First Responder Network Authority (FirstNet) board committees today considered a public comment notice, a comprehensive network solution request for information (RFI), and the authority’s fiscal year 2015 budget.

The board’s four committees met this afternoon at FirstNet’s Reston, Va., headquarters. The full board is scheduled to consider the three items and other issues at its meeting tomorrow morning.

The public notice and comment item is similar to a notice of proposed rulemaking issued by administrative agencies, said Stuart Kupinsky, FirstNet’s chief counsel.

Because FirstNet is exempt from the Administrative Procedure Act, it does not legally have to issue such a notice, but it believes that doing so would be helpful, Mr. Kupinsky said, saying that provisions in the final document will provide “critical inputs into the RFI process.”

He said the notice seeks comment on a number of issues, as well as proposed staff legal interpretations on matters. In some cases, FirstNet does not suggest its own staff interpretations. After comments are in, FirstNet will either issue a document with interpretations and/or build them into the draft comprehensive network request for proposal (RFP) expected to be released early next year, Mr. Kupinsky said. He said that depending on whether there is enough time, FirstNet could seek further comment on additional staff interpretations.

Among the matters that the notice solicits views on are the core network; radio access network (RAN); non-material changes to technical requirements; the definitions of “rural” and “substantial rural milestones”; the leveraging of existing infrastructure; details on excess network capacity and network infrastructure fees; the definition of public safety services; leasing agreements; fees on the leveraging of infrastructure; and network fees, Mr. Kupinsky said.

Regarding who might use the network, Mr. Kupinsky said a preliminary interpretation of the Middle Class Tax Relief and Job Creation Act of 2012, which established FirstNet, is that utilities should be deemed as public safety entities, although he said they could be subject to preemption depending on how the network is set up.

Regarding the RFI, FirstNet acting General Manager TJ Kennedy said the authority hopes that it gathers information in response to the RFI that will help it prepare the draft RFP. He noted that since last year, FirstNet has issued a dozen RFIs, saying that the latest one can address questions raised in those.

He said the RFI will include a draft 15-point statement of objectives and said it would have a 30-day comment period. Responses will not be made public, Mr. Kupinsky said. Comments submitted in response to the public notice will be made public, he said.

Among the issues the RFI will ask questions about are managing the nationwide network, accelerating the deployment, rural milestones, hardening, preemption, RAN integration for states that opt-out, other infrastructure integration, reliability and restoration, life cycle integration, the leveraging of infrastructure, user fees, service level agreements, and customer billing and marketing, Mr. Kennedy said.

He said FirstNet would hold one or more industry days between the issuance of the RFI and the RFP to answers questions from companies and provide feedback to the RFI submissions.

Board members said they welcomed input from industry and other stakeholders on the notice and RFI.

“I think there’s a lot that we can learn from what we’re putting out in the marketplace,” Barry Boniface, chairman of the Technology Committee, said of the RFI.

Tim Bryan, chairman of the Finance Committee, said it is important to keep responses to the RFI confidential to ensure the input is useful. “There are a number of creative players in this industry,” he said.

Mr. Kennedy said the reason the RFI responses will be confidential and the RFI questions are very specific is to get specific, helpful information.

Also today, the Finance Committee heard a presentation from Chief Financial Officer Randy Lyon in which he said management is recommending a FY 2015 budget that includes $119.7 million in new obligations and $115.1 million in expenses, which include expenses from prior-year obligations. For FY 2014, FirstNet approved a budget of $194 million. Of the total obligated for FY 2014, $64 million remains. FY 2015 begins Oct. 1.

Also at today’s meeting, FirstNet officials indicated that as FirstNet makes progress on procurement issues, it would likely have to be more careful about communications with vendors.

Mr. Kupinsky said it is “a delicate balance” to gather input from industry while maintaining “the integrity of the process” by making sure that all vendors “get information in the same way” and that officials don’t give particular vendors “an unfair advantage in the process.”

