BIDDEFORD — A Biddeford lawmaker has proposed a bill with the intention of bettering the state’s 911 texting service.

In Maine, cell phone users with Verizon Wireless, AT&T and Sprint can currently send a text message to 911 in the case of an emergency, Harry Lanphear, a spokesman for the state’s Emergency Services Communication Bureau, said Monday. Testing with T-Mobile is ongoing, he added, and U.S. Cellular would be the last of the five top carriers in Maine to get on board with the program.

“Three out of the big four can do it right now,” Lanphear said ”“ the “big four” meaning Verizon, AT&T, Sprint and T-Mobile.

“T-Mobile and U.S. Cellular would be last, but their customer base in Maine is somewhat on the smaller side,” he said. “Our plan is to certainly get to them though.”

Rep. Ryan Fecteau, D-Biddeford, recently proposed a bill that he hopes can speed up that process and ensure it’s done correctly. For example, Fecteau said he wants to ensure confidentiality is maintained when people text 911.

He also would like to see the service eventually expanded to include every cell phone user in Maine, regardless of his or her carrier.

“There are a lot of smaller cellular companies as well, so hopefully we can make sure the bureau taps into them,” he said.

Fecteau acknowledged that the bill, which currently reads only as, “An Act to Allow Text Messaging for Reporting Emergencies,” will likely need to be tweaked to focus in on specifics regarding the issue. One thing he might want to pursue, he said, is improving the technologies and infrastructure regarding 911 texting in Maine.

Only two call centers currently take 911 texts in the state, Maria Jacques, the bureau’s director, said Monday. The reason for that is twofold. One, the system is not very robust, she said, and there can be issues locating people who text 911.

“It’s not using the 911 location technology that a voice call does,” Jacques said of 911 texting, adding that it’s very important for folks who choose to text 911 to write in their exact location.

And two, there simply aren’t many people doing it.

“The population that can benefit the most from texting right now is the deaf and hard of hearing,” said Jacques.

She stressed that 911 texting should be a last-resort method for people in emergencies as it’s slower and less accurate than a traditional phone call. The bureau even sticks to the motto, “Call if you can. Text if you can’t.”

But that’s not to say 911 texting doesn’t have a place for the general population.

Fecteau said a police officer from Scarborough recently reached out to him, expressing his support of the technology, especially due to its potential to help victims of domestic violence.

“If you think about those sorts of situations, talking on the phone could be tremendously dangerous for a woman,” said Fecteau, echoing the officer’s thoughts.

Fecteau said some states have even found innovative ways to use the technology, and he would like to see similar practices adopted in Maine.

In some areas, for example, he said cell phone users can text photos or videos of car accident victims so that first responders can get an idea of how bad a person’s injuries are before they’re even on scene.

“There are a number of ways where we can really take advantage of this,” he said.

— Staff Writer Angelo J. Verzoni can be contacted at 282-1535, ext. 329 or [email protected].