Your readers may be interested to know that the First Response Coalition’s (www.firstresponsecoalition.org) recent event at the National Press Club, “The Post Election Landscape for Public Safety Communications: 2007 Predictions and Recommendations,” brought together seven public safety experts to examine how changes in Congress, new government programs and initiatives, and advances in technology will contribute to the ongoing effort to achieve communications interoperability for first responders across the country.

Representatives from Capitol Hill, the Department of Homeland Security, the Federal Communications Commission, and state agencies all agreed that: (1) collaboration among federal, state, and local agencies, (2) identifying funding sources for local and state governments, and (3) securing enough spectrum were critical to improving first responder communications.

The participants also acknowledged that while finding comprehensive interoperability solutions remains a challenge, recent developments, such as the DTV transition and DHS Secretary Chertoff’s call for interoperability in major cities by 2007 and statewide by 2008, were important first steps.

I invite you to visit the FRC’s website (http://www.firstresponsecoalition.org/release-10-20-2006.shtml) to read the event transcript, media coverage, and the FRC’s press release.