WASHINGTON-The Federal Communications Commission ruled analog specialized mobile radio operators must comply with the digital wiretap act, even though there are no technical guides for them to follow.
Currently, when law enforcement wants to tap an analog interconnected SMR, officers are given a cloned handset, said industry representatives.
The problem is that, unlike in the mobile phone world where there was great contention about technical capabilities, there have been no concrete rules developed for how interconnected analog SMRs are to comply with the Communications Assistance for Law Enforcement Act of 1994, said Don Vasek, director of government relations for the Personal Communications Industry Association.
Because there are no rules in place, PCIA is not sure when analog interconnected SMRs have to comply.
When the FCC made its decision on “covered telecommunications carriers,” it said analog interconnected carriers were covered, or had to comply, but did not say when compliance was mandatory.
By comparison, in a companion order dealing with the technical standards for mobile phone carriers, those carriers were told they must comply by June 30 with an industry interim standard, and by Sept. 30, 2001, with the new capabilities mandated by the FCC.
This is one of a series of questions raised by PCIA to the FCC in a letter last May. Most of the other questions were answered when the FCC released its CALEA rules last month.
It is unclear whether PCIA or the American Mobile Telecommunications Association will contest the decision or ask for additional information.
Despite the ambiguity over analog interconnected SMRs, both PCIA and AMTA praised the FCC’s decision regarding non-interconnected SMRs. The FCC said these carriers were not subject to CALEA.
The decision on non-interconnected SMRs went farther than what the FCC tentatively concluded in its proposed rules, said Jill Lyon, AMTA vice president of regulatory affairs.
“The [FCC] held the line on what has been considered private use and public use,” said Todd Lantor, PCIA director of government relations.
