APCO International

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PUBLIC SAFETY

COMMUNICATIONS INITIATIVES

APCO is the largest supporter of the major initiatives regarding spectrum protection and acquisition for public safety.  The initiatives that have been backed, supported and funded through APCO coordination revenues include, among many others:

  • The 800 MHz public safety allocations.
  • Creation of the 800 MHz Regional Planning Committees.
  • Support of the SIECs (State Interoperability Executive Committees).
  • 4.9 GHz regulatory actions and standardization.
  • Narrowbanding - the initiative to provide a graceful migration.
  • Project 16 - the operational standard adopted by the entire public safety community and industry manufacturers.
  • PSWAC (Public Safety Wireless Advisory Committee) - where the need for 75 MHz of spectrum was quantified.
  • Project 25 - the technical standard building on Project 16 operational standards to allow public safety agencies to expect and demand the ability to interoperate into the future without orphaning the past.
  • NCC, National Coordinating Committee where the Steering and other subcommittees are overwhelmingly chaired and supported by APCO members representing all public safety disciplines and regions.
  • NPSTC - National Public Safety Tellecommunications Council, a concensus group supporting all facets of public safety communications.
  • Project Locate - wireless phone location initiative.
  • Project 39 - Interference to 800 MHz Public Safety by Commercial Radio Systems.
  • Access to sharing Federal spectrum in the 138-144 MHz band.
  • Interference MOU with the FCC naming APCO as the first contact for public safety radio interference.

Funds to support critical issues have come largely from APCO coordination revenues and some grants administered by APCO.  A claim that would be difficult for other public safety coordinators to make. 

When you use APCO as your coordinator, you are helping to preserve your access to adequate spectrum.  Your dollar is staying in the loop to further your interests, not into the pockets of private corporations and individuals.  Without your support, APCO can not continue to provide the impact before regulators and legislators necessary to protect public safety spectrum.

Support Public Safety Communications by Choosing
the Right Frequency Coordinator

Before choosing which frequency coordinator you will access to coordinate your license application, ask yourself the following questions:

·  Where does the funding come from that supports regulatory and legislative issues for public safety communications?

·   Does the coordinator represent the needs of all public safety agencies, or does it represent a limited number of agencies.

·  Is coordination performed internally by direct employees of the coordinator, or is it outsourced to a privately owned business?  Is electronic filing to the FCC subcontracted to outsourced private vendors?

·  Are coordination fees better spent on outsourcing the application process, or funding legislative issues that aid public safety communications?

·  Will the coordinator you choose offer a united engineering and licensing department?

·  Are there state and local representatives that you can contact for answers on licensing, FCC Rules, state plans and other issues of regional interest?  Is all operation done on a national level, with limited access to regional problems or does it include a local/regional input?

·   What is the main purpose of the parent organization?  If communications is a minor point of interest for the parent association, you should seek a coordinator whose sole commitment is to public safety communications.

·  Does the coordinator handle post-licensing conflicts and interference?   Only APCO will tackle interference that is beyond the point of a post-licensing conflict.  Having signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the FCC to act as the contact for all public safety LMRS interference cases, APCO is committed to providing the assistance to remedy interference with revenues provided by coordination fees.