Need Work Group Members to Revise Standard
APCO is looking for volunteers to assist in the revision of APCO American National Standard (ANS) for Multi-Functional, Multi-Discipline Computer Aided Dispatch (CAD) Minimum Functional Requirements. Learn more
Seeking Comments on New Standard
The candidate ANS Managing Operational Overload in the Emergency Communication Center is now open for comments. The purpose of this standard is to serve as a guide for emergency communications center staff in their preparation for a multitude of events as they create pre-planning and mitigation documents. Learn more
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On December 1, APCO filed comments with the FCC on a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking to create a Do-Not-Call registry to protect emergency communications centers (ECCs) from unwanted robocalls (aka, calls from autodialers). As background, in 2012 the FCC adopted rules to create a voluntary database of ECC phone numbers that would inform robocallers of which numbers they were prohibited from calling. Following push-back related to security concerns that emerged during the creation of the registry over who could access a database of ECC numbers, the FCC recently proposed an alternative proposal to, among other things, require the service providers to utilize the database of ECC phone numbers and block the robocalls to those numbers. APCO’s comments expressed support for placing responsibility on the service providers to protect ECCs from unwanted calls, but reiterated that any database of ECC phone numbers should ensure stringent security protections. APCO encourages our members to contact gro@apcointl.org to share your thoughts and experiences on robocalls your ECC may receive.
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Cybersecurity Fundamentals for the ECC is an interactive one-day course in the APCO Virtual Classroom addressing the critical pieces of information that all ECC employees should know. This course also provides several resources for creating an incident response plan and what to do if your ECC experiences a cyberattack. Worth 8 CDEs. Course dates available: January 11 and February 9.
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On November 29, APCO filed comments with the FCC regarding proposals to change the rules governing the 4.9 GHz band. As background, the 4.9 GHz band has historically been dedicated for public safety use. In 2020, the FCC adopted rules to allow states to lease the spectrum to non-public safety users, and in September, based on requests from APCO and others, the FCC reversed course. The FCC now seeks comment on proposed rule changes that would refocus on public safety use of the band while exploring options to spur innovation, improve coordination and drive down costs. APCO offered recommendations for immediate changes that would improve public safety use of the band and reiterated that non-public safety use should only be allowed if it can occur without causing harmful interference to public safety operations.
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Effective January 1, APCO will no longer offer the Emergency Medical Dispatch (EMD), 5th Edition, Version 4, Instructor Update course for those certified in Version 3. The new EMD 5th Edition, Version 4 Instructor certification replaces the Version 3 certification. Only one EMD Instructor update course remains—December 8-28—before the January deadline. In addition, APCO will no longer offer the Communications Center Supervisor Instructor (CCS) 5th Edition, Instructor Update course for those certified in the 4th Edition. The new CCS 5th Edition, Instructor certification replaces the 4th Edition certification. Only one CCS Instructor update course is available—December 8-28—before the January deadline.
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The following agencies have received APCO Agency Training Program Certification, a Project 33® Initiative:
Public safety agencies use the APCO International Agency Training Program Certification as a formal mechanism to ensure their training programs meet APCO American National Standards (ANS). Initial and continuing training for public safety telecommunicators is important as they provide essential services to the public in an expanding and rapidly changing environment.
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Indiana County and the Indiana County Emergency Management Agency (ICEMA) joined FirstNet in 2019 to ensure personnel could communicate via voice across the county. Since then, ICEMA has expanded its use of the network, purchasing additional equipment to enable FirstNet connectivity in the county’s mobile command post and other vehicles.
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KSL.com
Public safety telecommunicator Jasmine Baum kept the parents calm and guided the birth of their baby girl inside their home.
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Eyewitness News FOX 11
Public safety telecommunicator Justin Withrow used new mapping technology to verify that the caller was not in the location where he claimed to be witnessing a robbery.
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KENS 5
San Antonio Fire Department spokesperson Joe Arrington said, "This is the future of 9-1-1, of medicine, and of pre-hospital care."
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16 ABC
The 11-year-old gave his mother a shot with an EpiPen to combat a dangerous allergic reaction and then called 9-1-1 to summon an ambulance.
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Watauga Democrat
Watauga County Emergency Services will use the grants to replace four Motorola MCC5500 consoles with new MCC7500 consoles.
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Abt Associates
Unvaccinated law enforcement officers were 20 times more likely to become sick with COVID-19 than their vaccinated colleagues and only 35% of first responders believe government-provided information about vaccines.
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