Month: November 2016

Andy Seybold’s Public Safety Advocate, November 14, 2016

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 The State’s Opt-in or opt-out Decision. Soon after FirstNet announces the RFP winner (its Partner), the clock starts ticking down to the first six-month milestone. States will have to be prepared to decide whether to opt in and let FirstNet build out the network in that state or opt out and go it alone. Opting out means navigating their way through three different federal organizations, going out to bid, and then most likely being on the hook for the next 25 years for any financial shortfalls, system upgrades, and system expansions. The decision will be tough for some states that have, it seems, been promised they can reap huge rewards from use of the FirstNet spectrum for secondary uses. This is even though FirstNet has repeatedly clarified this issue declaring that states may use funds from a state-operated network only for that network and must turn any surplus over to FirstNet for the good of the nationwide network.

Because of the law passed by Congress—not because FirstNet made it difficult—the process of opting out is not a simple one. Further, the issues for a state to consider are many and the rewards are few. The responsibility of committing to building, operating, and funding a statewide network for the next 25 years should be considered very carefully. I have watched as efforts to convince states to opt out had, in the early days, been very vocal, then were quieted by realities of the financial implications. These efforts are underway again with a refined message suggesting opting out is not a move against FirstNet but rather a smart move for a state.

What is missing from these discussions is a reality check about which states can, in fact, support the buildout cost of FirstNet even with NTIA assistance, and then upgrade and operate the network over the course of the next 25 years. When the network needs the installation of the next revision of the LTE software it will cost a state money. If the need to upgrade to stay current with the nationwide network happens between state funding cycles, from where will the money come? Those who are promoting or at least suggesting opt-out scenarios are not taking into account the fact that many states simply cannot support the costs associated with the network. Continue reading →

4.9 GHz Band FNPRM Finally Circulated to FCC Commissioners

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November 10, 2016– A draft further notice of proposed rulemaking in the FCC’s 4.9 gigahertz band proceeding was circulated to FCC Commissioners yesterday, according to the agency’s weekly list of circulated items.

The FCC’s Public Safety and Homeland Security Bureau had been working on the item for quite a while and have received a number of filings, including a national plan submitted by the National Public Safety Telecommunications Council (TRDaily, Oct. 24, 2013), a white paper filed by the Association of Public-Safety Communications Officials-International (TRDaily, Sept. 28, 2015), and other input.

In 2012, FCC Commissioners, saying they were disappointed that the public safety community hadn’t used the 4.9 GHz band more intensively, adopted an item seeking views on proposals to spur higher utilization of the spectrum, including by opening the band up to wireless carriers on a secondary basis and critical infrastructure industry (CII) entities such as utilities on a primary basis (TRDaily, June 13, 2012). – Paul Kirby, paul.kirby@wolterskluwer.com

Courtesy TRDaily

 

Trump Win Leaves People Wondering Who Will Be Next FCC Chairman

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November 9, 2016–President-elect Donald J. Trump’s victory has left close watchers of the FCC and other agencies wondering about who will be the next FCC Chairman and who will get other plum jobs in the new administration. Unlike Hillary Clinton, who is a long-time Washington player with scores of allies well-known in the telecom community, Mr. Trump is not well-known to policy-makers and observers. “At this point, it would be speculation as to who will be appointed Chairman, essentially controlling the agenda of the FCC. But, at times like these, speculation is what people in Washington do,” David Oxenford, a partner at Wilkinson Barker Knauer LLP, noted in a blog posting today.

He pointed out that a key figure in the Trump transition is Jeffrey Eisenach, a visiting scholar at the free-market American Enterprise Institute and managing director at NERA Economic Consulting who is leading the administration’s FCC transition team. Continue reading →

Trump’s Policy Proposals Include Infrastructure Investment, TPP Withdrawal

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November 9, 2016–During the just-concluded presidential campaign, Donald J. Trump proposed an “America’s Infrastructure First” policy, including investments in telecommunications infrastructure, with a target figure of $1 trillion, although it’s unclear whether that would be just for transportation infrastructure, or whether that would cover other sectors as well. “According to the National Association of Manufacturers (NAM), without major improvements to our transportation systems, ‘the United States will lose more than 2.5 million jobs by 2025’ (NAM, Build To Win, 2016). NAM estimates a ‘ten-year funding gap’ of approximately $1 trillion. The Trump Infrastructure Plan is aimed at achieving a target of investment to fill this gap. NAM also found that $8 billion in infrastructure tax credits would support $226 billion in infrastructure investment over 10 years. Innovative financing programs also provide a 10-to-1 return on investment,” he says in a vision statement on his campaign website. Continue reading →

FirstNet Opens New Lab in Boulder

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November 9, 2016–The First Responder Network Authority (FirstNet) today unveiled its new test lab at its technical headquarters in Boulder, Colo. “The opening of our lab is a great accomplishment for FirstNet in our efforts to deploy public safety’s network and we’re proud to open it ahead of schedule and under budget,” said FirstNet Chief Executive Officer Mike Poth. “This will enable FirstNet to get advanced technology into the hands of our first responders and help them save lives and secure communities.”

