Promises Made, Promises Kept: Rockefeller Public Safety Law Will Keep Boy Scouts, Public Safe

Landmark public safety legislation Senator Jay Rockefeller authored will provide critical communications to future Boy Scout Jamborees because it will allow first responders from all agencies to communicate seamlessly across a shared network, officials said.

"The tragedy of 9/11, and the communications failures that cost first responders their lives, taught us that our firefighters, police officers, and EMS workers didn't have the tools they need to get the job done," Rockefeller said. "FirstNet, a state-of-the-art, high-speed, wireless network currently being rolled out is going to absolutely revolutionize first responder communications nationwide. And it will have a profound impact on future Boy Scout Jamborees."

"FirstNet will provide a more cost effective, reliable, resilient, and responsive alternative to the use of satellite or commercial carrier wireless data networks," said Major General James A. Hoyer, West Virginia Adjutant General. "This is critical to future Jamborees and state disaster response efforts because it will enhance first responder access to mobile video, mapping data, position based location services, and a myriad of other technologies."

"Communications are key to the successful management of the 2013 National Boy Scout Jamboree," said Jimmy Gianato, Director of the West Virginia Division of Homeland Security. "For 2013, West Virginia is running multiple networks and systems for the management of the Jamboree. By deploying the National Public Safety Broadband Network in WV, all data communications could be run and managed on a single network available to all of the federal, state and local partners supporting the event. The deployment by FirstNet here will be a huge accomplishment in furthering public safety interoperability and information sharing. The capabilities created as a result of West Virginia's BTOP grant program were a key contributor to the successful communications capabilities necessary to support an event of this magnitude.

"We are very grateful to Senator Rockefeller for his tireless work in making this system a reality. Without his leadership, none of this would be possible," Gianato said.

Rockefeller on June 12 met with first responders, including members of the West Virginia National Guard and state and local officials, to tour the Joint Interagency Task Force operations, headquartered at the Glen Jean Armory. There, he discussed their plans for future Jamboree communications, which will be enhanced by the nationwide public safety wireless network being created through Rockefeller's legislation.

Rockefeller authored the Public Safety Spectrum and Wireless Innovation Act, which was included in tax relief legislation passed last year. Rockefeller's public safety legislation will, for the first time, build a nationwide, high-speed network which will enable police, firefighters, EMS workers, and other state and federal first responders to communicate wirelessly when responding to natural disasters or other crises and keep America safe. The new law will help prevent the kind of communications failures that occurred during rescue efforts at Ground Zero on 9/11 and at Upper Big Branch mine, when first responders did not have access to a single, unifying network for communicating with each other.

Called FirstNet, the new high-speed network is critical to ensuring public safety.

Rockefeller was impressed by the communications network currently being utilized by first responders at the Jamboree. He noted that FirstNet is designed to build on that by giving them state-of-the-art data capabilities. Once up and running, it will fulfill the promise of bringing advanced wireless broadband services to emergency officials in West Virginia and across the Nation--and better keep future Boy Scout Jamborees safe and secure.

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