Alexandria, VA – Today the Federal Communications Commission adopted an order staying – or suspending – provisions of its rules for the 4.9 GHz spectrum band that would permit licensing of the spectrum for commercial purposes. This action is responsive to requests from the public safety community and warnings that the recent changes to the 4.9 GHz rules would cause problems for emergency communications.
In September 2020, a majority of the FCC – over the objections of then-Commissioner Rosenworcel and Commissioner Starks – approved an order that opened the door to stripping the 4.9 GHz spectrum from public safety. The majority took this action despite significant opposition expressed by multiple major public safety associations including APCO…
Agencies on Michigan’s statewide P25 system again are able to buy L3Harris Technologies equipment for their operations on the network, but the system director said there is no shift from Motorola Solutions, despite significant industry speculation sparked by a recent L3Harris new release about its role in the state, according to the system director.
Brad Stoddard, director of the Michigan Public Safety Communications System (MPSCS), said the L3Harris press release—entitled “State of Michigan selects L3Harris Technologies for public-safety communications technology system”—has created “plenty of intrigue and myriad questions” about the P25 network. In reality, there are no plans to switch any existing gear in the 25-year-old Motorola Solutions-built P25 statewide system, he said…
A 911 dispatcher recalls a heartfelt phone call from a homeless woman that “changed her life forever.” The woman begins by sharing her background and the events that led to the life-changing encounter.
“My name is Priscilla and I am a 911 dispatcher in Santa Clara County, California. As you can imagine, we come across some crazy stuff. On the early morning of November 26th, I received a call that would change my life forever.”
The Owensboro-Daviess County 911 dispatch center took 25,000 more calls in 2020 than during the previous year, according to statistics released by the Owensboro Police Department.
But while overall calls were up, the number of people calling 911 with an emergency actually fell slightly last year compared to 2019.
In 2020, dispatchers took 224,185 emergency and nonemergency calls. Of those, 55,000 were 911 calls from cellphones and landlines, or from “voice over internet” calls. The center also received 168,569 nonemergency calls…
The Lunenburg County Board of Supervisors (BOS) unanimously voted to take the next steps in moving the county further in developing a new E911 radio communication system.
The new system, which could see construction begin next summer, will cost the county around $3.8 million.
An $89,000 State Homeland Security Grant will assist the county with the process…
The minimum qualifications and the amount of training required to develop a successful emergency dispatcher is extensive. Pair this with the competency level required in handling a 9-1-1 call. The people behind the scenes doing this job are professionals in their field. These professionals are classified by New York state and the federal government as “clerical” workers. We are urging our state representatives to classify these people according to the labor they perform. We are asking them to support a bill that would designate public safety dispatchers, emergency operators, emergency complaint operators and emergency service dispatchers as first responders…
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.