“When first responders are racing to help in disasters and emergencies, they need communications tools that are tested and proven to work,” said FirstNet Chief Technology Officer Jeff Bratcher. “This lab will help FirstNet and our future partner ensure that public safety features, devices and applications run properly on the Network and are ready for first responders to use.”

FirstNet said in a news release that the lab “will be a ‘plug and play’ environment in which FirstNet and its future private industry partner will test public safety features, devices and apps before they are deployed on the Nationwide Public Safety Broadband Network (‘Network’).”

The lab “will be used to conduct validation and verification testing for the Network, services, and features, and aid future research and development related to public safety broadband technologies,” FirstNet said. “This testing will help reduce the time to initially field test and deploy public safety features of the FirstNet Network, including quality of service; priority; pre-emption; and other future mission-critical services and applications. The lab is ready now with all the utilities needed for the future FirstNet partner to install its equipment and begin testing.”

The lab will also be used in the future “for hands-on training, demonstration and user evaluation of future FirstNet Network technologies and applications.” FirstNet plans to continue to collaborate with the Public Safety Communications Research (PSCR) program, which also has a lab in Boulder. Meanwhile, Neil Cox is taking over as chairman of the FirstNet board’s technology committee from Barry Boniface, who is leaving the board. – Paul Kirby, paul.kirby@wolterskluwer.com

Courtesy TRDaily

Industry, Observers, Analysts Hope for, Predict Trump Election Means Lighter Regulatory Touch

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November 9, 2016–Telecom sector companies and associations today offered congratulations to President-elect Donald J. Trump, along with statements of hope for light-touch regulation and policies that encourage network investment. Meanwhile industry analysts and observers predicted action from the Republican Congress—freed from the threat of a veto by a Democratic president—to move ahead with an overhaul of the 1996 Telecommunications Act, and for a Republican-majority FCC to roll back some of the actions of the Wheeler Commission, including the reclassification of broadband Internet access as a Title II telecommunications service.

Still, the unified Republican government that House Speaker Paul Ryan (R., Wis.) extolled in a press conference this morning could still find itself with internal disagreement in some areas.

Mr. Trump is proposing a $1 trillion infrastructure investment package that would include broadband, which might go against the inclinations of some fiscal conservatives within his own party.  Mr. Trump’s statements on the campaign trail saying his administration would not approve AT&T, Inc.’s proposed acquisition of Time Warner, Inc., provide another example of an area where the president elect’s policy proclivities may depart from more laissez-faire attitudes within his party toward merger reviews.  And it’s not clear how much room there is in his immigration stance to embrace measure that would increase authorizations for highly skilled immigrant workers, a policy advocated by the tech sector and supported by many Republicans, albeit often with a demand for cut-backs in other immigration categories.

While Mr. Trump has plenty of company in criticizing the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade agreement reached by Obama administration negotiators, it is generally supported by the tech business community, which could ultimately make refusal to implement the agreement uncomfortable for some Republican members of Congress. Continue reading →

Florida Weighs in on Alternative State Plan Rules

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States that submit an alternative state plan seeking to build their own radio access networks (RANs) aren’t required by law “to complete the entire RFP process” by the time an alternative plan is submitted, according to the state of Florida.

In comments filed in PS docket 16-269, the state said that “it must be concluded that states are not required to complete the entire RFP process, but only the RFPs themselves, by the time they submit their alternative plans. The Commission should be mindful of this clear statutory distinction when issuing its final rule.”

The state submitted comments on a notice of proposed rulemaking released by the FCC in August seeking comments on the rules it should it adopt to evaluate alternative plans from states that want to opt out of having FirstNet’s partner build a RAN in their states (TRDaily, Aug. 26).  Initial comments were filed by other entities recently (TRDaily, Oct. 24). The state of Florida was given additional time to file its comments due to recent hurricanes (TRDaily, Oct. 20).

