Public safety officials have the opportunity—and the responsibility—to ensure that crucial emergency response and incident prevention systems are able to communicate in real time with staff from other responding agencies. Every second counts. This guide was developed as a result of the ongoing dialogue among State and local elected and appointed officials, city and county managers, police chiefs, fire chiefs, sheriffs, transportation officials, and other public safety officials. It examines the critical barriers to interoperability (the ability of different systems to exchange both voice and data communications), provides guidelines for assessing a jurisdiction's interoperability, and suggests interim technology strategies to close gaps.

Full text of the Report

Contents

Front Matter (Acrobat PDF)

• Letter From NIJ Director
• Task Force Members
• Executive Summary

Chapter 1: Why Can't Public Safety Agencies Talk? (Acrobat PDF)
Chapter 2: Five Key Reasons Why Public Safety Agencies Can't Talk (Acrobat PDF)
Chapter 3: Are You Prepared? Assessing Interoperability (Acrobat PDF)
Chapter 4: How Can You Achieve Interoperability? (Acrobat PDF)
Chapter 5: Governance Structures for Improving Interoperability (Acrobat PDF)
Chapter 6: Funding Strategies for Achieving Interoperability (Acrobat PDF)
Chapter 7: Why Radio Spectrum Matters to You (Acrobat PDF)
Chapter 8: Conclusions (Acrobat PDF)

Interoperability Assessment Tools (Acrobat PDF)

• Assessing Your Level of Interoperability
• Assessing Radio Communications Capability
• Assessing Your Current Commitment of Resources

Additional Resources (Acrobat PDF)

• References and Source Materials
  
• Recommended Websites
  
• Federal Funding for Communications and Information-Sharing Planning, Development, and Equipment
  
• Glossary of Terms and Acronyms

Acknowledgments (Acrobat PDF)
Supplemental Resources: Case Studies and Articles