At the top of the news are three items this week : First is that the FirstNet second request of comment deadline has been extended until April 20, 2015 to give those who wish to comment more time to do so. The next item up is that the RFP for FirstNet partners draft which was supposed to have been released by the end of March will now not see the light of day until after the FirstNet Board meeting in April. The committee which has been reviewing the draft wanted to see some changes made as well as some clarifications. FirstNet only has this one chance to get one or more partners lined up to assist in the build out and running of the network so they want to make sure that it is as good as it can be before initial release for comments.
And finally, LA-RICS appears to be in a bind over the planned Broadband towers to be built at fire stations around LA County and within the various cities within the County. This week the board of supervisors voted to stop the build out. There are many rumors swirling around about this issue but the Firefighters union ran ads on the major news stations in LA saying that the 70 foot towers at the fire stations would cause cancer in not only the firefighters by nearby residents. In spite of the fact that the FCC does not permit RF related health issues to be used in denying towers, the outcry was enough so that the board of Supervisors shut the program down.
The above is based on the facts, this paragraph is based on rumors and third party reports. First up is the fact that LA-RICS did not do any community outreach in the areas where the towers were to be built. Secondly, LA-RICs obtained a blanket CEQA (California Environmental Quality Act) waiver for all of the fire stations. This might work except that some of the fire stations are on leased property so cannot be covered by the CEQA and then, of course, there is the rumor that the Firefighters Union told LA-RICS that they would stop complaining if the fire fighters received hazardous duty pay!
LA-RIC is designed to provide Public Safety, including the fire fighters, with better communications which will result in more information regarding fires, hazards and other issues, and will save lives not only of the people served but by those serving as well. The unfortunate thing about this entire mess is that the grant for LA-RICS runs out in September. Then there is the “technical expert” hired by the Fire Fighters union who insists that the FCC rules are not good enough and in fact a level of 0.01 microwatts per square centimeter is acceptable, a level with is 50,000 times lower than the FCC requires. Another engineer who actually works with this type of RF all of the time did the math and determined that the towers will, in fact, expose the fire fighters to far less RF than the maximum permitted by the FCC. The result is a mess at this point and hopefully someone will be able to convince the Fire Fighters union that they should be supporting this network and not fighting it. Have a safe and good week-end Andy
FirstNet Delays Draft RFP – Radio Resource International via Google Alerts Mar 26 16:10 FirstNet Delays Draft RFP (3/25/15) By Kristen Beckman The First Responder Network Authority (FirstNet) board delayed a vote on the draft request for …
FirstNet allows more time for public-notice responses, announces plans for Industry Day series – Urgent Communications via Google Alerts Mar 26 15:40 … contact (SPOCs) representing states and territories that will be served by the proposed nationwide public-safety broadband network, Kennedy said.
FirstNet board does not vote on proposed draft RFP, will meet again in the ‘very near future’ – Urgent Communications via Google Alerts Mar 25 18:35 … “very near future to address remaining issuesspecifically some financial aspects of the proposed nationwide public-safety broadband network.
FirstNet system will support non-mission-critical voice from Day 1, officials say – FloridaNet via Google Alerts Mar 21 02:55 … building the much-anticipated nationwide public-safety broadband network, including a commitment that the system will support voice calls from the …
NIST, NTIA, DOD Agree to Facilitate Testing and Evaluation of Wireless Spectrum-Sharing Methods – FirstNet via Google Alerts Mar 27 03:10 NIST, NTIA and DOD’s Chief Information Officer (CIO) signed the agreement on March 11, 2015, committing to …
AT&T, T-Mobile others protest FCC proposals for next-gen 911 – FierceWireless via Google Alerts Mar 26 13:40 … based on an October 2014 report of the Public Safety and Homeland Security Bureau. The FCC is also proposing additional mechanisms designed …
Two suits challenge FCC’s net neutrality rules – USA News via Google Alerts Mar 26 10:55 USTelecom, Texas Internet Provider Sue Over Net Neutrality Trade group, Texas broadband co. are 1st to sue over net neutrality; FCC says suits …
Tennessee sues FCC: Giving cities free rein to provide their own broadband is ‘unlawful’ – The Register Mar 26 06:00 ‘Take me to another place, take me where they have internet’ – The US state of Tennessee is suing the FCC after the regulator declared that cities should be free to build their own municipal-owned broadband networks.
