Summary#
Bill 9, An Act Respecting the Emergency 911 Act, would amend New Brunswick’s Emergency 911 Act and its Regulation 96-104. Its stated goal is to support the effective operation of the province-wide NB 911 service; that goal is not a guarantee of improved service. The supplied text is a first-reading version, and the bill would start only on a date set by proclamation.
- The bill would define the NB 911 service as covering coordination from when an emergency request reaches a public safety answering point (911 call centre) until the appropriate emergency service providers attend, and the reporting of emergencies through a call centre.
- It would let the Minister establish advisory committees. The Minister could also set certain operating arrangements and standards; some of this authority applies only if regulations on the subject have not been made.
- It would name the Medical Communications Management Centre, operated by EM/ANB Inc., and the Provincial Mobile Communications Centre, operated by the Department of Transportation and Infrastructure, as secondary call centres for all areas of the province.
- Providers and their employees would have to disclose relevant information, including personal information, to specified employees of other providers or call centres when necessary for the 911 service or their related duties. The bill would also prohibit unauthorized use or disclosure and make a breach an offence.
- The Minister would have to make an annual public report, with the content and release method set by the Minister. The bill would also authorize regulations on provider reporting, equipment, security, service continuity and reliability.
What it means for you#
- Emergency service providers and their employees: They would have to share relevant information, including personal information, in the circumstances set out in the bill. They must not otherwise use or disclose information obtained while doing their 911 duties, except as necessary for operating the service.
- Call centres and their operators: The two named centres would be designated as secondary call centres province-wide. The Minister could set equipment and technology standards for call centres. The bill does not itself set those standards.
- The Minister: The Minister could create advisory committees and would have to ensure an annual public report is issued. The bill does not prescribe the report’s contents beyond information the Minister considers necessary.
- People using 911: The bill changes the legal description and oversight powers for the service. It does not create a new individual right to a particular response time or require a review of every emergency call.
- Anyone handling information for the service: Unauthorized use or disclosure would be an offence punishable as a category F offence. The supplied material does not give the penalty amount.
Money#
No cost information is in the available material.
- The bill gives the Minister new powers and duties, but provides no staffing, budget or cost estimate.
- It does not set a fee, tax or benefit.
What is unclear#
- The full current Emergency 911 Act and Regulation 96-104 were not supplied, so the existing rules and the exact change from current practice could not be fully verified.
- The bill does not set out the standards, policies or procedures the Minister might establish, or how the public would be involved in setting them.
- It authorizes regulations on reporting, equipment and security, but does not itself set the detailed requirements or say when those regulations would be made.
- It does not explain how the two designated centres’ roles would work in practice, or how the service’s performance would be measured.
- No separate amended bill version was supplied, so changes from any later amendments cannot be assessed.
Case for#
- The bill appears intended to make the scope of the province-wide 911 service clearer, including the period between receiving a request and emergency providers attending.
- A possible argument for allowing information sharing is that relevant details may need to pass between call centres and providers to operate the service or carry out related duties.
- The bill could support more consistent equipment and security standards across the service, if the Minister uses the new powers or regulations are made.
- Requiring an annual public report would provide a regular public account, although the Minister would decide what information it contains.
Case against#
- The Minister could establish a wide range of operating rules outside the Regulations Act process. The bill does not set out limits or public input for those decisions.
- The bill permits necessary sharing of personal information but does not give detailed rules in the bill about how that information must be protected or kept.
- Important requirements on security, continuity, reporting and equipment may depend on future regulations. The bill does not say when those rules would be made.
- The annual report’s content is left to the Minister, so the bill does not guarantee that it will include specific performance measures or incident details.