HOUSE COMMITTEE ON ENERGY AND COMMERCE SUBCOMMITTEE ON COMMUNICATIONS, TECHNOLOGY, AND THE INTERNET TESTIMONY OF CHIEF WILLIAM J.

Transcription

1 HOUSE COMMITTEE ON ENERGY AND COMMERCE SUBCOMMITTEE ON COMMUNICATIONS, TECHNOLOGY, AND THE INTERNET TESTIMONY OF CHIEF WILLIAM J. BRATTON LOS ANGELES POLICE DEPARTMENT REPRESENTING MAJOR CITIES CHIEFS ASSOCIATION SEPTEMBER 24, 2009

2 Gd Mrning Chairman Bucher and members f the Cmmittee. My name is William J. Brattn and I currently serve as Chief f the Ls Angeles Plice Department. I wuld like t thank yu fr this pprtunity t appear befre yu tday t discuss a critical issue wireless bradband cmmunicatins fr pubic safety. I am here tday speaking n behalf f the Majr Cities Chiefs Assciatin (MCC), which is cmprised f the Plice Chiefs f the sixty-three largest plice departments in the United States and Canada. The fifty-six U.S. cities represented in MCC are America s centers f industry, transprtatin, educatin, and cmmerce. Their plice departments prvide public safety services t rughly frty percent f America s ppulatin. MCC members are active in advisry rles t the Department f Justice, the Department f Hmeland Security, and the Department f Defense. The Assciatin is nn-partisan, serving member departments and their ppulatins. The Majr Cities Chiefs Assciatin strives t prvide effective slutins t mdern day urban prblems as well as prevent, prtect against, and respnd t crime and hstile acts launched against the U.S. r Canada. 700 MHz D Blck As yu knw, the Federal Cmmunicatins Cmmissin auctined prtins f the 700MHz spectrum in May Althugh ttal auctin prceeds significantly exceeded expectatins, ne blck f spectrum, the 700 MHz D Blck, failed t attract a successful bidder. This was, in part, because f a requirement that the winner cnstruct a bradband

3 wireless netwrk built t public safety standards using the cmbined D Blck and adjacent Public Safety 700 MHz spectrum. Cmmercial wireless netwrk peratrs are reluctant t build wireless netwrks designed t meet public safety survivability standards. When faced with this prspect during the D Blck auctin, ptential bidders balked. The cst t meet Public Safety cverage and reliability standards was simply beynd their ability t gauge. The risk was t great. The Cmmissin s failure t anticipate the reluctance f bidders t assume this risk dmed the auctin frm its inceptin. We believe that a secnd auctin wuld likely suffer the same fate. Under current law, the F.C.C. is required t auctin the D Blck. We believe this curse f actin is nt in the public interest, since it wuld likely generate little revenue fr the Federal Gvernment and allcate t cmmercial use scarce spectrum resurces urgently needed by Public Safety. The Majr Cities Chiefs urge the Cmmittee and Cngress t cnsider an alternative enact legislatin t reassign the D Blck frm the auctin pl and reallcate it t Public Safety. This actin wuld result in tw 10 MHz blcks f spectrum that will prvide the fundatin fr a sustainable natinwide Public Safety wireless bradband netwrk. Investment in Public Safety Cmmunicatins Technlgy In my 40+ year law enfrcement career, I have been bth a witness t and part f the evlutin in plicing technlgy. When I began as a plice fficer in Bstn, the walkie-

4 talkies that were available t us were s big and bulky that n ne even wanted t carry them. While I was Cmmissiner at the NYPD, we develped the COMPSTAT mdel that utilized timely infrmatin, gained thrugh technlgy, and we were able t drastically reduce crime rates. Tday, many agencies have established Real Time Crime Centers that are leveraging new technlgy t d an even mre effective jb f fighting crime. Very sn, we will be mving t a Predictive Plicing mdel where, by studying real time crime patterns, we can anticipate where a crime is likely t ccur. Withut questin, this evlutin has been driven by the imprvements in infrmatin technlgy. Of curse, in rder t be useful, infrmatin needs t be relevant, accurate, and timely. But just as imprtant, it must be accessible. New technlgies such as autmated license plate readers, bimetrics, medical telemetry, autmated vehicle lcatin, and streaming vide nly scratch the surface f the capabilities that will be carried by bradband netwrks. The D Blck is critical fr the accessibility f infrmatin t First Respnders acrss ur natin. Althugh sme have questined hw t ffset the ptential lss f revenue resulting frm the D Blck being taken ff the auctin blck, we see this scenari in fundamentally different terms. We view the reallcatin f the D Blck as a critically needed investment in Public Safety rather than as a lss f revenue. This investment f spectrum int Public Safety will reap large dividends far int the future.

5 Let me ffer an example. In Ls Angeles, a recent Rand Crpratin study shwed that the negative ecnmic impact f a single hmicide in ur city is fur millin dllars. Nw, mind yu, this fur millin dllar figure is actually a cnservative number. Utilizing technlgy, we have been able t reduce the number f hmicides in Ls Angeles by ver 300. This has resulted in a net psitive ecnmic impact f $1.2 billin. My budget at LAPD is currently $1.2 Billin. Thus, because f ur crime reductins, we have actually becme revenue neutral. Public Safety Needs the D Blck Investing the D Blck spectrum fr use by Public Safety will benefit bth urban areas as well as rural areas. In urban areas, the full amunt f spectrum will be necessary t supprt the myriad f current and emerging bradband applicatins that are transfrming public safety peratins natinwide. In rural areas, the added spectrum can be used as cllateral t frm public-private partnerships, thereby reducing r eliminating a financial burden that such jurisdictins wuld therwise have t assume t either build their wn netwrk r becme a subscriber n a less reliable cmmercial bradband netwrk. In either case, granting this spectrum t Public Safety puts First Respnders in a psitin t determine hw best t manage this scarce resurce. Cnsensus Amng Public Safety Organizatins After the failure f the D Blck auctin last year, there was significant cnfusin in the Public Safety cmmunity abut hw best t prceed with this critical issue. I am pleased t reprt tday that in the last five mnths the majr Public Safety rganizatins have

