Does Your Agency Use Channels in the 470–512 MHz Range?

Legislation was recently passed by Congress which requires the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to move public safety operations in the United States out of the T-Band frequencies (470–512 MHz) by the year 2023.  These channels are used in eleven metropolitan areas across the country to provide public safety communications.

The National Public Safety Telecommunications Council (NPSTC) recently established a special working group to study this issue and to prepare a report on the impact this law will have on our law enforcement, fire and EMS agencies, as well as on other public safety users.  The report will identify how these T-Band channels are currently in use and determine if possible options may be available to the public safety community to maintain critical communications and comply with the law.  Based on the fact gathering, a series of recommendations will be prepared which will be shared with Congress and the FCC.  It is very important to determine the impact to public safety users and to prepare a unified report to explain the true scope of the law's effects.

IMSA urges you to help this effort by responding to the web questionnaire by September 20, 2012.  Your participation should take less than 30 minutes and your individual agency data will not be shared publicly without your written permission.  A summary of the data will be used in our future efforts on behalf of the entire first responder community.  This information is essential in educating policymakers on a national scale.  Through your support and participation, we will be able to gather necessary information to calculate the cost and impact of the legislation.

If you have any questions, concerns, or comments about this questionnaire, or what other work NPSTC is doing for you and your agency, please contact Doug Aiken, daiken@imsasafety.org.  The T-Band Working Group has a dedicated page and you can monitor the progress of the meetings and the report.

Click Here for Questionnaire