Subcommittee Reviewed Interoperability in Public Safety Communications Equipment

Chairman David Wu

On May 27th, the Technology and Innovation Subcommittee reviewed the status of interoperability for public safety communications systems that enable first responders from multiple agencies and jurisdictions to communicate. Specifically, the hearing discussed the status of the technical standards for public safety land mobile radio (LMR) systems. Members stressed the importance of open standards and compatible communications technologies to ensure first responders can communicate easily with their counterparts in different agencies during emergencies.

“We’ve learned an important lesson from September 11th, Hurricane Katrina, and other disasters: interoperable communication is critical to effective emergency response. When time is of the essence and lives are at stake, a clear flow of information is essential. Unfortunately, it is not uncommon for police officers and firefighters from a single region, or even a single city, to be using incompatible communication systems. This lack of interoperability has contributed to the deaths of first responders and hindered the ability to rescue people in harm’s way,” stated Subcommittee Chairman David Wu.

Committee Rule 11(a)(2)

Legislative jurisdiction and general oversight and investigative authority on all matters relating to competitiveness, technology, standards, and innovation, including:

standardization of weights and measures including technical standards, standardization, and conformity assessment;
measurement, including the metric system of measurement;
the Technology Administration of the Department of Commerce;
the National Institute of Standards and Technology;
the National Technical Information Service;
competitiveness, including small business competitiveness;
tax, antitrust, regulatory and other legal and governmental policies as they relate to technological development and commercialization;
technology transfer including civilian use of defense technologies;
patent and intellectual property policy;
international technology trade;
research, development, and demonstration activities of the Department of Transportation;
surface and water transportation research, development, and demonstration programs;
earthquake programs (except for NSF) and fire research programs including those related to wildfire proliferation research and prevention;
biotechnology policy;
research, development, demonstration, and standards related activities of the Department of Homeland Security;
Small Business Innovation Research and Technology Transfer; and
voting technologies and standards.