Month: August 2018

First Responder Network Authority To Present Webinar, Introduction and Overview to FirstNet Network Status Tool and Uplift Request Tool, on August 30 from 1:00 to 2:00 p.m. ET.

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On August 30, the National Information Sharing Consortium will be hosting a webinar with the First Responder Network Authority on the FirstNet Network Status Tool and Uplift Request Tool. These are unique tools to the FirstNet network, the only nationwide public safety communications platform dedicated to America’s first responders. Learn about the features crucial to public safety on FirstNet.

The FirstNet webinar is the thirteenth webinar in the NISC’s Mission-Focused Job Aids Webinar Series that will review tools, techniques, and standard operating procedures that NISC partners in the homeland security, emergency management, public safety, first responder, and healthcare preparedness communities use to facilitate and manage information sharing. For more information about the webinars series and the NISC, visit the NISC website at www.nisconsortium.org. To become a member of the NISC, click here to join, membership is free for all users!

 

 

NTIA Reports: FirstNet Board Leaders Announce Plans to Retire

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Today, FirstNet Board Chair Sue Swenson and Vice Chair Jeffrey Johnson notified Assistant Secretary of Commerce David Redl of their resignation from the FirstNet board. Formal letters of resignation have been submitted to U.S. Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross.

The Secretary of Commerce is responsible for appointing the 12 non-permanent members of the FirstNet board, which includes 15 voting members. The other three seats are filled by the Attorney General, the Secretary of Homeland Security and the Director of the Office of Management and Budget. In addition, the Secretary of Commerce appoints the board chair, while the board chair selects the vice chair. Swenson’s term as board chair expires today, and Johnson is stepping down from his vice chair role, also effective today. Swenson and Johnson served two years of their 2016 three-year appointments.

“Secretary Ross and I are grateful for the leadership that Sue Swenson and Jeff Johnson demonstrated in leading FirstNet from a true startup to nationwide deployment,” said Redl. “We are deeply appreciative of their commitment to public safety and service to their country. The Department and FirstNet have identified talented, experienced candidates for the FirstNet board that will carry on Sue and Jeff’s good work. We look forward to announcing those appointments later this year.”

In April, NTIA issued a notice to recruit candidates to replace board members whose terms were ending and received responses from a wide range of qualified applicants. With today’s resignations, there will be seven seats to fill. The board’s next quarterly meeting is in December.

“It has been an honor and a privilege to serve public safety over the past six years. Having accomplished what Chief Johnson and I set out to do back in 2012 with the deployment of the Nationwide Public Safety Broadband Network (NPSBN) across all 56 states and territories with AT&T, it seems like the right time to transition,” Swenson said. “We remain committed to the FirstNet mission and will seek ways to continue our support of FirstNet in the years following our service.”

“It was a privilege to serve with Sue and represent the fire service community on the FirstNet board,” Johnson said. “I am confident that FirstNet will continue to succeed as it pursues its mission of providing a dedicated broadband network for every first responder in the country.”

Swenson, Johnson Resign From FirstNet Board

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First Responder Network Authority (FirstNet) Chairwoman Sue Swenson and Vice Chairman Jeff Johnson resigned from the FirstNet board today, as Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross prepares to appoint a new board chair. Ms. Swenson and Mr. Johnson, who were inaugural board members who sat on the board since FirstNet was created in 2012, had one year remaining until they would have been forced to leave the board due to term limits.

Ms. Swenson’s tenure leading the board ended today, as she was term-limited from continuing after having served two, two-year terms as chairwoman. The board chair names the vice chair. Mr. Johnson had served as vice chairman since 2014, replacing Ms. Swenson in that position after she was promoted to chairwoman.

“It has been an honor and a privilege to serve public safety over the past six years. Having accomplished what Chief Johnson and I set out to do back in 2012 with the deployment of the Nationwide Public Safety Broadband Network (NPSBN) across all 56 states and territories with AT&T, it seems like the right time to transition,” Ms. Swenson said in a statement. “We remain committed to the FirstNet mission and will seek ways to continue our support of FirstNet in the years following our service.”

“It was a privilege to serve with Sue and represent the fire service community on the FirstNet board,” Mr. Johnson said. “I am confident that FirstNet will continue to succeed as it pursues its mission of providing a dedicated broadband network for every first responder in the country.” Continue reading →

Andy Seybold’s Public Safety Advocate, August 15, 2018

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FirstNet the Authority and More.  With AT&T beating every due date, dealing with its coverage issues head-on, and deploying Band 14 ahead of schedule, not to mention certifying new FirstNet-approved devices, sometimes we forget FirstNet is the most important public/private partnership this nation has ever seen. When Congress formed FirstNet in 2012, it became an independent authority under the auspices of the National Telecommunications and Information Association (NTIA), which is a part of the Department of Commerce. FirstNet the Authority, as it has become known, was responsible for putting together the FirstNet request for proposal, distributing it, and making the award. Even with the delays caused by others, it shepherded the request through to a successful conclusion and awarded the FirstNet contract to AT&T.

Since then, the focus for public safety has been on FirstNet (Built by AT&T) and not so much on FirstNet the Authority although it continues to play many important roles going forward including being the final authority on how well AT&T is doing against the deliverables established both in the RFP and in the final contract. FirstNet the Authority still has a large staff of qualified people working with federal, state, and local agencies to ensure they fully understand the importance of joining FirstNet (Built by AT&T) and how to go about it. It is the checks and balances organization that, if AT&T strays from the goals set up in the contract (which to my knowledge it has not done) FirstNet the Authority has the clout to ensure AT&T gets back on track.

