The Department of Homeland Security has released first
responder wireless technology and interoperability
requirements, part of a series of SAFECOM requirement
documents, this one designed to facilitate wireless
communication among 50,000 public safety agencies, said DHS.
The document follows the release of a report from the
General Accounting Office stating that the SAFECOM effort
of streamlining first responder communication has made
little progress in two years, partly because of weak
executive commitment and support, limited collaboration,
and because the project has had four different management
teams at three different agencies over a two-year period.
“The Statement of Requirements is a critical document
that will provide first responders with the architectural
framework for future interoperable public safety
communications,” said Dr. David Boyd, director of SAFECOM.
“As we proceed, the needs of the user community will
help drive the development of various communications
products that allow the nation to begin to reach a
functional level of interoperability.”
The statement contains interoperability scenarios ranging
from law enforcement traffic stops to large-scale
cross-jurisdictional responses describing how technology
can be used in the interest of public safety in crisis
situations, said DHS.
The scenarios describe how technology should ideally
function in the field, should help establish interface
standards, define technological needs and drive research,
development, and program testing. The statement can found