Originally Posted By: Quietly_Learning
E911cannot be turned off. It is required by the fcc:

http://www.fcc.gov/guides/wireless-911-services


I don't think that the FCC regulations state that -- it appears to me that the provider must have the capability.

The only modern phone I know much about is the AT&T iPhone, and I'm pretty confident that when Location Services is turned completely off that the GPS chip is turned completely off. If I'm right about that, iPhone users who do that would be left with the network's location-finding ability rather than the handset's onboard reporting of location.

Originally Posted By: wikipedia
The U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has several requirements applicable to wireless or mobile telephones:
Basic 911: All 911 calls must be relayed to a call center, regardless of whether the mobile phone user is a customer of the network being used.
E911 Phase 1: Wireless network operators must identify the phone number and cell phone tower used by callers, within six minutes of a request by a PSAP.
E911 Phase 2:
95% of a network operator's in-service phones must be E911 compliant ("location capable") by December 31, 2005. (Several carriers missed this deadline, and were fined by the FCC.)
Wireless network operators must provide the latitude and longitude of callers within 300 meters, within six minutes of a request by a PSAP. Accuracy rates must meet FCC standards on average within any given participating PSAP service area by September 11, 2012 (deferred from September 11, 2008).
Location information is not only transmitted to the call center for the purpose of sending emergency services to the scene of the incident, it is used by the wireless network operator to determine to which PSAP to route the call.


Let me be clear that I do not advocate turning this feature off when calling 911!