Kari's Law Act of 2017
Public Law 115-127 · H.R. 582 · 115th Congress · began in the House
Signed by Donald Trump (R) on Feb 16, 2018 · Science, Technology, Communications
Sponsor: Rep. Louie Gohmert (R-TX-1)
Cosponsors (29): Rep. Randy Weber, Rep. Kevin Brady,
Passage votes
- HouseVoice vote
- SenateUnanimous consent
Data notes
The final version of the law, as each chamber passed it. A chamber that passed it by voice vote or unanimous consent has no count. “Method not stated” means the record does not say how the chamber voted. Where the record has a member-by-member vote, the “Who voted for it” section shows who voted yea.
Summary
The Congressional Research Service’s plain-language summary of what the law does.
Kari's Law Act of 2017
(Sec. 2) This bill amends the Communications Act of 1934 to prohibit businesses from manufacturing or importing for use in the United States, or selling or leasing in the United States, a multi-line telephone system unless it is pre-configured to allow users to directly initiate a call to 9-1-1 (without dialing any additional digit, code, prefix, or post-fix, including any trunk-access code such as the digit "9") from any station equipped with dialing facilities.
Businesses are prohibited from installing, managing, or operating multi-line telephone systems without such a direct 9-1-1 call configuration.
Businesses installing, managing, or operating such systems for use in the United States must configure the systems to provide a notification to a central location at the facility where the system is installed, or to another person or organization regardless of location, if the system is able to be so configured without an improvement to the hardware or software.
Committees
The committees the bill was sent to, and what each did with it.
Data notes
A committee links to its page only where it exists in the current Congress; older and renamed committees are named without a link.
Related bills
2 bills the Library of Congress relates to this one.
Data notes
Related bills are identified by the Congressional Research Service, the House and the Senate: companion and identical bills, bills with similar text, bills that were folded into this law, and rules that brought it to the floor. A bill that is itself a public law in this site’s data links here; the others link to Congress.gov.
Timeline
From introduction to signing, newest first: the committees, the floor and the president. 23 actions.
- Feb 16, 2018Became lawBecame law · Became Public Law No: 115-127.
- Became lawBecame law · Signed by President.
- Feb 9, 2018Resolving differencesResolving differences · Motion to reconsider laid on the table Agreed to without objection.
- Resolving differencesResolving differences · On motion that the House suspend the rules and agree to the Senate amendment Agreed to by voice vote.
- FloorFloor · Presented to President.
- OtherOther · Resolving differences -- House actions: On motion that the House suspend the rules and agree to the Senate amendment Agreed to by voice vote.
- Feb 8, 2018Resolving differencesResolving differences · At the conclusion of debate, the chair put the question on the motion to suspend the rules. Mr. Lance objected to the vote on the grounds that a quorum was not present. Further proceedings on the motion were postponed. The point of no quorum was considered as withdrawn.
- Resolving differencesResolving differences · Mr. Lance moved that the House suspend the rules and agree to the Senate amendment.
- FloorFloor · DEBATE - The House proceeded with forty minutes of debate on the Senate amendment to H.R. 582.
- FloorFloor · Message on Senate action sent to the House.
- Feb 5, 2018FloorFloor · Passed Senate with an amendment by Unanimous Consent.
- FloorFloor · Measure laid before Senate by unanimous consent.
- CommitteeCommittee · Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation discharged by Unanimous Consent.
- Jan 24, 2017CommitteeCommittee · Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.
- Jan 23, 2017FloorFloor · Motion to reconsider laid on the table Agreed to without objection.
- FloorFloor · On motion to suspend the rules and pass the bill Agreed to by the Yeas and Nays: (2/3 required): 408 - 0 (Roll no. 61).House roll call 61
- FloorFloor · Considered as unfinished business.
- FloorFloor · At the conclusion of debate, the Yeas and Nays were demanded and ordered. Pursuant to the provisions of clause 8, rule XX, the Chair announced that further proceedings on the motion would be postponed.
- FloorFloor · DEBATE - The House proceeded with forty minutes of debate on H.R. 582.
- FloorFloor · Considered under suspension of the rules.
- FloorFloor · Mr. Lance moved to suspend the rules and pass the bill.
- Jan 17, 2017CommitteeCommittee · Referred to the House Committee on Energy and Commerce.
- IntroducedIntroduced · Introduced in House
Data notes
Every action the Library of Congress lists for the bill, from introduction to signing, plus the dated committee hearings. The source lists many steps twice (the chamber’s own entry and the Library of Congress copy, or a presidential and a became-law entry with the same words); those are shown once. Amendments are listed in their own section.
Amendments
1 amendment offered to the bill, with the last recorded step of each.
- Agreed to
S.Amdt. 1921SenateSen. Amy KlobucharD-MN· offered Feb 5, 2018Agreed to
To modify the effective date.
Feb 5, 2018: Amendment SA 1921 agreed to in Senate by Unanimous Consent.
Data notes
Amendments offered to this bill in either chamber, as the Library of Congress records them: each with a status read from its last recorded step: agreed to, rejected, withdrawn, ruled out of order, fell with another amendment, or offered with no vote recorded (most Senate amendments are only ever offered). The wording of each amendment is the source’s. Amendments to amendments and amendments to other bills are not listed.
Official record
The bill’s full text is on Congress.gov. Data through Oct 7, 2026.