National Governors Association Releases Public Safety Interoperability Brief

To help governors address the urgent need for reliable communication in emergency situations, the National Governors Association Center for Best Practices (NGA Center) today released Strategies for States to Achieve Public Safety Interoperability. The brief guides governors in their efforts to improve wireless interoperability -- the ability of public safety agencies to share information using radio communication systems to exchange voice and/or data on demand in real time, when needed and as authorized.

The events of Sept. 11, 2001, and Hurricanes Katrina and Rita emphasize the urgent need for public safety departments and other agencies -- including police, firefighters, transportation operators and public health officials -- to communicate effectively when called upon in a crisis. This ability is compromised, however, by challenges such as incompatible and aging communications equipment, limited and fragmented funding and planning, lack of coordination and cooperation and inadequate and fragmented radio spectrum.

Governors can play a critical role in meeting each of these obstacles. The brief outlines strategies governors can use to improve communication interoperability capacity, including:

• institutionalizing a governance structure that fosters collaborative planning among local, state and federal government agencies
• encouraging the development of flexible and open architecture and standards
• supporting funding for public safety agencies that work to achieve interoperability and denying funding for agencies that do not include interoperable solutions
• supporting the efforts of the public safety community to work with the Federal Communications Commission to allocate ample spectrum for public safety and create contiguous bands for public safety spectrum.

"Governors are well positioned to provide the leadership necessary to improve public safety communications interoperability," said John Thomasian, director of the NGA Center. "This guide will provide governors with the tools they need to enhance emergency communications in their states and across the nation."