As public-safety officials today commemorate the 10-year anniversary of the FirstNet Authority being created, the deployment of the FirstNet nationwide public-safety broadband network (NPSBN) has proceeded well enough that no one needs to face a firing squad, according to former Authority board Chair Sue Swenson.
“Save it for another time,” Swenson said during a recent interview with IWCE’s Urgent Communications, noting that the initial five-year FirstNet buildout is expected to be finished this year. “I had forgotten that we can tell people that we don’t have to shoot them now.”
Of course, Swenson was joking—gunfire was never an actual threat. But it was Swenson who famously stated “we should be shot” if FirstNet was not completed as planned in 2022 while testifying before the Senate Commerce Committee almost seven years ago…
America’s Public Safety Network Surpasses 2.81 Million Square Miles, Expands First Responder Access to 5G and Strengthens Commitment to Mission-Ready Infrastructure (Courtesy of FirstNet and AT&T)
In the nearly 5 years since AT&T was selected by the First Responder Network Authority (FirstNet Authority) to build and operate FirstNet®, the company moved quickly to bring more coverage, boost capacity and drive new capabilities for first responders and the communities they serve, whether they be rural, urban and tribal.
To date the public safety community on FirstNet has access to the nation’s largest coverage footprint, reaching more than 2.81 million square miles across the country. That means they cover more than 50,000 square miles above that of the largest commercial networks (about the size of Alabama), enabling more first responders access to an entire ecosystem of innovative solutions to keep them mission ready…
TOPEKA, Kan. (WIBW) -Several spoke Monday in favor of Senate Bill 491, which would allow first responders to receive workers’ compensation benefits if they develop PTSD on the job.
Senate Bill 491 would allow workers compensation benefits for treatment, time off, or changing roles if the current role is too stressful.
The bill currently includes law enforcement, fire, and emergency medical services. Some supporters also want to include dispatchers… READ MORE
(WAND) – Emergency dispatchers are the first to answer the call for help. But in Illinois, they are categorized as clerical staff – not first responders.
Now, a bill moving through the Illinois Senate could change that.
“Dispatchers are the lifeline, the vital lifeline really, between our citizens and the emergency services that they need,” Desir’ee Wright, communications supervisor for the Central Illinois Regional Dispatch Center (CIRD), told WAND News…
PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — Maine has become the first state in New England to create an alert system for missing children with intellectual or developmental disabilities.
The Maine Department of Public Safety and supporters of the new system said it addresses a gap in emergency alerts in the state. The new program is part of the state’s silver alert system that was created more than a decade ago to inform the public about missing older residents who suffer from cognitive impairments…
COOS BAY, Ore. – Coos Bay voters will be asked to approve a $20 million bond measure for a new combined library and 911 communications center.
The City Council unanimously approved placing the bond measure on the upcoming May ballot during a meeting this week.
The measure authorizes the city to issue bonds to help pay for a combined library and 911 communications center in John Topits Park. The structure will be approximately 32,700 square feet and is expected to include space for library collections, study and computer locations, as well as community meeting and age-specific programming spaces… READ MORE
Learn about current efforts to continue to protect the 4.9 GHz Band for public safety as well as recent filings, key decisions impacting these efforts, and how you can support PSSA’s initiative to protect the 4.9 GHz band for public safety.
