'Interoperability AGIL-ity' by NLECTC

N AT I O N A L

LAW

ENFORCEMENT AND

CORRECTIONS TECHNOLOGY

CENTER

A program of the National Institute of Justice

F r o m F a l l 2 0 0 2 Te c h B e a t

TECH

b·e·a·t

D e d i c a t e d to Reporting Developments in Technology for Law Enforcement, Corrections, and Forensic Sciences

Interoperability AGILE-ity

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC)

hirty-plus years ago, when police radios were under-

powered and cumbersome, one officer voiced his

licenses radio frequencies for all non-Federal users of

frustration about his inability to communicate with fellow

radio spectrum, including public safety agencies, commer-

officers this way: "Mission Control could talk to astronauts

cial radio and television stations, business radios, and

on the moon, but we couldn't talk to our partners around

more. The spectrum is a range of frequencies used for

the corner, less than a block away."

communications. It is a finite resource divided into bands,

10 of which are for public safety agencies' use. Within

Today police radios are certainly smaller and much

those bands, the FCC licenses the frequencies or channels

more powerful. But improvements in technology have not

used by each agency. Frequency is measured in terms of

eliminated the issue of interoperability--the capacity of

millions of cycles per second, or megahertz (MHz).

public safety agencies at all levels to communicate across

jurisdictions. This country's law enforcement agencies,

No commercially available radio operates in all 10

emergency medical services, and fire departments operate

bands available to the public safety community. Some

on different frequencies, use different equipment, and fol-

radios made by different manufacturers cannot even com-

low different policies and procedures, making communica-

municate with each other within the same band. This leads

tion and coordination between agencies and across

to temporary "fixes," such as installing numerous radios

jurisdictions very difficult.

in ambulances and patrol cars so their occupants can

talk to everyone else in an area. Another commonly used

AGILE, a National Institute of Justice (NIJ) project, is

fix, the dispatch relay, uses a third party to relay mes-

trying to make interoperability much less difficult.

sages from one agency to another. These solutions are

"Interoperability is a complex situation that has been

cumbersome and expensive. They use up precious time

evolving over the years," says Tom Coty, AGILE program

that could allow a suspect to escape or a fire to spread.

manager. "It's complex not only because of the sheer

Technology solutions to interoperability problems are

number of agencies, but also because they are in differ-

becoming more common. One solution employs a cross-

ent points in the life cycle of their equipment. One may

band repeater system, which receives a transmission

have a brand-new system, while another nearby agency

on one frequency and automatically retransmits it on a

has equipment that is 15 to 20 years old."

different one. Unfortunately, law enforcement and other

According to Coty, most public safety professionals

public safety agencies often do not know which new

would say they have experienced problems communicat-

technologies can help them, or even that these technolo-

ing with others in their field. Each agency, however, faces

gies exist.

different interoperability issues, such as outdated equip-

In 1998, NIJ's National Law Enforcement and Correc-

ment and no funds to buy new equipment; city police and

tions Technology Center (NLECTC)Rocky Mountain com-

fire department radios that operate on different frequen-

pleted an intensive study of interoperability issues, State

cies; cell phones that allow different agencies to talk to

and Local Law Enforcement Wireless Communications and

one another, but have significant access problems during

Interoperability: A Quantitative Analysis. NIJ used the

critical events; and existing communication links between

study to launch the AGILE program, which consolidates

agencies, but no policies or procedures that cover when

all NIJ interoperability initiatives into a coordinated effort

and how to use them.

to help Federal, State, and local law enforcement agencies

For most public safety agencies, Coty says, the biggest

communicate and share information. AGILE originally

problems stem from incompatible radio frequencies and

lack of funds to buy new equipment.