It is easy to see exactly how engaged both FirstNet the Authority and its board of directors have remained throughout the process. Its last meeting was held August 13, 2018, after the APCO show. Each committee reported to the board on activity that impacts FirstNet. Fiscal highlights for 2018 include that AT&T earned a sustainability payment of $5.5 billion, and the Authority was once again given a clean bill of health by the Inspector General (IG) in his report. This makes five years in a row the IG passed the Authority with high marks. Furthermore, the finance committee reported it met the financial requirements of FirstNet while staying under budget, perhaps one of a very few government-related agencies that does stick to its budget. During 2019, it appears as though funds will be made available for independent validation and verification of the public safety network coverage, which is an important task.  Read the Entire Post Here. Continue reading →

DHS to Move Beyond Info-Sharing with New Cyber Center

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The Department of Homeland Security is aiming to move its cyberspace protection efforts beyond information-sharing by establishing a National Risk Management Center (NRMC) to focus more holistically on cybersecurity, according to Christopher Krebs, DHS’s undersecretary-national protection and programs.

The new center “will focus on what truly is important – strategic risk issues with a longer-term approach to achieving the outcomes we set forth,” Mr. Krebs said during today’s meeting of the president’s National Security Telecommunications Advisory Committee (NSTAC).

He noted that the NRMC would have a different mission from DHS’s existing National Cybersecurity and Communications Integration Center (NCCIC), which is a 24-hour cyber risk information-sharing hub.  “This represents moving beyond information-sharing,” he said.  “Information-sharing is a tool in the toolkit.  It is not an outcome or an endpoint.” Continue reading →

O’Rielly Commends CNMI on 911 Fee Commitment

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FCC Commissioner Mike O’Rielly commended Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands Gov. Ralph DLG. Torres (R.) today for his “recognition and commitment that any consumer-collected 9-1-1 fees will not be diverted to other purposes and that the CNMI will comply with current law on the matter.” Mr. O’Rielly’s letter responded to a July 21 letter that Gov. Torres sent Mr. O’Rielly.  In his letter, which responded to an earlier letter from the Commissioner, Gov. Torres said that his territory “currently does not have a 9-1-1 System or … active Public Safety Answering Points (PSAPs) in place. … Accordingly, the CNMI is currently not collecting fee or charges.”

But he said that legislation being drafted would create “an Enhanced Emergency 911/NextGen 911 Telephone Communications System within the CNMI. This legislation proposes to also establish a 911 Surcharge to be borne by Local Exchange Telephone and Commercial Mobile Radio Service Subscribers, among other elements critical to the operation and management of an effective and efficient 911 System.”

Courtesy TRDaily

Google Responds to Report on Location Tracking

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Google LLC today responded to an Associated Press story that said that “many Google services on Android devices and iPhones store your location data even if you’ve used a privacy setting that says it will prevent Google from doing so.” “Location History is a Google product that is entirely opt in, and users have the controls to edit, delete, or turn it off at any time,” a Google spokesperson said. “As the story notes, we make sure Location History users know that when they disable the product, we continue to use location to improve the Google experience when they do things like perform a Google search or use Google for driving directions.”

Courtesy TRDAily

FCC Seeks Comment on NTIA WPS Petition

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The FCC’s Public Safety and Homeland Security Bureau sought comment today on a petition for rulemaking filed by the National Telecommunications and Information Administration recently asking the agency to revise its wireless priority service (WPS) rules, including by permitting some WPS users to preempt non-911 calls and by expanding WPS availability to non-voice services (TR Daily, July 10). Comments are due Aug. 28 and replies Sept. 7 in WT docket 96-86.

Courtesy TRDaily

FirstNet Board Approves FY 2019 Budget

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The First Responder Network Authority (FirstNet) board today approved a $240 million budget for fiscal year 2019, which includes $81 million for program and administrative operations, $81 million for a new reserve fund, and $78 million for a new reinvestment in network enhancements account.

The operational budget is on an obligations basis and includes a 10% reallocation allowance, while the reinvestment budget is also on an obligations basis and will also include any additional sources of funds for FY 2019, which begins Oct. 1. The FY 2019 operations budget projects $76.5 million in expenses.

FirstNet officials stressed during a meeting, which was held via teleconference and Webex, that FirstNet operations will not be impacted if the government shuts downs due to a lapse in congressional appropriations because it does not rely on annual appropriations.  FY 2019 will be the first year that FirstNet will be funded by payments from its network partner, AT&T.

FirstNet Chief Financial Officer Kim Farington said that FirstNet staff will conduct an analysis and prepare recommendations to the board for use of the reinvestment funds. FirstNet Chief Executive Officer Mike Poth said the target is for him to present the board a reinvestment plan during FY 2019, saying that it will be developed with input from the public safety community.

“While we have a budget, we’re evolving from a planning organization to an operating organization,” board Chairwoman Sue Swenson said, adding that discussion will continue on the best way to use the authority’s funding. Continue reading →

911 Grant NOFO Released

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A notice of funding opportunity for $110 million in next-generation 911 (NG-911) grants has been released. “Those who intend to apply for a grant must submit their initial application package, including identification of a designated 911 Coordinator and the required certification, via nhtsa.national911@dot.gov by September 10, 2018,” according to an announcement. The rules for the program were released last week (TR Daily, Aug. 3)

Courtesy TRDaily