As a result of the procurement process, which includes the RFI, “we’re having to appropriately ratchet down the communications,” he said.

“We’re moving into a new era, and we have to be particularly sensitive to it,” said Sue Swenson, chairman of the full board as well as the Governance and Personnel Committee.

She cautioned vendors that as a result of the procurement process, “it’s likely that we’re going to have to say no” to some communications. “I don’t want people to perceive it as just being uninterested,” she added. She said the situation means that FirstNet is making progress in deploying the nationwide public safety broadband network.

Last week, TRDaily asked Ed Parkinson, FirstNet’s director-government affairs, to respond to speculation that FirstNet planned to suspend outreach to vendors ahead of the draft comprehensive network RFP (TRDaily, Sept. 10). “That is absolutely incorrect,” Mr. Parkinson said. He said FirstNet would continue its “vigorous outreach process … so that everyone knows how to plan accordingly.”

A FirstNet spokesman told TRDaily this afternoon: “Market research and vendor communications will continue. The process will be more formalized to ensure continued objectivity. This will be explained in more detail once the RFI is approved by the board and released.”

Also today, Ms. Swenson said that the board search for a permanent GM “is on track.” FirstNet has hired a search firm to help it in the process.

During a meeting of the Outreach Committee, David Buchanan, director-state consultation for FirstNet, said the authority was using meetings with the first four states on state plans as “beta tests of the process,” including by stressing the need for a diversity of stakeholders at meetings. He said that meetings with seven more states were lined up between now and Dec. 1 and that 25 states had returned readiness checklists.

In a presentation to the Technology Committee, FirstNet Chief Technical Officer Ali Afrashteh discussed efforts by his office to support the comprehensive network RFP, including preparing an internal report expected to be ready next month on market research. He also said all 12 director positions for his office have been posted and said four candidates have been offered jobs.

Deputy CTO Jeff Bratcher cited successful testing at the Public Safety Communications Research (PSCR) program lab on quality of service, priority access and preemption capabilities.

As for challenges, Mr. Afrashteh cited difficulties getting staff on board in a timely fashion due to government hiring rules and hiring LTE (long term evolution) experts, noting that FirstNet is competing with major carriers and vendors.

Also today, Mr. Kupinsky and Art Warren, senior counsel-ethics for the Department of Commerce, discussed with committee members conflicts of interest and related processes. For example, Mr. Kupinsky said his staff prepares a memo for the board ahead of each meeting analyzing agenda items to highlight issues that will be raised with an eye toward any conflicts of interest. A FirstNet spokesman declined to release the memo for tomorrow’s meeting, citing attorney-client privilege.

FirstNet and Commerce officials also mentioned efforts to put ethics and compliance processes in place that are customized for FirstNet. Jason Karp, FirstNet’s deputy chief counsel and compliance officer, said his office has constructed a compliance risk assessment related to FirstNet, saying that it is “right in the middle.” He also described further planned efforts.

The FirstNet board came under criticism last year from former board member Paul Fitzgerald, the sheriff of Story County, Iowa, concerning ethical and other issues, including undisclosed conflicts of interests (TRDaily, April 23, 2013).

Today’s committee meetings were the first for new board members. The appointments of five new members were announced earlier this month (TRDaily, Sept. 4).

The new board members are Chris Burbank, chief of the Salt Lake City Police Department; James Douglas, a former Republican governor of Vermont who is now an executive in residence at Middlebury College; Houston Mayor Annise Parker; Richard Stanek, sheriff of Hennepin County, Minn., which includes Minneapolis; and Frank Plastina, former chief executive officer of Tekelec, Inc., and founder and current president of Arc & Company. Ed Reynolds, a retired telecom executive, was reappointed to the board.

Among the new members, only Sheriff Stanek was not present today.- Paul Kirby, paul.kirby@wolterskluwer.com

Courtesy TRDaily