Washington, D.C. — In response to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) adopting a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) that examines network outage reporting for interconnected Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) and broadband Internet service providers, APCO International, the world’s largest organization of public safety communications professionals, today released the following statement applauding the Commission for upholding the indispensable role of next-generation networks in protecting our nation and its citizens.

APCO International Executive Director George Rice said, “The FCC deserves credit for recognizing broadband networks support a significant amount of 9-1-1 traffic and that they will be the backbone of communications in times of crisis going forward. The Commission’s proactive decision to implement a strategy to reduce communications outages and safeguard consumers’ ability to reach 9-1-1 in an emergency is an important step toward establishing an effective, reliable public safety communications system.

“Complementary to the FCC’s actions, the urgent need for a nationwide, interoperable public safety broadband network is the center of discussion at the first day of APCO’s first-ever Public Safety Broadband Summit & Expo, held today in Washington, D.C.,” he said. “Thought leaders in the public safety community, such as NYPD Deputy Chief Chuck Dowd and COPS Director Bernard Melekian, engaged in thoughtful dialogue on the issue of D block spectrum reallocation to public safety, and the consensus is clear: today’s public safety communications infrastructure will not be sufficient for the future.”

For more information on current legislation before Congress (S.28 and H.R.607) that would enable the build-out of a nationwide, interoperable public safety broadband network, visit www.apcointl.org/government-relations or www.psafirst.org.

About APCO International
APCO International is the world’s largest organization of public safety communications professionals. It serves the needs of public safety communications practitioners worldwide—and the welfare of the general public as a whole—by providing complete expertise, professional development, technical assistance, advocacy and outreach.