First-Responders Still Await Radio Upgrades

By Diane M. Grassi


Beginning October 19, 2005, the United States Senate Commerce Committee will readdress legislation passed in 1996 which would free up analog television 700 MHz transmission signals for public safety communications. The U.S. House of Representatives Commerce Committee is set to examine it the following week.

Simply, this means that television broadcasters would no longer have an indefinite amount of time to convert their analog frequencies to digital broadcast capabilities. Congress originally passed the Telecommunications Act of 1996 in January of 1996 and it was promptly signed into law in February of 1996 by then President Bill Clinton. It provided that broadcasters must convert their analog frequencies into digital broadcast signals by December 31, 2006. However, since that time nothing about it has been prompt as the National Association of Broadcasters successfully lobbied for a change in the law thereafter, calling for no change to take place indefinitely unless 85% of U.S. homes are able to receive such digital broadcasts. Thus far only about 12% of U.S. homes have digital television sets.

In order for consumers to receive digital television broadcasts they will necessarily need to purchase digital television sets or invest in a converter box to enable their analog televisions to receive digital signals for what is currently referred to as “free” television or non-digital cable or digital satellite programming. But the matter of the conversion of television frequencies has far broader implications and matters of importance than whether or not consumers need invest in a digital television in the near future.

Historically, the Act goes back to the 1980’s when the electronics industry was intent upon improving picture definition and its import in what eventually became to be known today as “high-definition” television. Such is widely available to consumers today, but high-def remains out of reach for many household budgets. Digital sets, however, are now largely affordable for the average consumer as analog sets are being permanently phased out by manufacturers.

But since the telecommunications legislation became law, the terrorist attacks upon the World Trade Center on 9/11/01 emphasized the need for the interoperability of radio communications between the New York City Police Department, the New York City Fire Department, the New York-New Jersey Port Authority Police, as well as emergency medical personnel. And it is the increased need to upgrade emergency radio frequencies which was a primary intent of the original law.

Now in 2005, on the heels of Hurricane Katrina, first-responder communication problems came to light once again, but it is not new to what the government has admittedly known for at least the past decade. However, the lack of communications technologies between first-responders has become an issue for the Department of Homeland Security, since established in 2003, as well as the obvious matter of urgency in preserving human lives in natural disasters. The lack of interoperability of radio communications, however, is a multi-faceted problem and cannot merely be accomplished with additional funding.

The legislation requires that first-responders nationwide become direct beneficiaries of the freed spectrum of television signals in order for agencies to communicate between each other not just locally but regionally. Hurricane Katrina illustrated that regional emergency service personnel were still unable to communicate once they reached the stricken areas of Louisiana and Mississippi due to variations of equipment and software technologies.

The law provides for 24 MHz of analog spectrum in the upper 700 MHz band to be dedicated to public safety agencies with the rest of the spectrum to be auctioned off to the private sector, primarily to increase consumer access to alternative wireless broadband technologies. The auctioned spectrum, to be conducted by the Federal Communications Commission, has been stated by experts in the technology field including Microsoft Chairman, Bill Gates, that it would help to grow the economy with proceeds estimated at close to $30 billion. And given the recent directive by the Bush administration for the Congress to eliminate $408 billion from the federal deficit, many on Capitol Hill are now anxious to expedite an end date for the analog television conversion.

The secondary cost however is the purchase of new and compatible equipment and software for municipalities and regions, which would be way beyond the means of local and state communities. Interoperability communication grants distributed by the Department of Homeland Security totaled close to $1 billion in 2004 alone. And while the Senate and House are close to agreement for a deadline conversion date with the Senate aiming for April 7, 2009 and the House offering a December 31, 2008 cut-off date, much work remains on the funding costs for communications upgrades. Initially the Senate has considered up to $1 billion to be allocated to local municipalities for such.

Senator John McCain (R-AZ) estimates that approximately $15 billion will be required to get the necessary equipment distributed nationally. And while most large cities at least have police and fire departments that can communicate, additional agencies and jurisdictions create the need for expansion in the midst of a disaster. According to the U.S. Conferences of Mayors, a maximum of 10% of U.S. cities have the capability to communicate with any of the necessary federal responders which includes the National Guard and the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

Finally, availability of the analog spectrum and new equipment will only be as good as the strategic plans put in place in order for the equipment and networks to communicate with each other. Once again, as was evidenced in both Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, systems and hierarchies must be in place before they are translated to technology networks. Without a plan, the most high-tech equipment will falter and do emergency responders little good in a crisis.

Therefore, the Congress will have a difficult task not necessarily in resolving dates but in financing expenditures. But lawmakers must also keep in mind not only lessons learned from 9/11 but the lack of communication between federal, state and local agencies in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, which was largely one of administrative failure as well.

There is no simple solution, but one which must be comprehensive in scope in order to avoid future pitfalls when American lives are at stake. It would also serve the American people well to be reeducated by their local representatives that concerns over investing in new television sets or satellite dishes is not the primary reason for this legislation’s urgency. And we can only hope that the Congress keeps politics to an absolute minimum when addressing first responders’ communications capabilities. When it comes to the security of the U.S., there is little time to waste.