By Laura DeKoven Waxman
May 3, 2010

New York Representative Peter King introduced the Broadband for First Responders Act of 2010 (HR 5081) on April 21, responding to the concerns of state and local government and public safety organizations with the Federal Communications Commission’s proposal in the National Broadband Plan to auction off the D Block. The bipartisan legislation would allocate the 700 MHz “D block” of broadband spectrum for public safety use. King is the Ranking Member of the House Homeland Security Committee.

The D block allocation would enable the public safety community to migrate its communications systems to a robust broadband network that will meet the mission-critical and day-to-day voice, video and data needs of America’s first responders. The legislation would reserve an additional 10MHz of broadband spectrum for use by public safety, doubling the amount of broadband spectrum that is currently allocated for this important use.

The U.S. Conference of Mayors was one of the first organizations to endorse the legislation. On the same day the legislation was introduced, CEO and Executive Director Tom Cochran released a statement of support. “All Americans deserve cities that are safe and secure, and effective communications among police, fire, and other first responders are essential to this,” Cochran said. “Mayors strongly support [the King bill] because it would help to assure that our first responders are able to access a broadband network capable of providing reliable high speed data and voice applications so that they can meet current and future public safety needs,” he continued. Cochran indicated the Conference would work closely with King to see his bill enacted into law.

Other organizations endorsing the bill include the National League of Cities, National Association of Counties, Police Executive Research Forum, International Association of Chiefs of Police, Major Cities Chiefs Association, International Association of Fire Chiefs, and the International Association of Emergency Managers. Private sector organizations supporting the bill include Verizon Wireless, AT&T, Motorola, and Northrop Grumman.

“During large-scale emergencies such as a terrorist attack, first responders must have the capability to effectively communicate with one another utilizing the latest advances in communications technology,” King said when he introduced the bill. “The 700 MHz band spectrum is ideal for public safety use because of its in-building penetration capability. We cannot place brave Americans’ lives at risk through a piecemeal approach to our spectrum allocation.”

The bill’s original cosponsors are Representatives Yvette D. Clarke (NY), Mike Rogers (AL), Candice Miller (MI), and Anh “Joseph” Cao (LA).