APCO Demands Dedicated Interoperable Communications Funding
The Assn. of Public Communications Officials Tues. voiced deep concern that the White House budget fails to dedicate funds for interoperable communications. Without such funding many agencies can’t buy radios, an APCO lobbyist said. APCO spoke out ahead of a hearing today (Wed.) by a House Homeland Security Committee panel on interoperable communications.
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APCO flagged the lack of interoperable communications funding and cuts to the COPS Interoperability Communications Equipment grant program. COPS, until now a $100 million yearly program, would be cut to $20 million in fiscal 2007 if the Administration’s proposals pass.
Interoperable communications should have $1 billion dedicated to it, APCO said. “There are solutions and remedies to improving emergency communications during natural and manmade disasters,” APCO said in a letter. “However, costs associated with these solutions are enormous for local governments to sustain alone. It is clearly time to provide focused grant programs for emergency communication needs independent of any other funding efforts.”
The need to improve interoperable communications gained prominence after the 9/11 attacks and again last year after hurricanes Katrina and Rita. Funds are needed for “operations planning, creating appropriate redundancy and diversity to facilitate sustained services amidst disaster, improving the critical component of training, development of policies and procedures, and conducting regular exercise of the system(s) requirements,” APCO said.
“There is funding for interoperable communications, but it’s not dedicated to interoperable communications,” Yucel Ors, APCO dir.-legislative affairs said: “It could go to upgrade computer systems rather than radio system. It’s tied into a larger program. We want to see money… solely for interoperable communications.”
During Hurricane Katrina safety agencies’ inability to talk to one other was a big failure, F.G. Dowden, New Orleans Homeland Security & Public Safety Dept. regional liaison, said last week at a Senate Homeland Security & Governmental Affairs Committee hearing. “Jefferson Parish was supported by two 800 MHz trunked radio systems, one of which supported the parish government and the other the sheriff’s department,” he said. “State agencies were operating on a different 800 MHz trunked analog system and federal agencies were operating on VHF spectrum and other radio systems, depending on the agency.”