The Public Safety Advisory Committee (PSAC) held its Spring Business Meeting to discuss the committee’s efforts in 2021 and its ongoing plans to support FirstNet’s growth and expansion. Discussions highlighted accomplishments and business updates in 2021, PSAC Strike Team efforts, and PSAC User Working Group updates.

Public works officials are a critical component of preparedness and response, working alongside law enforcement, fire, and EMS personnel to respond to emergency events. The American Public Works Association (APWA) serves as the leading organization representing municipal and county public agencies responsible for over 70% of the U.S. road systems and much of the nation’s other public infrastructure. APWA has been a valued member of the PSAC since its inception, making sure that broad interoperability is built into the FirstNet network.

FirstNet Authority Senior Law Enforcement Advisor Harry Markley spent more than 30 years with the Phoenix Police Department, rising through the ranks and serving in nearly every part of the department. At the FirstNet Authority, he works with law enforcement to understand how mobile broadband can fit into their operations and how FirstNet can help keep officers and the public safe.      

The first quarterly Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) Plenary e-meetings of 2021 recently concluded. At the March meetings, the 3GPP momentum continued with more Release 17 progress and a focus on the upcoming June deadline for stage 2 (architecture) work. There were major discussions on the use of the 5G New Radio (NR) sidelink interface to support both user equipment (UE) to network (U2N) relay and UE to UE (U2U) relay.