First Responder Interoperability Board Submits Recommendations to FCC

The Technical Advisory Board for First Responder Interoperability (Interoperability Board) has delivered to the FCC its recommendations for the minimum technical requirements necessary to ensure a nationwide level of interoperability for the Nationwide Public Safety Broadband Network. The Interoperability Board was created pursuant to Title VI of the Middle Class Tax Relief and Job Creation Act of 2012 (Spectrum Act) and was tasked to deliver its recommendations to the Commission and the First Responder Network Authority by May 22, 2012. The report provides recommendations on matters such as 3GPP LTE standards, interfaces and guidelines, user equipment and device management, testing, technology evolution, handover and mobility, grade of service, prioritization and quality of service and security. The Interoperability Board was composed of 14 members, including representatives from equipment vendors, state and federal agencies, law enforcement and public safety authorities, and large, mid-sized and rural mobile wireless carriers. The voting member representing small and rural carriers was Ron Strecker, Chief Executive Officer of Panhandle Telephone, an Oklahoma-based carrier member of the Rural Telecommunications Group. Assistance to the Interoperability Board also came from subject matter experts in the industry as well as guidance from the National Telecommunications and Information Administration, the National Institute for Standards and Technology, and the Office of Emergency Communications of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.