Interoperable Emergency Communications Act

The need appears increasingly urgent for timely decisions by policy makers on new infrastructure for emergency communications and spectrum allocation for public safety radios. Contents of this report: (1) Goals and Challenges: Background: Planning to Meet Goals;Challenges and Barriers to Change; (2) Policy Considerations for the Future: Governance and Grants; Decision Making and Planning Authority: Federal Involvement; State and Local Involvement; Commercial Involvement; Role of the Emergency Response Interoperability Center and the Public Safety Spectrum Trust; Cost Estimates: Wireless Networks; Network Infrastructure: Wireless Backhaul and NG9-1-1; Radios; Network Access; Financial Resources; Managing Radio Frequency Spectrum; Technology: Networks; Radios; Migration to Commercial Technologies; (3) Legislation in the 112th Congress to Improve Emergency Communications; (4) Conclusion; (5) Appendixes: Proposals for Spectrum Assignment; Congressional Efforts on Behalf of Public Safety Communications. Figures. This is a print on demand report.

Today¿s 911 system is built on an infrastructure of analog technol. that does not support many of the features that should be part of an emerg. response. Efforts to splice newer, digital technol. onto this infrastructure have created points of failure where a call can be dropped or misdirected, sometimes with tragic consequences. This report discusses how modernizing the system to provide service that approaches the expectations of its users will require investments in new technol. that should incorp. Internet Protocol (IP) standards. An IP-enabled emerg. commun. network that supports 911 will facilitate interoperability and system resilience; improve connections between 911 call centers; provide more robust capacity; and offer flexibility in receiving calls.