The Journal of Commerce Online reports that Secretary of Homeland Security Chertoff stated at an August 16, 2007 COAC meeting that DHS could launch a trade data warehouse - a Global Trade Exchange - as a voluntary program, stating that people would want to be part of it as more information means better government targeting and fewer delays for participants. (JoC Online dated 08/16/07, www.joc.com )
The coming months may see an accord between broadcasters and public interest advocates on how to translate emergency warnings into Spanish and other languages, said participants in meetings at the FCC on the alerts. Tuesday, the commission released a summary of the June 14 first round of negotiations brokered by the Public Safety Bureau. The minutes show some common ground between industry and public interest groups (CD Aug 15 p11). Parties on either side acknowledge a shared sense of urgency about clarifying the protocol under which broadcasters warn listeners in languages other than English when foreign-language stations are knocked off the air.
Public safety groups, supported by radio-maker Motorola, cautioned the FCC not to prohibit or restrict paging by public safety agencies using emergency response frequencies. The FCC is considering whether to restrict VHF public safety frequencies to just two-way voice calls. The FCC said in seeking comment on that proposal it has received interference complaints in the past about interference from paging, particularly to channels set aside for mutual aid.
On August 3, 2007, President Bush signed into law the conference version of H.R. 1, the "Implementing Recommendations of the 9/11 Commission Act of 2007" (Public Law 110-53).
SAN FRANCISCO -- Lawyers should enlist to help tell Americans how to protect their PCs against use by terrorists, said a House Homeland Security Committee member. People need to know the “simple steps and not so simple steps” they can take to protect computers, and the American Bar Association’s Science and Technology Law Section should pitch in, Rep. Dan Lungren, R-Calif., told the group’s annual meeting Sunday.
Broadcasters asked the FCC to clarify that sales of ads in bulk through third-party websites (CD July 9 p11) shouldn’t be reflected in the rates that radio and TV stations offer to federal candidates. NAB, 47 state broadcast associations, Gannett, Media General and other companies said three decades of FCC precedent mean that ads sold through nonbroadcast networks should not be subject to the lowest unit charges (LUC). At stake is whether broadcasters must directly offer politicians rates that could be even lower for airtime, because the Internet auction sites offer advertisers lower prices than they could get if they bought commercials from individual stations. Also at stake is the development of what many FCC filings referred to as “nascent” industry of Google’s dMarc Broadcasting, Bid4Spots, SoftWave Media Exchange and others that sell unwanted airtime.
Broadcasters asked the FCC to clarify that sales of ads in bulk through third-party Web sites (WID July 9 p5) shouldn’t be reflected in the rates that radio and TV stations offer to federal candidates. NAB, 47 state broadcast associations, Gannett, Media General and other companies said three decades of FCC precedent mean that ads sold through nonbroadcast networks should not be subject to the lowest unit charges (LUC).
BALTIMORE -- FCC Chairman Kevin Martin said the 800 MHz transition may not be 100 percent complete by next June, the deadline for rebanding, but the FCC will push public safety licensees and Sprint Nextel hard to move it along as far as possible. Resolving border issues with Canada and Mexico could be the biggest challenge, Martin said at the Association of Public Safety Communications Officials meeting Tuesday.
The FCC should follow through on a recommendation that channels in the 900 MHz band be allocated to public safety for paging, the National Public Safety Telecommunications Council said in a filing at the FCC. “Paging systems, possessing inherent redundancy, can be more reliable than voice/cellular systems,” the council said. “Significant efficiency is gained by group pages transmitting critical information to alert thousands of units at the same time.” The recommendation was by the Independent Panel Reviewing the Impact of Hurricane Katrina on Communications Networks. The council said all public safety groups should be allowed to benefit. “Digital paging capability in the 900 MHz band will provide meaningful assistance to public safety agencies beyond emergency medical response,” the council said. “The fire services need efficient means to notify responding members, particularly where agencies rely upon volunteer forces that must be summoned from work or residence. It would be counter to the Commission’s history and commitment to public safety communications to limit access to particular public safety responsibilities.” The channels are in the business and industrial/land transportation (B/ILT) bands at 896- 901/935-940. In a May filing, the Enterprise Wireless Alliance said public safety applications should be accommodated in areas where spectrum capacity exists, adding that the paging operation can conform to rules on B/ILT use.
The Journal of Commerce reports that the Transportation Security Administration needs to consider how it will manage appeals from applicants for the Transportation Worker Identification Credential program who are denied credentials after mandatory criminal background checks. Workers may appeal to one of five Coast Guard administrative judges which may be too few to act on appeals from potentially thousands of workers. (JoC, dated 07/23/07, www.joc.com)