Rosenworcel Term Would End in 2020

The White House today forwarded to the Senate President Trump’s nomination of former FCC Commissioner Jessica Rosenworcel to fill the currently vacant term that began July 1, 2015, when her previous term officially expired.  He announced his intention to nominate her yesterday (TR Daily, June 14).

Courtesy TRDaily

 

Southern Linc, CO FirstNet Entity Criticize FirstNet, AT&T Arguments on Draft FCC Order

Southern Linc and the FirstNet Colorado Governing Body (FirstNet Colorado) have submitted filings at the FCC criticizing arguments made by the First Responder Network Authority (FirstNet) and AT&T, Inc., in the agency’s proceeding in which it plans to adopt an order at its June 22 meeting to establish procedures for reviewing alternative plans filed by states that want to “opt out” and contract to build their own radio access networks (RANs) rather than have AT&T, FirstNet’s partner, build them (see separate story).

In an ex parte filing yesterday in PS docket 16-269 and GN docket 17-83, Southern Linc complained that FirstNet “recently submitted a notice of ex parte presentation that once again seeks to erect unnecessary procedural barriers to a state’s choice to opt-out from the FirstNet radio access network. While purporting to implement the Spectrum Act, FirstNet offers unduly rigid interpretations of the state opt-out process that neither reflect the statutory text, nor honor Congress’s decision to permit states a measure of autonomy on how to support public safety officials in their state. The draft order circulated by Chairman [Ajit] Pai, by contrast, implements the plain language of the statute by not imposing artificial obstacles to a state’s effort to invoke its opt-out rights under the law. Southern Communications Services, Inc., d/b/a/ Southern Linc (Southern Linc) therefore encourages the Commission to adopt the draft Order as written.” Continue reading

FCC to Consider Public Safety, Broadband Items at June 22 Meeting

The FCC announced today that it plans to consider at its June 22 meeting three public safety items dealing with the First Responder Network Authority (FirstNet), a new Emergency Alert System (EAS) notification, and the agency’s caller ID rules to help authorities investigate threatening calls. Also on the eight-item agenda are items dealing with granting a company access to the U.S. market for a satellite broadband network, facilitating greater consumer choice for broadband deployment in multiple tenant environments, eliminating payphone regulations, and clarifying information that cable providers must provide subscribers. Commissioners also are scheduled to consider an enforcement action.

In the FirstNet report and order in PS docket 16-269, the Commission plans to establish procedures for reviewing alternative plans filed by states that want to “opt out” and contract to build their own radio access networks (RANs) rather than have FirstNet’s partner, AT&T, Inc., build them. The Commission also plans to consider a notice of proposed rulemaking in PS docket 15-94 that proposes to amend the agency’s EAS rules to add the event code “BLU” for Blue Alerts. The new alert would enable the dissemination of information when law enforcement officers have been killed or seriously injured, are in imminent danger, or are missing. Continue reading

DHS OEC Posts FY 2017 SAFECOM Guidance on Emergency Communications Grants

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Office of Emergency Communications (OEC) is pleased to announce that the FY 2017 SAFECOM Guidance on Emergency Communications Grants (SAFECOM Guidance) has been posted to the SAFECOM website at: https://www.dhs.gov/safecom/fundingSAFECOM Guidance is updated annually to provide relevant information on policies, eligible costs, technical standards, and best practices for state, territorial, tribal, and local grantees investing federal funds in emergency communications projects.

In its eleventh edition, SAFECOM Guidance continues to evolve to meet the needs of the public safety community.  This year’s Guidance reflects the current emergency communications landscape, investment priorities, technical standards that help to ensure interoperability, and available supporting materials for implementing emergency communications grants. Key changes to the Guidance include additional cybersecurity resources, FirstNet guidance on broadband projects, and implications of data information sharing.

To members of the SAFECOM/NCSWIC, thank you for your contribution to this year’s Guidance and helping us ensure that emergency communications policy is consistent across the Federal Government.  The efforts of the SAFECOM/NCSWIC Funding and Sustainability Committee shaped the Guidance so that it better serves our community.  For questions or additional information on the FY 2017 SAFECOM Guidance, please email OEC at:  oec@hq.dhs.gov.

S&T Snapshot: Newly Transitioned Hurricane Decision Support Platform Gives Emergency Managers More Capabilities

On October 1, 2016, Hurricane Matthew became the first category five storm in the Atlantic Ocean in nearly a decade when Hurricane Felix blew through with sustained winds of 160 miles per hour. As a result of Matthew, 47 Americans died. Damages in excess of 10 billion dollars made it the most expensive storm since Superstorm Sandy in 2012. Matthew damaged homes and infrastructure from the Caribbean to the Canadian Maritimes. Domestic response to the hurricane included widespread evacuations. Extensive areas of the coast were evacuated because of predicted high wind speeds and flooding, especially in Jacksonville, Florida. One million Floridians lost power as the storm passed to the east, with more than 400,000 losing power in Georgia, North and South Carolina. Widespread torrential rains and flooding spread inland in the Carolinas and Virginia.

