Board approves a variation. At a minimum, an enhanced 9-1-1 system implemented in Maryland shall include: Sufficient incoming 9-1-1 lines for each telephone central office to ensure that not more than one in 100 call attempts during the average busy hour is blocked; Connections to all public safety agencies covered by the system; 24 hour, 7 day operation of the public safety answering point staffed with personnel trained as required under this chapter; First priority to answering 9-1-1 calls; Electronic recording of all 9-1-1 calls; Playback capability of all 9-1-1 calls; Connection to adjacent public safety answering points by private lines when there is a telephone exchange and jurisdictional boundary not covered by selective routing; Security measures sufficient to minimize intentional disruption of the operation; Standby emergency electrical power to keep the public safety answering point operating when commercial power fails; At least one administrative line for nonemergency calls; Written operational procedures; Automatic location identification (ALI), which displays, at the public safety answering point, the address or location of the calling instrument; Automatic number identification (ANI), which displays, at the public safety answering point, the calling telephone number; Central office identification used to identify dedicated lines or trunks from a central office when a public safety answering point serves more than one central office; A distinct tone, visible signal, or other process for: Alerting the call taker that an incoming 9-1-1 call was disconnected; and Receiving and displaying the telephone number with ANI and ALI information for a disconnected 9-1-1 call, when available; Providing access to services for an individual: With a speech or hearing disability; or Who does not speak or understand the English language; and Other technical advances approved by the Board. A county or multicounty system may establish a 3-1-1 system to reduce congestion on the 9-1-1 system operation. At a minimum, a 3-1-1 system shall include the following: Switching or programming to direct a 3-1-1 call to a nonemergency answering position; A 3-1-1 answering position that shall be capable of: Immediately transferring an emergency call to a 9-1-1 answering position or an adjoining public safety answering point; Transferring a nonemergency call to an adjoining jurisdiction or appropriate agency; and Providing an individual: With a speech or hearing disability access to TTY services; or Who does not speak or understand the English language access to alternative communication services; and A 3-1-1 call taker trained to handle nonemergency calls and to transfer emergency calls to a 9-1-1 call taker. A county or multicounty system shall have and maintain a written operational plan for public safety services signed by public safety agencies within the public safety answering point area of responsibility. A public safety agency included in an operational plan under §A of this regulation shall be familiar with the operational procedures of the other public safety agencies included in the same operational plan. An operational plan shall provide for uniform methods and procedures to ensure effective interagency communications. A facility housing 9-1-1 telephone equipment shall: Be equipped at all exposed terminations, including central office distributing frames, with protective devices that prevent accidental worker contact; and Include clearly identified protected terminations to distinguish protected terminations from other circuitry. A protected circuit may not be opened, grounded, short-circuited, or manipulated in any way by a telephone company worker without the local telephone company first obtaining approval for circuit release from the appropriate public safety answering point. A telephone company shall ensure that telephone company employees who work in facilities associated with the 9-1-1 service are familiar with procedures for safeguarding 9-1-1 system equipment. A county shall staff a public safety answering point with personnel who can properly process a call from a machine used by an individual who has a speech or hearing impairment. Within 6 months of hiring a public safety answering point call taker, a county shall train the new call taker using a curriculum adopted or approved by the Board. A county shall provide a public safety answering point call taker with yearly in-service training using a curriculum adopted or approved by the Board. D. Training shall include: Public safety answering point orientation; Communication skills; Electronic systems; Policies and procedures; Call processing; Documentation; Dispatch procedures; Stress management; Public relations; Administrative duties; and Disaster and major incident training. The Board shall ensure that collection, maintenance, dispersal, and auditing of 9-1-1 fees is conducted according to Public Safety Article, §§1-308—1-312, Annotated Code of Maryland. Additional Charges—Local Government. In addition to the fee charged under Public Safety Article, §1-310, Annotated Code of Maryland, a county with an operational 9-1-1 system under Public Safety Article, §1-304, Annotated Code of Maryland, may, by ordinance or resolution after public hearing, enact or adopt an additional monthly charge not to exceed the limits under Public Safety Article, §1-311, Annotated Code of Maryland, to be applied to current bills, within that county, for: Switched local exchange access service; and Wireless telephone service or other 9-1-1 accessible service. A county authorizing an additional charge under §B of this regulation and maintaining an enhanced 9-1-1 system shall be subject to an annual Board-authorized independent audit of authorized 9-1-1 expenditures pursuant to Public Safety Article, §1-312, Annotated Code of Maryland. Equipment that qualifies for purchase with funds from the 9-1-1 Trust Fund includes: Equipment for connecting and outswitching 9-1-1 calls within a telephone