In a blog post earlier this month, the American Consumer Institute explored how the recently introduced Supporting U.S. Critical Connectivity and Economic Strategy and Security for BEAD Act (SUCCESS for BEAD Act) could advance American connectivity. The bill would establish a new funding round for leftover savings from the Broadband Equity Access and Deployment (BEAD) program to be used on any approved use, including some funding for non-deployment projects. The policy proposal offers a path to bring all of America online, but it could also further an equally important initiative—upgrading emergency communications.
Legacy 9-1-1 systems need an upgrade, but due to a lack of federal support and slow progress in modernizing copper wire networks, few states have been able to switch their emergency call systems to an all internet-based Next Generation 9-1-1 (NG9-1-1). The SUCCESS for BEAD Act would address both of these challenges by linking BEAD funds to NG9-1-1 upgrades. But for federal action to have the biggest impact, states must get out of their own way.
From the outset, the BEAD program has had one core mission: to close the so-called “digital divide” once and for all by connecting all Americans to high-speed internet. The digital divide usually refers to the differences in economic opportunity between those with high-speed internet service and those without, but it is also reasonable to include inferior emergency calling services as a big disadvantage of the digital divide. According to FCC data, about 22 percent of fixed broadband subscribers rely on outdated copper wiring. While copper may have just enough capacity to handle telephony and threadbare internet speeds of 30 megabits per second, it is a prime target for theft, interrupting service for at least 1.5 million consumers in 2024. If all a consumer has is a landline, copper theft would keep them from making emergency calls when they need it most.
But NG9-1-1 could provide a more reliable and feature-rich service through an all internet-based system. Switching emergency calls away from copper and onto fiber optics, cable, wireless, and other high-speed internet-capable technologies would allow more data flow from caller to call center, including texts, images, videos, and location information. These, in turn, enable faster, more reliable responses for people in danger, and even provide new ways for those with disabilities to request help.
It’s no wonder, then, that states are eager to make the transition. However, according to a 2025 article examining state-level progress towards NG9-1-1, high costs are one of the biggest challenges, with states hoping for federal support. If Congress is committed to using all of its already-appropriated BEAD funds, it would make sense to put some toward NG9-1-1 upgrades. The SUCCESS for BEAD Act would make that possible.
The bill would amend BEAD program statutes to allow any leftover funding to be awarded through a follow-up subgrant process, and it adds NG9-1-1 upgrade projects to the approved list of funding uses. After reforms in 2025 made the BEAD program more cost-efficient, the expected sum of leftover funding is about $21 billion. The reforms illustrate that the program is committed to using taxpayer dollars in the most efficient way possible, and that grantee states are willing to do likewise.
But cost-efficiency goes beyond carefully planning how to spend already-allocated money. As states look for federal assistance, they should recognize that some of the barriers to deploying modern networks are self-imposed. State-level laws like Carrier of Last Resort (COLR) laws are a big obstacle to the network modernization necessary for NG9-1-1. In these states, certain carriers must serve all consumers in an area and are not allowed to withdraw their service without express permission from the state. The idea behind COLR laws is to ensure consumers always have a safety net they can fall back on in case of emergency. Ironically, COLR laws often restrict carriers from upgrading services, as it might leave consumers disconnected for a time—even if there are multiple competitors already in the area. This keeps some consumers stuck on outdated copper wiring and businesses on the hook for maintaining networks that cannot deliver high-speed internet.
States can get out of their own way. By adopting some common sense reforms to their COLR laws—namely, allowing carriers of last resort to retire their copper networks when at least one non-copper competitor is present and relaxing requirements to serve areas where there are no residents—states can immediately ease COLR burdens on businesses. They can, in turn, put the resources they spend on maintaining old copper networks towards upgrading them, bringing faster, more reliable service to more consumers. Then, once their final BEAD proposals are approved and funding is awarded, the BEAD funds can have the most impact possible.
Upgrading legacy 9-1-1 services is a reasonable and worthwhile cause. Delivering Next Generation 9-1-1 services will provide more consumers with safer, more reliable, and feature-rich emergency call services. While the SUCCESS for BEAD Act demonstrates Congress’s interest in making advanced emergency services a reality for all American consumers, states must also reassess their own laws to ensure they don’t block life-saving upgrades. States and Congress must cooperate for true BEAD success.
Nate Karren is a policy analyst with the American Consumer Institute, a nonprofit education and research organization. Follow Nate on X @NateKarrenOnX.