NIST, NTIA, DOD Agree to Facilitate Testing and Evaluation of Wireless Spectrum-Sharing Methods – News JS via Google Alerts Mar 26 01:56 NTIA to push for drone privacy standards #privacy http://t.co/pSWzLgAU6o. NTIA Avatar. NTIA. NTIA is hiring! The Office of Spectrum Management is …
Government seeks public safety mobile broadband network – NewsLocker via Google Alerts Mar 26 00:45 The Australian government has asked how best to provide mobile broadband to public safety agencies by 2020.
FCC Announces Comment Dates for 800 MHz Interstitial Channels – MissionCritical Communications, Radio Resource International, and Public Safety Report … via Google Alerts Mar 25 22:55 The FCC’s Public Safety and Homeland Security Bureau (PSHSB) and Wireless Telecommunications Bureau announced comment and reply …
Verizon And AT&T Lead Legal Challenge To FCC’s Net Neutrality Ruling – Demanjo News via Google Alerts Mar 24 20:10 The trade group USTelecom and Tex. net provider Alamo Broadband have sued the Federal Communications Commission over the agency’s net …
NTIA releases second phase of planning grants as FirstNet identifies data for states to collect – Urgent Communications via Google Alerts Mar 24 17:55 … needs for coverage, capacity and other key functionalities from FirstNet’s nationwide public-safety broadband network, NTIA and FirstNet announce.
First Responder Network Authority (FirstNet) – Google+ via Google Alerts Mar 24 13:56 Coordination and Education at IWCE 2015 | First Responder Network …
Did the National Broadband Plan spur innovation? – Washington Post via Google Alerts Mar 23 08:45 For public safety, Congress has allocated dedicated spectrum and the FCC has raised the money through spectrum auctions to fund FirstNet, …
FirstNet’s Nationwide Public Safety Broadband Network (NPSBN) – GovTribe via Google Alerts Mar 22 11:10 Federal opportunity for all other telecommunications at the Department of the Interior.
State looks to FirstNet to build, operate network committed to public safety – Broadband Matters via Google Alerts Mar 21 00:00 Mike Foley spoke to many of the state’s emergency responders during the first FirstNet public safety network consultation meeting Wednesday in …
IWCE 2015: Lessons learned from FirstNet early builders – Sevana Blog via Google Alerts Mar 20 13:15 The early pioneers in public safety LTE broadband shared some of their …
Verizon to Pay $3.4M to Resolve 9-1-1 Outage Investigation – MissionCritical Communications, Radio Resource International, and Public Safety Report … via Google Alerts Mar 20 09:15 In addition to the payment, Verizon agreed to adopt a robust compliance plan that developed in coordination with the FCC’s Public Safety and …
How This Federal Data Breach Law Could Actually Hurt Consumers – Huffington Post Mar 27 08:30 With each passing brand name mega-breach–Home Depot, Target, JPMorgan Chase, Anthem–it becomes ever more urgent for government and industry to get on the same page about how to protect consumers. Sadly, not all laws are created equal, and there are few better examples of this homespun truth than a would-be federal law currently wending its way through Congress. And not to put too fine a point on it, the Data Security and Breach Notification Act of 2015, in its current form, has a long way to go before it should become the law of the land. The Data Security and…
USTelecom, Texas Internet provider sue over net neutrality – Charlotte Observer via Google Alerts Mar 26 18:10 The Federal Communications Commission’s new rules on broadband service, known as “net neutrality,” will prohibit providers such as Comcast and …
