Skip to main content

Oregon State Flag An official website of the State of Oregon »

About 9-1-1 in Oregon

The State 9-1-1 Program was established by the 1981 Oregon Legislature and its primary mission is to ensure the seamless operation of the statewide 9-1-1 communications system ensuring uniform, prompt, and efficient access to public and private safety services for the citizens of, and visitors to, the State of Oregon.  Oregon is home to 43 9-1-1 centers known as Public Safety Answering Points (PSAP) that cover all 36 Counties within the State.



Contact Us:
For Payment Authorization Request/Submission: 911.billing@state.or.us

Outage Notifications: 

The program continually coordinates, administers and manages:
  • the network necessary to deliver 9-1-1 calls from the public to the correct PSAP
  • the equipment needed in a PSAP to process  and answer and process the 9-1-1calls
  • the distribution of the state 9-1-1 Emergency Communications tax revenue
  • information and resources provided to the local 9-1-1 jurisdictions
  • information regarding technological advancements impacting the emergency communications system
 
The Program also assists PSAPs with the challenges faced in the participation in the statewide 9-1-1 system.  The Program is funded through the Emergency Communications Tax.
 
Each Primary PSAP is connected to a statewide network, which delivers location information of the 9-1-1 caller as well as other data needed for the functionality of the PSAP. The State 9-1-1 Program office is currently transitioning PSAPs to a network capable of delivering IP-based data elements and is positioning Oregon for a seamless integration into the Next Generation of 9-1-1 and Emergency Communications.
 
Additionally, the State 9-1-1 Program continues to evolve the 9-1-1 network to accommodate advances in communications technologies such as wireless, VoIP-based communications, and the myriad of upcoming non-traditional communications technologies.
 
In order to seamlessly deliver 9-1-1 calls, regardless of the type of device used to contact 9-1-1, the State 9-1-1 Program assists the PSAPs with an upgrade schedule of new equipment in order to accommodate these new and emerging technologies.  

A Brief History

On January 1, 2000 Oregon became one of the first states to have statewide Enhanced 9-1-1 coverage for Wireline communications. Before Enhanced 9-1-1, Basic 9-1-1 service simply connected a 9-1-1 caller to the appropriate Public Safety Answering Point (PSAP), or 9-1-1 center, based on the originating location of the call.
 
The transition from Basic 9-1-1 to Enhanced 9-1-1 meant additional information was delivered along with the 9-1-1 call.  This information included Automatic Number Information (ANI) and Automatic Location Information (ALI). ANI and ALI provides the call taker with a call back number and an address or location of the caller.  If contact with the caller is lost for any reason the additional call back number and location information provides information for contacting the caller and continuing with the 9-1-1 call. 
 
The State 9-1-1 Program helped develop a standardized ALI stream that can accommodate wireless location information and other data elements.  The State 9-1-1 Program partnered with representatives from PSAPs, Wireless Service Providers and Oregon’s Telecommunication Companies to create the Oregon ALI Format.

As of December 31, 2005, each PSAP was capable of receiving wireless location information, and OEM continues to partner with wireline, wireless, VoIP, and other mobile device service providers to provide the infrastructure and network necessary to deliver the 9-1-1 call to the correct PSAP along with the ANI and ALI.