Washington, D.C. — May 24, 2011 — The Public Safety Alliance (PSA) is setting the record straight today on the top five Public Safety Broadband Network Myths as they relate to D Block spectrum reallocation. The organization, a partnership of nine major national public safety associations with more than three dozen other supporting entities representing over 2 million first responders and other supported by an additional an anther 3 dozen supporting organizations of the nation’s leading public safety associations, supports legislation that would allocate this spectrum to America’s first responders to build a nationwide interoperable broadband network.

The legislation (H.R. 607, S.28, S.911 and S.1040) continues to receive increasingly widespread bi-partisan backing including President Obama, Sens. McCain and Lieberman, Chairmen of the 9/11 Commission former Governor Tom Kean and former Representative Lee Hamilton, Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee Chairman John Rockefeller, Ranking member Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison, Senate Commerce, Science, Transportation Subcommittee on Communications and Technology Chairman John Kerry, Chairman of the House Committee on Homeland Security Peter King and Ranking member Bennie Thompson.

“Despite the endorsement of many our nation’s most respected lawmakers, some groups continue to promote misleading and inaccurate information regarding D Block allocation,” said PSA Representative Dick Mirgon. “The American public deserves to know the truth behind this critical issue. It’s time to set the record straight and let the facts do the talking.”

The Top Five Public Safety Broadband Network Myths

1. Myth: It will cost $30 to $45 billion to build a nationwide public safety network.

Fact: In its Broadband Network Cost Model1, the FCC provided a range of cost estimates from $7.8B to $47.5B to build and operate a public safety network for over a ten-year period. This myth stems from taking the worst case scenario from the FCC’s model, which assumed building brand new cell sites requiring zoning, permits and construction of a tower and facility. The fact is that public safety fully intends to leverage its existing facilities wherever possible and will augment with existing commercial facilities when needed. The PSA believes the $10 to $12B for network construction and sustainment reflected in S.28, S.1040, S.911 and HR. And we support the FCC’s estimate of $1.2B to operate the network.

2. Myth: Public Safety does not have a rollout plan for a nationwide interoperable network.

Fact: Once the spectrum has been allocated and a specific funding model established, the PSA has a plan to establish a nationwide outreach and coordination effort that will document every eligible public safety entity contact and their readiness of broadband.

3. Myth: A large federal bureaucracy is needed to manage a public safety network.

Fact: There have been no proposals to create any new federal agency for the public safety broadband network. The PSA has consistently maintained that the network should be managed by public safety with the private sector in a public-private partnership. Proposed legislation addresses this through a non-profit corporation that would transition over the current public safety broadband license (PSBL) and combine it with the D Block within the non-profit’s authority.

4. Myth: A commercial auction of the D block is needed to reduce the federal deficit.

Fact: A commercial auction will actually cost taxpayers significantly more than allocating the D Block to public safety. A study by the Phoenix Centeri suggests that the loss of auction revenues today is more than offset by higher auction revenues and lower public safety network deployment costs tomorrow. Thus, the auction adds, rather than relieves stress to the public budget. The study, conducted by a noted economist and former high-level FCC official, also found that assigning the D Block to public safety provides at least $3.4B more in social benefits as opposed to an auction. Additionally, the FCC has stated that public safety will need more than 10 MHz for broadband in the future, and we know that it cost none-to-little more to build out 20 MHz than 10 MHz for LTE when the spectrum is contiguous and is built out together. Yet, if the D Block is not allocated to public safety and not joined with the current and contiguous 10 MHz that public safety has repurposed for broadband already within the 700 band, then it will cost more than twice as much to identify and build out an additional 10 MHz of noncontiguous spectrum in the future.

5. Myth: Connect Public Safety Now represents the men and women of public safety.

Fact: Connect Public Safety Now has no connection to public safety. This front group for cellular industry heavy-hitters including Sprint Nextel and is still operating on funding provided by T-Mobile before they withdrew from the coalition. Its goal is to have the D Block auctioned for commercial use, to bid on the spectrum and ultimately use it to increase its own corporate profits and shareholder value.

