In the past weeks, APCO members, colleagues and supporters have stepped up and joined the fight to reclassify Public Safety Telecommunicators as "Protective" occupations. Their efforts have included submitting formal comments for the revision process to explain how Public Safety Telecommunicators protect and save the lives of the public and responders. They have also contacted elected officials in Congress to explain the importance of reclassification and seek their assistance in this fight.

This week at APCO 2016, attendees helped grow the reclassification effort. They participated in informational sessions on the reclassification process and APCO’s advocacy efforts, offered suggestions for the advocacy strategy, and stopped by an Advocacy station in the Pavilion where staff were on hand to answer questions and laptops were available for the Take Action campaign. By the end of the conference, more than 1,200 comments had been filed and 900 people have contacted Congress.

Our work is only beginning! Go here to Take Action and encourage your colleagues and supporters to do the same.

William Carter is a Radio Communication Coordinator and is part of the Illinois Public Health Association, Office of Preparedness and Response, Division of Disaster Planning and Readiness and Illinois Department of Public Health. He has experience with federal agencies, the private sector and not-for-profit contract and project management. He also took part in developing the communications standards of Project 25 Phase I, Project 25 Phase II, TETRA, EVDO, DMR, LTE and others.

The APCO Cybersecurity Committee’s new publication "An Introduction to Cybersecurity: A Guide for PSAPs " is an accessible best practices guide to implementing effective cybersecurity policies and procedures within your PSAP. The primary goal of this document is inform PSAP supervisors (and above) how to identify, prevent and minimize exposure to cybersecurity risks and vulnerabilities. It can be used to help PSAPs develop policies and procedures and raise awareness of areas that require further consideration. Case studies have also been provided in order to demonstrate how theoretical vulnerabilities have manifested into operationally impactful events.

WSPY News A life saving award was presented to 7-year-old Bryanna Enerson of Morris for her actions that led to saving her mother's life on June 15th. The Morris City Council heard from Police Chief Brent Dite, who read a letter of commendation to Bryanna.

Austin Monitor The Travis County (Tex.) Commissioners Court has called for an election this November that could create a new emergency services district in the county’s rural Northwestern corner. The proposed Emergency Services District No. 7 would largely share the same boundaries as ESD No. 1 and give a boost to the area’s medical response capabilities.

Worcester Patch Officials from Worcester, Leicester and the Commonwealth of Massachusetts on Wednesday celebrated the grand opening of the new Regional Emergency Communication and Emergency Operations Center in Worcester.

NBC4 In the market for a new job? The Columbus Division of Police is hiring people to work as 9-1-1 emergency call takers. A spokesperson says the Division of Police is looking for a couple dozen people to hire by the end of the year. Training will be provided, and a high school diploma or GED is required.

RMG Networks and Airbus DS Communications Announce Technology Partnership

AT&T Enhances Interoperability for Public Sector and Public Safety Networks

Motorola Solutions Envisions Virtual Reality Transforming Public Safety

Airbus Unit Launches Comms System to Aid NextGen 9-1-1 Transition Efforts

GeoComm & RapidSOS Announce Collaboration to Provide Enhanced Mobile Caller Location to 9-1-1 PSAPs