central office; Trunking facilities from the central office to a public safety answering point; Equipment to connect 9-1-1 calls to the appropriate public safety agency; and Equipment for a 3-1-1 system. Equipment necessary to constitute an enhanced 9-1-1 system shall be used for: Automatic number identification (ANI); Automatic location identification (ALI); or Other technical equipment the Board may require. Computer aided dispatch equipment is not a part of a 9-1-1 system, except when the Board determines that an interface is necessary to properly process 9-1-1 calls. A county requesting reimbursement from the 9-1-1 Trust Fund for mandated equipment, 9-1-1 enhancements, or technological advancements shall submit the request to the Board for approval. A county shall submit a plan, request, report, or question to the Chairman, Emergency Number Systems Board. A county shall submit a request for reimbursement from the 9-1-1 Trust Fund to the Board in a format and according to procedures established by the Board. Reimbursement Processing. A county public safety answering point director or a 9-1-1 administrator shall submit a written or electronic request for reimbursement to the Board so that it is received at least 2 weeks before a Board meeting at which it is to be considered. The county's public safety answering point director or 9-1-1 administrator, or a designee, shall attend the meeting at which the request is to be considered. The Board shall review the request and, if approved, encumber funds up to the amount of the request. The county shall ensure that the county's procurement laws and policies are followed. Upon request by a county, the Board may grant a waiver or variance of the regulations contained in this chapter. A county may submit a written or electronic request for waiver or variance to the Board that includes: Number of persons affected; Impact of a variance or waiver; Alternative methods; Technical difficulties; Cost. The Board shall consider: The information for each of the areas cited in §B of this regulation; and The best interests of the affected parties, the applicant, and the Emergency Number Systems Board. An affected party shall have the right to present, either in writing or through oral testimony, information which may bear on the Board's final decision. Processing a Request for Waiver or Variance. Upon receipt of a written request for waiver or variance, the Board shall: Within 10 days of receipt of the request, direct a letter to the applicant, which shall: Acknowledge receipt; and Notify the applicant that additional information may be submitted, within 30 days, for the Board to consider during the review; and Review the documents or conduct a hearing. If the Board elects to review the documents, the review shall be conducted at a regular Board meeting within 60 days after the expiration of the 30-day period granted to the applicant to submit additional information. If the Board elects to conduct a hearing, the Board shall: Notify the applicant and affected parties of the hearing at least 10 days before the hearing and provide the hearing: Date; Time; and Location; and Conduct the hearing according to State Government Article, Title 10, Subtitle 2, Annotated Code of Maryland. The Board may instruct the State Comptroller to withhold funds from a county for 9-1-1 system expenditures for a violation under: Public Safety Article, §1-312, Annotated Code of Maryland; or The regulations in this chapter. Withholding Funds. If the Board decides to withhold funds, the Board shall: Identify, in writing, the reason or reasons for withholding funds; Record the reason or reasons in the minutes of the meeting; Notify the county that the county has 30 days from the date of notification to respond in writing to the Board; and Notify the State Comptroller to hold funds, in that county's account within the 9-1-1 Trust Fund, until the Board advises the Comptroller that the funds may be released. Funds held by the Comptroller under this section may not accrue interest for a county. Interest income earned on funds held by the Comptroller under this regulation shall be diverted to the 9-1-1 Trust Fund. The Board shall notify the Secretary of action taken under §A or B of this regulation. After the Board conducts a hearing or a review of a request under this chapter, the Board shall ensure that the Board's decision is: In writing and stated in the record; Accompanied by findings of fact and conclusions; and Provided to the applicant with a copy of the written record containing the information noted under §§A and B of this regulation. Public Safety Article, Title 1, Subtitle 3, Correctional Services Article, §2-109; Annotated Code of Maryland Effective date: Regulations .01—.12 adopted as an emergency provision effective June 2, 1980 (7:12 Md. R. 1128); adopted permanently effective October 11, 1980 (7:20 Md. R. 1884) (Originally Promulgated as COMAR 12.11.02) Regulation .03F amended effective May 15, 1981 (8:10 Md. R. 878) Regulation .04A amended effective August 13, 1984 (11:16 Md. R. 1393) Regulation .09-1 adopted effective August 13, 1984 (11:16 Md. R. 1393) Regulation .09-1B amended effective July 13, 1986 (13:14 Md. R. 1635) Regulation .11A amended effective August 13, 1984 (11:16 Md. R. 1393) Regulations .13 and .14 adopted effective August 2, 1982 (9:15 Md. R. 1515) Chapter revised effective September 16, 1991 (18:18 Md. R. 2008) Chapter revised effective January 1, 1996 (22:24 Md. R. 1899) Regulation .01 amended effective July 15, 1996 (23:14 Md. R. 1010) Regulation .02 amended effective February 24, 1997 (24:4 Md. R. 293) Regulation .07D amended effective July 15, 1996 (23:14 Md. R. 1010) Regulation .10B amended effective July 15, 1996 (23:14 Md. R. 1010) Regulation .14D amended effective July 15, 1996 (23:14 Md. R. 1010) Chapter revised effective March 9, 1998 (25:5 Md. R. 370) Regulation .12A amended effective July 27, 1998 (25:15 Md. R. 1191) Chapter revised effective October 8, 2007 (34:20 Md. R. 1740)