NTIA turns over public-safety grant program to DHS

Rep. Bart Stupak (D-Mich.), chairman of the House Commerce subcommittee on oversight and investigations, blasted the National Telecommunications and Information Administration for surrendering control of a $1 billion first-responder wireless grant program to an another agency that recently told Congress the Sept. 30 deadline for grant awards will not be met.
“It appears that NTIA, the agency that Congress thought was best equipped to handle public-safety communications interoperability and to manage the public-safety spectrum, is abdicating its responsibility to the Department of Homeland Security, which, as we saw during Hurricane Katrina, has a poor track record,” Stupak said.
The Memorandum of Understanding between the Commerce Department’s NTIA and DHS grew out of 2005 legislation to set aside $1 billion from the upcoming 700 MHz auction for public-safety interoperability upgrades.
The MoU, among other things, has NTIA transferring to DHS $989 million to manage the public-safety interoperability grant program. Of that total, $959 million will be used for public-safety grants and $30 million for management and administrative services. NTIA appears to be largely limited to an advisory role, even though Congress put it in charge of the program.
“Congress created the Public Safety Interoperable Communications Grant Program with two goals: to advance new approaches for interoperable communications and to direct new funding towards interoperability. It is clear from this MOU and from the (Bush) administration’s budget request that the administration is ignoring Congress’ intent and accomplishing neither of these goals,” stated Stupak.
Lawmakers have criticized NTIA and DHS over delays in getting the public-safety program off the ground. Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff, who said much of the country lacks robust public-safety interoperability more than five years after terrorists attacks that highlighted fatal communications breakdowns, has vowed to have the problem fixed nationwide by 2008.
However, Chertoff told lawmakers the Bush administration will miss the Sept. 30 deadline for getting public-safety interoperability grants out the door to cities and states.
Stupak promised to put NTIA’s activities under the microscope.
“The brave first responders who risk their lives to protect the rest of us deserve better, and I will hold the administration accountable. This Memorandum of Understanding confirms that there is a need to review the operations and capabilities of the Department of Commerce in general and NTIA in particular.”
House Homeland Security Committee Chairman Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.) and ranking member Peter King (R-N.Y.) earlier this month told Chertoff and Commerce Secretary Carlos Gutierrez that grants should not be limited to 700 MHz. The lawmakers said states and municipalities have spent millions of dollars building public-safety communications in bands other than 700 MHz.