In testimony before the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Technology, Bell Labs President Bill O’Shea recommended that the federal government set aside a specific spectrum – in the 700 MHz range – to be used as a dedicated, secure, interoperable nationwide broadband communications network exclusively for America’s first responders and decision makers.
Currently first responders – firefighters, police officers and other emergency personnel – depend on existing systems designed primarily for voice communications. These systems were not designed to be interoperable.
The 9/11 Commission calls for the establishment of a “trusted information network” for our national responders and the provision of “expedited and increased assignment of radio spectrum for public safety purposes.” O’Shea said this network should serve 5 to 10 million people, including law enforcement officers, fire and public safety responders at all levels of government. It should support broadband rates. He noted that the upper 700 MHz band has significant operational advantages for public safety and offers significant cost advantages to the taxpayer because of the lower deployment costs. Fewer towers are needed because upper 700 MHz transmissions propagate more efficiently than transmissions in other bands. Transmissions in the upper 700 MHz band penetrate buildings more easily, a significant problem described at length in the 9/11 Commission’s report.
Gary Grube, corporate vice president and chief technology officer for Motorola’s Commercial Government and Industrial Solutions Sector, said “full public safety communications interoperability within the decade should be a national goal. Grube also said the public safety allocation in the 700 MHz band is one of the new resources that will help first responders carry out their mission critical responsibilities. He said this spectrum is the only dedicated spectrum allocation where public safety can implement advanced mobile wide area systems that bring high-speed access to databases, the intranet, imaging and video to first responders out in the field. http://www.lucent.com