NeuStar loses bid for lucrative contract after FCC recommendation – Washington Business Journal via Google Alerts Mar 26 14:40 In its statement, the FCC noted that the decision was made after years of “extensive input from industry, consumers, and public safety and government …
Ericsson will help Tier 3 carriers in Internet of Things push – FierceWireless via Google Alerts Mar 26 10:40 And in public safety, the company is teaming up with Motorola Solutions on solutions for FirstNet, the interoperable broadband network for first …
Global Public Safety Mobile Broadband Market in the Public sector 2015-2019 – Market Research Reports via Google Alerts Mar 26 06:00 Home > Information Technology & Telecommunication > Wireless > Wireless …
Trade group sues FCC for net neutrality rules – Asian Journal via Google Alerts Mar 26 02:55 A trade group and broadband provider on Monday, March 23, sued the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) due to new net neutrality rules, …
Public Safety Bureau, Site-Based Actions, 3/25/2015 – FCC via Google Alerts Mar 25 20:15 Internet: http://www.fcc.gov. Washington, D.C. 20554. TTY: 1-888-835-5322. Report Number: 10372. Date of Report: 03/25/2015. Public Safety and …
NATIONAL TELECOMMUNICATOR WEEK APRIL 12 18, 2015 – Coleman News via Google Alerts Mar 25 18:50 Members of the Virginia and North Carolina chapters of the Association of Public-Safety Communications Officials (APCO) became involved in the …
FirstNet should not rely on state and local governments as key network-infrastructure partners … – FloridaNet via Google Alerts Mar 25 17:55 They built networks for public safety and said, ‘You come, and we’ll provide,’ Mirgon said. All of a sudden, the legislature has said, ‘Why are we …
Tennessee sues the FCC to stop city-run internet – Engadget via Google Alerts Mar 25 14:15 But on the same day that the broadband industry sued the FCC to stop net neutrality rules, the state of Tennessee also sued the wireless regulator to …
Vehicular Repeater Item Circulating at FCC – National Public Safety Telecommunications Council – NPSTC via Google Alerts Mar 25 00:55 A Public Safety and Homeland Security Bureau item dealing with …
Steve Noel to Head FirstNet Region 10 – National Public Safety Telecommunications Council – NPSTC via Google Alerts Mar 24 21:25 Steve Noel, Oregon’s statewide interoperability coordinator and its single point of contact for the First Responder Network Authority (FirstNet), will take …
Obama administration creates broadband council, aims to increase investment, lower deployment … – FierceTelecom via Google Alerts Mar 24 17:56 Assistant Secretary for Communications and Information and NTIA Administrator …
APCO’s Annual Public Safety Broadband Summit – Tennessee Public Safety Broadband via Google Alerts Mar 24 14:30 http://broadbandsummit.apcointl.org/ …
First responders test future public safety net – GCN.com via Google Alerts Mar 24 14:15 The FirstNet wireless broadband network was created in 2012 by Congress in …
700 MHz LTE in Alberta – The RadioReference.com Forums via Google Alerts Mar 23 09:20 The other public safety network will live in the 700 MHz band, adjacent to 700 public safety voice. (Aside: There are actually two 10 MHz chunks of …
Research and Markets: 2015 Public Safety Spectrum & Systems: Which Pathways to Broadband … – Business Wire via Google Alerts Mar 23 08:45 PPDR usage worldwide is concentrated on a limited number of frequency bands. Among them, the 400 MHz is the most currently used for narrowband …
If You Start Seeing Your Broadband Internet Bill Going Up Soon, Thank the New ‘Net Neutrality’ Regs – IJ Review via Google Alerts Mar 21 13:56 Ajit Pai, one of the FCC commissioners who voted against the Net Neutrality regulations, says the new rules are likely to hit consumers in the wallets ..