OUC serves as the District of Columbia’s Public Safety Answering Point (PSAP). Our Carrier Relations Division (CRD) provides Direct Connect guidelines, coordinates and approves all documentation, schedules testing, and then refers the request to the OUC Telephony group for final testing, certification, approval, and implementation. The CRD is the initial point of contact for all new requests, changes, and augmentations of new or existing network applications for the Direct Connect Program.

All facilities-based carriers that provide dial tone/local and wireless service in the District of Columbia are required to directly connect to the District’s E9-1-1 network to provide 9-1-1 call completions for District subscribers. Each carrier establishes connectivity by point-to-point T1 circuits or facilities, trunks, and SS7 routes between the carrier’s network and the District PSAP network. These types of providers include wireless and wireline facilities-based carriers, VoIP service providers, resellers, and VoIP positioning centers (VPCs). The District also requires that all facilities-based carriers submit updated questionnaires annually or as soon as key information in the questionnaire changes. As necessary, the District may request an updated questionnaire more frequently.

The National Communications Service (NCS) has assigned a Category Three (3) Restoration Priority to each of the Point-to-Point T1 circuits between the carriers' point(s) of interconnection and the DC selective router locations. Verizon provides all of the T1 circuits for all of the carriers that terminate in the DC selective router locations at McMillan Drive and Martin Luther King Jr., Ave. These T1 circuits must be proactively monitored by the carrier on a 24/7 basis and appropriate trouble reporting actions must be taken to expedite restoration of the network. In the event of a network outage or disaster recovery event, restoration priority oversight is the responsibility of each carrier.

Learn more about the Telecommunications Service Priority (TSP) program.

If you have questions or need more information about the Direct Connect Program, contact the following person:

Selena MacArthur
[email protected]
(202) 603-0202 (direct)
(202) 730-0571 (fax)