SAFECOM Encourages Comments on the Proposed National Emergency Communications Plan Updates

SAFECOM, in conjunction with its member associations, the Emergency Communications Preparedness Center, and many additional members of public safety, has worked for over the past year with the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) to update the National Emergency Communications Plan (NECP). The NECP organizes our Nation’s efforts to sustain and improve emergency communications capabilities. It is a critical planning document for public safety agencies and all those involved in the safety and security of our communities. Now the broader community has the opportunity to review and provide feedback on the NECP updates.

Key proposed updates to the NECP address the range of changes public safety stakeholders face including rapid technological advancements, increasingly complex incidents, and constrained resources. For example, the update offers a new cybersecurity goal to help improve public safety’s cyber security posture. A staggering 81% of local agencies that responded to the SAFECOM Nationwide Survey reported they had insufficient or no funding for cybersecurity efforts yet nearly 40% reported cyber disruptions impacting their emergency communications.

Additionally, the NECP offers an updated graphic and explanation of the emergency communications ecosystem. This key concept has served the community well as it articulates the breadth and inclusiveness the people and functions involved in emergency communications. The draft also revises content on important advancements made in data interoperability, the First Responder Network Authority's (FirstNet) Nationwide Public Safety Broadband Network adoption, personnel impacts and much more since the last update in 2014.

You can access the draft 2019 NECP on the DHS webpage. Please review the document and submit your feedback via the comment form to OECNECP@hq.dhs.gov by March 22, 2019.