“Fairness also demands that the level of detail required from the state-submitted alternative plan to be no greater than that of the plan provided to each state by FirstNet,” Florida also said in its filing. “FirstNet, which has had more than 180 days to complete the request for proposal process, interprets its obligation to submit completed plans as requiring only ‘sufficient information to present the State plan with the details required pursuant to the Act for such plan, but not necessarily at any final award stage of such a process.’ Thus, FirstNet, which is required to complete the entire RFP process, does not believe a final award, let alone contract formation, is necessary in satisfying this obligation. It would be anomalous for the Commission to interpret a more rigorous standard on the states in their submission of alternative plans to the Commission.” Continue reading →

CNN Reports: Why your local police force loves robots

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If you stop to tie your shoe on a corner in Philadelphia or Camden, New Jersey, there’s a chance the city’s police force can see which foot. With hundreds of surveillance cameras on city streets, in the air and on officers’ bodies, 21st century police departments are relying on technology to fight crime more than ever before.

And one tool in particular is exploding in popularity: robots.

In the first six months of 2016, 201 robots were transferred from the US military to police forces around the country, according to a study by Bard College’s Center for the Study of the Drone. That’s more than any other year on record, and doesn’t even account for the number of robots acquired by police straight from manufacturers.

Read more:  http://www.cnn.com/2016/11/10/us/police-officers-future-technology-lisa-ling/index.html

TFOPA Meeting Set for December 2

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The last meeting of the FCC’s Task Force on Optimal Public Safety Answering Point (PSAP) Architecture under its current charter is scheduled for Dec. 2 from 1-5 p.m. in the Commission’s meeting room. The meeting had originally been scheduled for Nov. 18. The task force plans to vote on reports of its three working groups.

Public Safety Advocate, November 10, 2016

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Public Safety and FirstNet’s Re-Education Task: The elections are over. I won’t go into what the changing of the guard might or might not mean for the Public Safety community or FirstNet. Instead I want to concentrate on the education and re-education process for all of the new faces and staffs that will be emerging within the Executive Branch of the U.S. Government, House of Representatives, Senate, state governors, city mayors, council members, and county supervisors. FirstNet exists today as a result of the extraordinary efforts of the Public Safety community through the Public Safety Spectrum Trust (PSST) and the Public Safety Alliance (PSA). These organizations spent month after month for several years educating our law makers, the executive branch of the government, governors, mayors, and a host of others about the need for FirstNet and Public Safety broadband wireless communications. It did not hurt that the 9/11 Commission Report recommended that Public Safety communications be updated. And it did not hurt that there was a minor earthquake in Virginia that crippled commercial cellular networks and Congress saw firsthand the effects of jammed networks, or that Hurricanes Katrina and Sandy pointed out the weakness of commercial communications systems and Public Safety interoperability issues. But it was the feet on the street, the long meetings, articles, and more that drove home the need for FirstNet so that Congress finally enacted a bill that provided Public Safety with most but not all of what it wanted and needed.

For the next few months the Public Safety community and FirstNet will have to turn some of its attention to educating the newly elected folks who could impact FirstNet and the work that has been done. There will be new FirstNet board members for sure. Three of the seats on the board are for federal officials that are appointed and not elected. They include a seat for the Department of Homeland Security, Attorney General of the United States, and Director of the Office of Management and the Budget. It is obvious that there will be new department heads appointed after January 20, 2017, and, at some point, they will designate the person from their office who will fill the seat on the FirstNet board of directors. It would be great if these appointed officials could be brought up to speed prior to their making a board appointment.

Next up is the U.S. Congress. While the majority party of both houses will remain the same there are new members and new committee chairs and members will be appointed. It seems that staffers for the newly elected and newly appointed to committees of interest for FirstNet should be educated about FirstNet, its purpose, and the need to continue moving forward. The good news for FirstNet is one of its smartest hires was a congressional staffer who assisted the Public Safety community prior to FirstNet being formed and who is well respected in the halls of Congress. During our many visits to congressional offices we found one of Public Safety’s most potent weapons is the elected sheriffs. They are voted on like members of Congress, and in somewhat of an irony we found that many of the sheriffs who worked so hard to get FirstNet off the ground were elected by more votes in their own county than the congressional representative.

That brings us to the new governors. Their people will have to decide to opt in or opt out of FirstNet. Hopefully they will rely on those currently working for each state on its FirstNet involvement but it would certainly help if these new governors could also be brought up to speed regarding FirstNet and the need for this system to be built out as quickly as possible. Mayors, city council members, and county supervisors will hopefully listen to their own Public Safety community, which means local Public Safety organizations will have to have been properly briefed. I still find entire counties and even some cities where the word “FirstNet” is not understood and the concept of the broadband network has not been on the Public Safety radar. That leaves several important parts of the Executive Branch of the U.S. Government. FirstNet is “attached” to the Department of Commerce and within that organization the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA). Among their many duties, they are responsible for assignment of all spectrum for the federal government and overseeing FirstNet. The last agency, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), might be the most important for the opt-out process. There will be changes there and not only at the commissioner level but also within the Public Safety and Homeland Security Bureau (PSHSB). Continue reading →