NEWS
	Federal Communications Commission 1919 - M Street, N.W. Washington, D.C. 20554	News media information 202 / 418-0500 Fax-On-Demand 202 / 418-2830 Internet: http://www.fcc.gov ftp.fcc.gov
	This is an unofficial announcement of Commission action. Release of the full text of a Commission order constitutes official action. See MCI v. FCC. 515 F 2d 385 (D.C. Circ 1974).
	Report No. WT 98-33 WIRELESS TELECOMMUNICATIONS ACTION September 11, 1998
	FCC ADOPTS EXTENSION OF CALEA COMPLIANCE DATE
	The Commission has adopted a Memorandum Opinion & Order (Order) extending the compliance date for meeting the assistance capability requirements of the Communications Assistance for Law Enforcement Act (CALEA or the Act). This extension is necessary because compliance with the original date of October 25, 1998 is not reasonably achievable for telecommunications carriers due to the lack of equipment for meeting the requirements. Pursuant to its authority under section 107 (c)(3) of the Act, the Commission has extended the compliance date until June 30, 2000. CALEA, enacted by Congress in 1994, was designed to enable law enforcement personnel to continue to conduct electronic surveillance efficiently and effectively in the wake of rapid advances in telecommunications technology. CALEA requires telecommunications carriers to ensure that their equipment, facilities, and services will meet the assistance capability requirements that are specified in section 103 of the Act. On March 30, 1998, AT&T Wireless Services, Inc., Lucent Technologies, Inc. and Ericsson, Inc. jointly filed a petition for extension of CALEA's compliance date, arguing that technology that would allow carriers to comply with CALEA will not be available by the deadline. On April 20, 1998, the Commission placed the Petition on Public Notice. The Commission has also received numerous additional petitions for extension seeking similar relief from CALEA's compliance deadline. The record before the Commission indicates that no manufacturer will have equipment available in time to allow carriers to comply with the assistance capability requirements of section 103 by the October 25, 1998 deadline. Thus, in the interest of conserving administrative resources, and in an effort to ensure that the objectives and requirements of CALEA are met in a timely manner, the Commission has decided to grant an industry-wide extension for all telecommunications carriers subject to the requirements of section 103. The Commission believes that an industry-wide extension until June 30, 2000 is necessary for carriers to comply with that requirement of section 103. This conclusion is based primarily upon all parties general agreement that it should take manufacturers approximately two years from the date technical requirements are standardized to develop and begin deploying technology capable of complying with that standard. The industry interim standard, the J-STD-025 standard, was adopted in December 1997. The Commission also believes after manufacturers produce CALEA-compliant equipment, carriers will require an additional period of time to purchase, test and install such equipment and facilities throughout their networks. Based on the record in this proceeding, the Commission concludes that six months will provide carriers with sufficient time to accomplish these tasks. Therefore, an industry-wide extension until June 30, 2000 is necessary to give carriers sufficient time to install CALEA compliant equipment based on the core J-STD-025 standard, which is the industry's interim standard, excluding the provision of location information and technical requirements related to packet-switched communications. As a result of a disagreement among the various parties over the scope of the CALEA capability requirements, and in response to petitions for rulemaking, the Commission will soon initiate a rulemaking proceeding under section 107(b) of CALEA to consider modifications to the core J-STD-025 standard that may be necessary to comply with the requirements of section 103. If this standard is ultimately modified and new CALEA capabilities or functions are added to the core J-STD-025 standard, we will consider establishing a separate deadline for upgrading carrier equipment and facilities to provide those additional capabilities or functions in that proceeding. Action by the Commission, September 10, 1998, by Memorandum Opinion and Order (FCC 98-223). Chairman Kennard, Commissioners Ness, Powell and Tristani with Commissioner Furchtgott-Roth concurring and Commissioners Ness and Powell issuing a joint statement and Commissioner Furchtgott-Roth issuing a separate statement. -FCC- News Media contact: Meribeth McCarrick at 202-418-0654 Wireless Telecommunications Bureau contact: Steve Weingarten at (202) 418-0620