“In these tough economic times, reallocation of D Block spectrum should not be about politics or profit, it should be about the public and the greater good,” continued PSA spokesman Chris Moore, Chief of Police of the San Jose Police Department. “A dedicated, nationwide, interoperable and mission-critical network is a vital tool that the men and women of public safety need to protect the American public. This legislation needs to happen before the 10th Anniversary of the tragic events of 9/11. The co-chairs of the 9/11 Commission have told Congress as much, and, quite frankly, we’ve already wasted too much valuable time and taxpayer money waiting to get it done. Congress needs to act now to enact S.911, S.28, S. 1040, H.R. 607 or similar legislation this year in this Congress, will make it so we can finally get to it.”

Congressional Supporters of Public Safety include:
Senator Jay Rockefeller (D-WV), Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-TX), Senator John McCain (R-AZ), Senator Joseph Lieberman (I-CT), Senator Harry Reid (D-NV), Senator Charles E. Schumer (D-NY), Senator Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), Senator Amy Klobuchar (D_MN), and Senator Barbara Boxer (D-CA), Senator Michael Bennet (D-CO), Senator Benjamin Cardin (D-MD), Senator Al Franken (D-MN), Senator Thomas Harkin (D-IA), Senator John Kerry (D-MA), Senator Frank Lautenberg (D-NJ), Senator Bill Nelson (D-FL), Representative Peter King (R-NY3), Representative Bennie Thompson (D-MS2), Representative John Barrow (D-GA12), Representative Shelley Berkley (D-NV1), Representative Leonard Boswell (D-IA3), Representative Vern Buchanan (R-FL13), Representative Yvette Clarke (D-NY11), Representative Chip Cravaack (R-MN8), Representative Keith Ellison (D-MN5), Representative Jim Gerlach (R-PA6), Representative Michael Grimm (R-NY13), Representative Jesse Jackson (D-IL2), Representative Sheila Jackson-Lee (D-TX18), Representative Eddie Johnson (D-TX30), Representative James Langevin (D-RI2), Representative Thomas Latham (R-IA4), Representative David Loebsack (D-IA2), Representative Billy Long (R-MO7), Representative Nita Lowey (D-NY18), Representative Carolyn McCarthy (D-NY4), Representative John Mica (R-FL7), Representative Michael Michaud (D-ME2), Representative Candice Miller (R-MI10), Representative Erik Paulsen (R-MN3), Representative Dave Reichert (R-WA8), Representative Laura Richardson (D-CA37), Representative Michael Rogers (R-AL3), Representative Heath Shuler (D-NC11), Representative Edolphus Towns (D-NY10), Representative Rob Wittman (R-VA1), and Representative Donald Young (R-AK). 

For more information on allocation of the D Block spectrum, visit www.psafirst.org.

References
1. See “A Broadband Network Cost Model – OBI Technical Paper No 2”, FCC, May 2010

About Public Safety Alliance
The Public Safety Alliance (www.psafirst.org) is a partnership of the nation’s leading public safety associations, which includes the Association of Public-Safety Communications Officials (APCO) International, the International Association of Chiefs of Police, the International Association of Fire Chiefs, the National Sheriffs’ Association, the Major Cities Chiefs Association, the Major County Sheriffs’ Association, the Metropolitan Fire Chiefs Association, the National Emergency Management Association and the National Association of EMS Officials. The partnership is operated as a program of APCO International.

The purpose of the Public Safety Alliance’s is to ensure law enforcement, fire and EMS agencies are able to use the most technologically advanced communications capability that meets the difficult, life-threatening challenges they face every day as they protect America.

The goal of the Public Safety Alliance is to raise awareness in Congress and the White House about what our Nation’s law enforcement, fire, and emergency medical services need to build out a nationwide, interoperable, 4G, wireless communications network to protect America.