Hurricane Matthew was one of the first operational uses of The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Science and Technology Directorate’s (S&T) HURREVAC-eXtended (HV-X) platform. The HV-X platform integrates forecast and planning data to provide emergency managers decision support tools for use in advance of and during tropical weather. Development began in 2013 and since then, S&T identified the need for a comprehensive hurricane decision platform that encompassed all phases of planning and evacuations. Collaborating with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) via the National Hurricane Program (NHP) Technology Modernization initiative, DHS S&T worked to streamline the currently available HURREVAC storm tracking and decision platform. The result of this collaboration is HV-X. Continue reading

Waiver Request for Maritime Radio Draws Support

A waiver request submitted by Icom America, Inc., that would permit the manufacture, importation, sale, and installation of a medium frequency/high frequency digital selective calling (DSC) radio has drawn supportive comments. Such devices “are used by ship stations to communicate with other ship stations or coast stations for safety, navigation, and weather information,” the Wireless Telecommunications Bureau observed in a recent public notice (TR Daily, May 9). “A waiver is required because the M802 does not comply with the relevant technical standard now incorporated by reference in the Commission’s rules. … Icom now requests a waiver to permit manufacture, importation, sale, and installation of the M802 until 2020, by which time it expects to have available an MF/HF DSC radio that complies with the current standard.” Continue reading

S&T Media Release: DHS S&T Announces $1.3M in Small Business Innovation Research Award

Washington, D.C. – The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Science and Technology Directorate’s (S&T) Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program has awarded $1.3 million to 12 small businesses for 13 Phase I contract awards to develop technology solutions to Homeland Security challenges.

“These awards are the result of our SBIR solicitation, released in December 2016, seeking solutions in five topic areas identified by S&T program managers to address the research and development needs of DHS components and the greater homeland security enterprise,” said DHS SBIR Program Director John Pucci.

The objective of the Phase I award is to establish the technical merit, feasibility, and commercial potential of the proposed Research and Development efforts. Small businesses may be eligible for additional development funding under Phase II based on the results of their initial project, as well as the scientific and technical merit and perceived commercialization potential moving forward. Continue reading

Andy Seybold’s Public Safety Advocate, June 10 2017

A Report from Dallas FirstNet/AT&T/SPOC Meeting and unfortunate activities from one vendor. This past week in Dallas was the fifth time the Single (State) Point Of Contacts (SPOCs) and their teams met with FirstNet and from most reports this was the best meeting yet. The number of both FirstNet and AT&T employees and contractors present was a measure of how important this event was to both of them. The reason, of course, was that this was the first SPOC gathering since AT&T became the official partner of FirstNet and the public safety community. Unfortunately, one vendor that was not chosen appears to have over-stepped the bounds of decorum while the SPOC event was underway. Read the entire Public Safety Advocate here Below is this week’s News Summary Courtesy of Discovery Patterns: Continue reading

Cyber Experts See IoT Vulnerabilities, Liabilities Rising with Devices in Use

Experts on cybersecurity policy today warned that vulnerabilities and liabilities will only grow as the number of connected IoT (Internet of things) devices expands. In opening remarks at the Capitol Hill event organized by the Telecommunications Industry Association, Rep. Bob Latta (R., Ohio), chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee’s digital commerce and consumer protection subcommittee, said lawmakers needed to “look ahead” as technology and markets changed, and that “we need soft-touch regulation so we don’t hamper anyone in industry.”  He noted that “by 2025 we’re looking at 25 to 50 billion connected devices around the globe.”

Denise Zheng, director and senior fellow in the Technology Policy Program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, said that the “IoT-relevant parts” of a recent CSIS report on cybersecurity (TR Daily, Jan. 5) focused on vulnerability research and “bug-bounty” programs.

“We think we’re just seeing the tip of the iceberg in terms of vulnerabilities, incidents, [and] lawsuits” related to IoT security, she said. Continue reading

State Officials Generally Pleased with Two-Day FirstNet Meeting

Several state officials told TR Daily today that they were pleased with the two-day meeting held by the First Responder Network Authority (FirstNet) in Dallas this week to discuss the impending delivery of state plans (TR Daily, June 8). They also said it was a good idea to allow states to inform the authority sooner than planned that they want AT&T, Inc., to build radio access networks (RANs) in their states. “I appreciate the flexibility being offered in the process for Governors to accelerate deployment if there are no concerns with the plan presented,” said Red Grasso, deputy director of FirstNetNC in the North Carolina Department of Information Technology and the state’s acting FirstNet state point of contact (SPOC). “While all of the plans are being released on the same day, Governors are now able to make a decision at their own pace as long as they do not exceed the timeframe allowed by the law. It’s going to be an exciting couple of months, almost like watching the presidential election results on a state-by-state basis.”

FirstNet hopes to deliver state plans on June 19.

During a conference call with reporters yesterday, FirstNet Chief Customer Officer Rich Reed said states will have 45 days to review the state plans and make any comments. FirstNet will then take 45 days to review those comments and respond to them. Then the plans would be made official. Once final states plans are delivered, governors would have 90 days to decide whether to have AT&T build their RANs to seek to build their own. Continue reading