	NEWS
	Federal Communications Commission 1919 - M Street, N.W. Washington, D.C. 20554	News media information 202 / 418-0500 Fax-On-Demand 202 / 418-2830 Internet: http://www.fcc.gov ftp.fcc.gov
	This is an unofficial announcement of Commission action. Release of the full text of a Commission order constitutes official action. See MCI v. FCC. 515 F 2d 385 (D.C. Circ 1974).
	September 11, 1998
	PRESS STATEMENT OF CHAIRMAN WILLIAM E. KENNARD ON EXTENSION OF CALEA COMPLIANCE DATE
	The Commission has done the right thing by extending the compliance date for meeting the assistance capability requirements of CALEA. The record indicated that manufacturers would not have equipment available in time for carriers to meet the October 25 compliance date. Therefore, it was essential that the Commission grant a blanket extension of the compliance date in order to avoid possibly thousands of individual petitions for extension and a tremendous burden on Commission resources. In determining the new compliance date, we consulted with the Attorney General, as required by the statute. Based on the record, we believe that setting June 30, 2000 as the new date for compliance will give carriers the time they need to ensure that their networks and systems provide law enforcement agencies with the capabilities necessary to protect public safety. The Commission is working on the next step in this process, which is to determine the scope of the CALEA capability requirements and establish CALEA standards. We will be initiating a rulemaking on this soon, and I am committed to resolving it as quickly as possible. To that end, further extensions of the compliance date should not be entertained, except under extremely compelling circumstances. As we go forward with this important proceeding, we need to make sure that law enforcement has the most up-to-date tools available to catch criminals. But we need to balance the needs of law enforcement with Americans' rights to privacy. - FCC -

Re:	Petition for the Extension of the Compliance Date under Section 107 of the Communications Assistance for Law Enforcement Act by AT&T Wireless Services, Inc. et al.

Upgrading our nation's telecommunications networks to provide law enforcement agencies with the surveillance capabilities necessary to protect public safety in the digital technology era is an important public policy goal of the Communications Assistance for Law Enforcement Act (CALEA). Implementation of this important goal, however, must be balanced against the actual ability of the telecommunications manufacturers and carriers to design, manufacture and deploy CALEA compliant equipment and facilities in their telecommunications networks.

We believe that the June 30, 2000, CALEA compliance deadline established in the order balances these competing interests. Each day that goes by without CALEA compliant equipment and facilities in operation limits the capabilities of law enforcement agencies. Nevertheless, telecommunications manufacturers and carriers will require a period of time to manufacture, test and install CALEA compliant equipment and facilities in their telecommunications networks. The extension to June 30, 2000, establishes an aggressive but achievable deadline that is within the limits of the Commission's authority. This is a firm deadline. It affords telecommunications carriers the necessary time to deploy CALEA compliant equipment and facilities, and we strongly encourage telecommunications manufacturers and carriers to cooperate with law enforcement agencies to meet this deadline.

The June 30, 2000, deadline is appropriate for another reason. In light of the significant resources that the telecommunications industry is dedicating to resolving the Year 2000 problem, it makes good sense to establish a CALEA compliance deadline that will not conflict with the telecommunications industry's efforts to comply with the Year 2000 problem.

For these reasons, we support the June 30, 2000, compliance deadline set forth in the order.

September 10, 1998

Re:	Petition for the Extension of the Compliance Date under Section 107 of the Communications Assistance for Law Enforcement Act by AT&T Wireless Services, Inc., Lucent Technologies, and Ericsson, Inc.

I concur in today's decision to extend the CALEA compliance deadline. Clearly we needed to grant such an extension pursuant to our authority under Section 107(c)(3). I would personally have preferred for us to grant the maximum allowable 24 months. I concur with the 22 month extension, however, because it allows nearly as much time for compliance as I would have preferred. I do not believe, however, that we can predict with such great precision when compliance will be possible.

Perhaps our decision to grant a 22 month extension can be read as a signal to industry that we do not plan to grant a series of maximum length 24 month extensions and that we take seriously our responsibilities under CALEA. This much is true. But I don't believe in simply "sending signals" and, if any signal needed to be sent, it should have been to those parties who simultaneously demand haste and create uncertainty by seeking rapid implementation of technology that is based on a standard they still are seeking to modify.