State and city public safety officials today once again called for Congress to set aside a portion of the nation's airwaves to build a wireless broadband network for interoperable public safety communications and data-sharing.

"Seamless interoperability can only be achieved through a dedicated public safety nationwide broadband network," Philadelphia Police Commissioner Charles H. Ramsey, who is also the president of the Major Cities Chiefs Association and the Police Executive Research Forum, told the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Government Reform (HSGRC).

To achieve this, Ramsey called on Congress to allocate a portion of the nation's airwaves, known as the D Block, solely for public safety use. "The allocation of the D Block for public safety organizations, with adequate capacity, control and funding, is the only proposal that will meet the challenges and demands that we confront."

Currently, the Senate is considering two separate bills, one [1] (.pdf) introduced by HSGRC Chairman Sen. Joseph Lieberman (I-CT), that would allocate the D Block to public safety agencies. The second bill under consideration, introduced by Sen. Jay Rockefeller (D-WV) and known as the SPECTRUM Act [2] (.pdf), recently made it out of committee and should be taken up by the full Senate [3].

In January, the Obama White House came out in favor of allocating the D Block exclusively for public safety. Originally the White House wanted to auction off the D Block,  worth an estimated $3 billion [4], to wireless carriers, who would then give priority to public safety communications during an emergency. (For more on the D Block debate, check out "A Fight Over First Responder Bandwith [5]" from the November 2010 issue of Security Management.)

First responder groups, however, have thrown their weight against an auction. "The Public Safety Alliance will strongly oppose any legislation or resolution that supports auctioning the D block," Ramsey said, speaking on behalf of the group, composed of nine national public safety associations. "Public safety becomes both less public and less safe if we auction any part of the D Block to the highest commercial bidder."

Lieberman said allocating the D Block to public safety would be a "giant leap forward" for improving interoperability among first responders and public safety agencies across regions, states, and local jurisdictions.

Many witnesses predicted major emergency communications advances once a wireless broadband public safety network is established. "There will be uses that we can't even imagine yet," said Greg Schaffer, acting deputy under secretary of the National Protection and Programs Directorate at the Department of Homeland Security.

Currently, however, state and local public safety officials have to deal with the technology gap between first responders and the rest of the public, especially younger generations. Lieberman and Ramsey traded jokes about the situation, describing how the average American teenager currently has more powerful communication capabilities and technological talent than first responders.

"Right now my son and daughter have more capability than my firefighters do responding to emergencies today," reiterated Michael D. Varney, the statewide interoperablity coordinator for Connecticutt.

Once integrated into a wireless broadband network, witnesses spoke of first responders sharing data, such as on-scene video and blueprints, to make emergency response more efficient and safer. Varney also noted that the growing popularity of IP cameras among property owners will allow first responders to gain critical situational awareness before heading into a dangerous situation.

After two years of debating what to do with the D Block, Ramsey said Congress should have the information it needs to make an informed decision.  "Our first responders, who put their lives on the line every day, must have the resources that they need to do their jobs more efficiently and effectively, armed with real-time data, video and other critical information," he said.

♦ Graph taken from public testimony [6] (.pdf) of Chief Jeffrey D. Johnson, EFO, CFO, MIFireE, given to the Subcommittee on Communications and Technology of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce, May 25, 2011

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