Assemblyman Buchwald, AARP and Local Officials Urge Lewisboro and North Salem Residents to be Skeptical of Verizon's Plan to Replace Landlines with "Voice Link"

            Assemblyman David Buchwald (D-Westchester), along with Lewisboro's Police Chief and the New York State Director of AARP, urged residents of the Towns of Lewisboro and North Salem to be aware of Verizon’s efforts to replace copper-wire landlines with a product that provides reduced service. Joined at a press conference at the Lewisboro Courthouse by Lewisboro Supervisor Peter Parsons, Lewisboro Police Chief Frank Secret, AARP New York State Director Beth Finkel, Communications Workers of America (CWA) New York State Legislative Director Pete Sikora, Westchester County Legislator Pete Harkham, North Salem Deputy Supervisor Peter Kamenstein, Lewisboro Seniors Director Pam Vieth, Lt. Lucian Lipinsky of the Lewisboro Volunteer Ambulance Corps. and North Salem Volunteer Ambulance Corps. President Kurt Guldam, Buchwald cautioned residents to be skeptical of Verizon’s new “Voice Link” product.         

            Voice Link routes all calls through a cellular network. Under an application by Verizon to the State’s Public Service Commission, consumers could be forced to accept Voice Link and be cut off from their copper-wire lines. The deadline for public comment on the Public Service Commission application is September 13th. The proposed changes present risks of poor reception and miscommunication with 911 emergency responders, including because the Voice Link service is connected to regular power grid. In addition, Voice Link does not work with fax machines, medical alert bracelets, credit card machines, DSL internet services, and some home security alarm systems. The attendees at the press conference noted numerous times how public safety, particularly during emergencies and for seniors, could be affected and how small businesses could be impacted.

            "Replacing landlines in the Towns of Lewisboro and North Salem with a product based on the cellular network that provides reduced service may present risks of public safety and basic communication, particularly for our community's seniors," said Assemblyman Buchwald. "I stand alongside local police, public safety officials, and advocates for seniors and telecommunications professionals to deliver a message of solidarity in expressing the need for caution when it comes to Voice Link. I urge town residents to write to the State's Public Service Commission before the September 13th deadline to express their concerns with Verizon's application to allow landline service to be replaced with the Voice Link product."

"There are a number of emergency response-related concerns when it comes to Verizon's proposed Voice Link," said Lewisboro Police Chief Frank Secret. "The removal of landlines would create particular risks during power outages. And while Voice Link systems would be paired with home addresses for 911 purposes, overall their accuracy is not fully assured, especially when residents move. Besides basic issues of cellular reception in our rural neighborhoods, Voice Link is not compatible with medical alert bracelets and many home security alarm systems. We can do better for our town, and I thank Assemblyman Buchwald for urging action on this issue of basic public safety."

            “Landlines are lifelines,” said Beth Finkel, New York State Director for AARP. “Many 50+ telephone customers in New York rely on personal emergency-alert technologies such as Life Alert, medical-monitoring devices and home-security systems, which landlines support but which Voice Link in most instances does not. Voice Link also doesn’t work when the power is down or the battery is exhausted, and it doesn’t support broadband, eliminating Internet options for customers. AARP applauds Assemblyman Buchwald for asking, as we have, that regulators take a closer look at Voice Link technology. Innovation is great, but not at the cost of safety.”

            "The PSC and the Governor should not allow Verizon to abandon the telephone network and force people onto Voice Link, leaving customers without reliable service in an emergency or data service, which would end DSL, medical monitoring, credit card processing and other vital services," said Pete Sikora, NYS Legislative & Political Director for CWA District 1. "We applaud Assemblyman Buchwald and others for drawing attention to this vital issue."