AT&T Improperly Collected 911 Fees From Arkansas Municipalities

AT&T Inc. unlawfully charged Arkansas municipalities fees for its emergency telephone services, a state appeals court ruled in two separate lawsuits Wednesday.

AT&T assesses a 911 fee pursuant to the Arkansas Public Safety Communications Act, which requires emergency telephone services providers to charge “service users” a fee remitted to the government. The act doesn’t include political subdivisions in its definition of a service user.

The city of Gurdon, Ark., and a class action filed on behalf of state counties independently asked the Arkansas Court of Appeals to overturn a lower decision upholding AT&T’s 911 fee, its special municipal charge, and ...