If any of your sites has a fire alarm that still reports over a copper phone line, replacing that line is a fire alarm change, not routine phone work. The fire alarm code sets rules for how the new connection must work, and in some places the change needs a permit and a fire inspection before the system is accepted.

Here is what the code requires, why the phone company won’t handle it for you, and how to plan this across many sites without surprises.

The phone company replaces the line. Not the fire alarm.

As of October 15, 2026, new FCC rules that make it faster for carriers to retire copper and discontinue old phone service are fully in effect. The FCC also noted that an earlier requirement for replacement services to stay compatible with devices like alarms expired in 2025. It declined an alarm industry request to require replacement services to be configured for legacy alarm dialers, though it encouraged carriers to set up their networks to avoid alarm failures.

So when the copper goes, the carrier’s job ends at the phone service. Making the fire alarm work on whatever replaces it is the building owner’s job, done through a fire alarm contractor.

What the fire alarm code requires

The national fire alarm code, NFPA 72, is adopted by states and cities, and your local fire official has the final say. Jurisdictions adopt different editions of the code, so confirm which one applies at each site. But the code and the guidance we reviewed from fire officials in California, Washington and North Carolina line up on the basics:

Elevator emergency phones deserve the same attention. North Carolina’s State Construction Office notes that existing elevators must keep two-way communication with at least 4 hours of backup power. It also warns that replacing the cab phone or call button will likely trigger the 2019 elevator code, which requires text and video communication, not just voice. The state’s Department of Labor may require that upgrade after any change in phone service.

Healthcare facilities have a second rulebook. Hospitals, nursing homes, surgery centers and other facilities certified by Medicare or Medicaid must also meet CMS requirements, which adopt the 2012 Life Safety Code. Under that code, CMS surveyors apply the 2010 edition of NFPA 72, while the local fire marshal may enforce a newer one. The replacement has to satisfy both. The 2010 edition does not require copper; it accepts carrier-managed digital phone service that meets the code’s criteria. The FCC has also recognized that discontinuances affecting critical access hospitals may need more time, and a credible objection based on critical access needs can lead the FCC to take a carrier’s application off the fast track.