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February 25, 2010
FCC Requesting $16 Billion to $18 Billion for Nationwide Emergency Wireless Broadband Network
By Patrick Barnard, Group Managing Editor, TMCnet
As part of its national broadband plan, the Federal Communications Commission is proposing $16 billion to $18 billion in grants over 10 years to fund a nationwide wireless broadband network that would allow police officers, firefighters and other emergency workers to communicate with each other.
The FCC’s (News - Alert) national broadband plan, to be presented to Congress next month, will lay out a roadmap for bringing high-speed Internet connections to all Americans.
The proposed public safety network would use wireless spectrum freed up by television broadcasters following last year's transition from analog to digital broadcasts.
“Our goal is to develop the best short-term and long-term plans for America’s first responders,” said FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski (News - Alert) in a statement. “Public safety must have consistent and prompt access to secure, robust networks of the highest quality and first responders should be equipped with state-of-the-art devices and applications that are 100 percent interoperable and easy to use.”
The FCC’s (News - Alert) national broadband plan, to be presented to Congress next month, will lay out a roadmap for bringing high-speed Internet connections to all Americans.
The proposed public safety network would use wireless spectrum freed up by television broadcasters following last year's transition from analog to digital broadcasts.
“Our goal is to develop the best short-term and long-term plans for America’s first responders,” said FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski (News - Alert) in a statement. “Public safety must have consistent and prompt access to secure, robust networks of the highest quality and first responders should be equipped with state-of-the-art devices and applications that are 100 percent interoperable and easy to use.”
Apparently the proposal has more to do with national security than it does collaboration between local or state agencies. Genachowski said Admiral Jamie Barnett, chief of the Commission’s Public Safety and Homeland Security Bureau, helped draft the proposal based on President Obama’s request for a national broadband public safety strategy.
“Under Admiral Barnett’s leadership, the Public Safety and Homeland Security Bureau, working closely with other FCC Bureaus and Offices, and the entire Broadband Team, has … developed a comprehensive gameplan for public safety as part of the National Broadband Plan to address vitally important issues and propose real solutions,” Genachowski said.
“Under Admiral Barnett’s leadership, the Public Safety and Homeland Security Bureau, working closely with other FCC Bureaus and Offices, and the entire Broadband Team, has … developed a comprehensive gameplan for public safety as part of the National Broadband Plan to address vitally important issues and propose real solutions,” Genachowski said.
He said the public safety portion of the National Broadband Plan will “recommend concrete steps for the deployment of a nationwide interoperable wireless
broadband network for public safety; focus on increasing cybersecurity and critical infrastructure survivability of broadband networks; and propose measures to advance Next Generation 9-1-1 services and new public alerting initiatives that leverage broadband technology.”
“The bottom line is that if we want to deliver on what our first responders need to protect our communities and loved ones, public money will need to be put toward tackling this national priority,” Genachowski said.
When the FCC brings the proposal to Congress next month it will likely have to answer some tough questions about why such a plan is needed. The central question regarding this proposal is how will it improve upon the emergency communications systems already in place today?
One official with Chicago-based E911 solutions provider, RedSky Technologies, told TMCnet that the company is “thrilled.”
“RedSky (News - Alert) is thrilled to hear that the FCC is recommending significant public funding, up to $16 billion over 10 years, to fund the construction, operation, and evolution of a nationwide, interoperable wireless broadband network for public safety,” said Bill Mertka, RedSky’s vice president of project management and chair of the NENA ICE2 Planning Committee.
“RedSky applauds any and every forthright and authoritative action on the part of Federal and other government entities that is directed at helping make advanced, next-generation emergency communications a reality,” he continued. “As a leader in the design and development of NG9-1-1 systems and solutions, we are particularly happy to hear that the FCC’s National Broadband Plan will ‘propose measures to advance Next Generation 9-1-1 services,’ but also applaud the effort on the part of the FCC to ensure that the other half of the equation, public safety communications and dispatch networks, are also updated and enhanced. Implementing NG9-1-1 services and solutions without the development of a robust, and especially interoperable, public safety wireless broadband network that could be utilized by the nation’s police, fire, and EMS resources, would mean that implementing NG9-1-1 would only take care of half of the problem.”
“RedSky applauds any and every forthright and authoritative action on the part of Federal and other government entities that is directed at helping make advanced, next-generation emergency communications a reality,” he continued. “As a leader in the design and development of NG9-1-1 systems and solutions, we are particularly happy to hear that the FCC’s National Broadband Plan will ‘propose measures to advance Next Generation 9-1-1 services,’ but also applaud the effort on the part of the FCC to ensure that the other half of the equation, public safety communications and dispatch networks, are also updated and enhanced. Implementing NG9-1-1 services and solutions without the development of a robust, and especially interoperable, public safety wireless broadband network that could be utilized by the nation’s police, fire, and EMS resources, would mean that implementing NG9-1-1 would only take care of half of the problem.”
When the FCC brings the proposal to Congress next month it will likely have to answer some tough questions about why such a plan is needed. The central question regarding this proposal is how will it improve upon the emergency communications systems already in place today?
Patrick Barnard is a senior Web editor for TMCnet, covering call and contact center technologies. He also compiles and regularly contributes to TMCnet e-Newsletters in the areas of robotics, IT, M2M, OCS and customer interaction solutions. To read more of Patrick's articles, please visit his columnist page.
Edited by Patrick Barnard
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