6 cme tgether in an unprecedented effrt t frge a cnsensus n hw t make a wireless public safety bradband netwrk a reality. On April 20 th and May 28 th, meetings hsted by Majr Cities Chiefs and APCO in Washingtn DC resulted in a cnsensus amng Public Safety rganizatins t urge Cngress t remve the requirement t auctin the D Blck and assign it t the Public Safety Bradband Licensee (PSBL). During June and July, Lng Term Evlutin (LTE) was endrsed as the technlgy platfrm f chice fr the natinwide 700 MHz Public safety bradband netwrk by majr public safety rganizatins including APCO, PSST, NPSTC and NENA. On September 4 th, the Natinal Public Safety Telecmmunicatins Cuncil (NPSTC) 700 MHz Brad Band Task Frce (BBTF) issued their Reprt and Recmmendatins. Amng these recmmendatins is that the D Blck shuld be assigned t Public Safety. Als included in this reprt were draft standards that, if adpted by the FCC, wuld ensure natinal interperability between any f the jurisdictins licensed t perate in the Public Safety netwrk. The Public Safety rganizatins that supprt reallcatin f the D Blck t Public Safety include: Internatinal Assciatin f Chiefs f Plice (IACP) Internatinal Assciatin f Fire Chiefs (IAFC) Majr Cities Chiefs Assciatin (MCCA) Metrplitan Fire Chiefs (MFC) Majr Cunty Sheriffs Assciatin (MCS)

7 Natinal Sheriffs Assciatin (NSA) Assciatin f Public Safety Cmmunicatins Officials Internatinal (APCO) Natinal Emergency Management Assciatin (NEMA) Public Safety Spectrum Trust (PSST) Natinal Public Safety Telecmmunicatin Cuncil (NPSTC) Waiver Requests At this time, I wuld like t address the issue f the pending waiver requests. Under current FCC rules, the existing 10 MHz f spectrum assigned t the PSBL cannt be utilized and remains fallw. The fllwing jurisdictins have filed waiver requests with the FCC seeking t build lcal r reginal bradband wireless netwrks utilizing this spectrum prir t the cnstructin f a natinwide netwrk: Bstn, Massachusetts San Francisc Bay Area (San Jse, Oakland, SF) State f New Yrk City f New Yrk District f Clumbia Chesapeake, Virginia San Antni, Texas State f New Mexic State f Nrth Dakta State f Hawaii State f New Jersey Iwa Public Safety Bradband Calitin City f Charltte Nrth Carlina Reading the abve list f waiver requests, it is apparent that cmmunities large and small, urban and rural have cme t the realizatin that a public safety bradband wireless netwrk is a critical and urgent need. They have als cme t the cnclusin that they

8 can cnstruct lcal netwrks either alne r thrugh a public-private partnership arrangement. It is imprtant t recgnize that public safety cntrl f the spectrum des nt preclude public-private partnerships in jurisdictins that wuld benefit frm such a relatinship with a cmmercial prvider. Such an arrangement will be particularly advantageus in jurisdictins where there is less Public Safety demand fr spectrum. In these areas, the netwrk capacity can be leveraged t induce cmmercial entities t partner with gvernment t cnstruct successful bradband wireless netwrks that serve the needs f bth Public Safety and the larger cmmunity. By leveraging existing Public Safety and cmmercial infrastructure, Public Safety in bth rural and urban areas will reduce r eliminate the csts assciated with their build uts. The waiver requests filed by such entities as the State f New Mexic, the Iwa Public Safety Bradband Calitin and the State f Hawaii, amng thers, challenge the assumptin that rural jurisdictins are incapable f frming partnerships with cmmercial prviders t build bradband wireless netwrks. These jurisdictins are the resident experts; they knw lcal cnditins better than anyne else. Thrugh their waiver requests, they are asserting that they can and will frm public private partnerships t build lcal wireless bradband netwrks that will immediately supprt Public Safety as well as be interperable with ther natinwide Public Safety bradband netwrks when deplyed.

9 Qualified Waivers Shuld Be Granted We urge the F.C.C. t expeditiusly review the pending waiver requests and grant all requests that meet their requirements. Granting waivers t jurisdictins with qualified prpsals will permit early build ut f lcal and reginal bradband netwrks. In additin t gaining access t bradband applicatins n a daily basis, these jurisdictins will als benefit frm increased interperability during an event requiring a multi-agency r multi-jurisdictinal respnse. Public Safety respnders frm ne reginal bradband netwrk will be able t respnd t a different jurisdictin and utilize their wn cmmunicatin devices t immediately assist the lcal First Respnders. As a further benefit, early netwrk deplyments will prvide an envirnment fr Public Safety users t test bradband technlgy under real wrld cnditins. Additinally, Public Safety-specific applicatins can be develped, tested and perfected in advance f the natinwide netwrk deplyment. This will aid greatly in the refining f the standards necessary fr the build ut and peratin f the Public Safety wireless bradband system. Cnclusin In clsing, we urge that yu take the legislative actin necessary t invest this spectrum in Public Safety natinwide. The benefits gained frm such an investment in First Respnder cmmunicatins will dramatically transfrm hw we serve the public we have all swrn t prtect. Thank yu fr this pprtunity t address these imprtant issues, I will be pleased t answer any questins that yu may have.