[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 4 (Tuesday, January 9, 2007)]
[House]
[Page H127]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




               INTEROPERABLE PUBLIC SAFETY COMMUNICATIONS

  (Mr. STUPAK asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. STUPAK. Mr. Speaker, in its final report, the 9/11 Commission 
concluded, and I quote:
  ``The inability to communicate was a critical element of the World 
Trade Center, Pentagon and Somerset County, Pennsylvania, crash sites 
where multiple agencies and multiple jurisdictions responded. The 
occurrence of this problem at three very different sites is strong 
evidence that compatible and adequate communications among public 
safety organizations at the local, State and Federal levels remains an 
important problem. Federal funding of such interagency communication 
units should be given high priority.''
  The lack of interoperability among first responders has plagued our 
Nation for too long. Today Congress is taking an important step to give 
our first responders the tools they need to do their jobs and keep our 
Nation safe.
  The fact is that, since September 11, the Republican administration 
and Congress failed to make adequate investments in interoperable 
communications for our police, firefighters and EMTs. After September 
11, President Bush said, ``We want to spend money to make sure 
equipment is there, strategies are there, communications are there to 
make sure that you have whatever it takes to respond.'' Yet under 
President Bush and the Republican-led Congress, the money was not 
allocated, the equipment was not there, strategies were incomplete and 
first responders still could not communicate across agencies and 
jurisdictions.
  Today, Congress will consider the Implementing the 9/11 Commission 
Recommendations Act which will create a stand-alone grant program for 
interoperable communications. Today, the Democratic Congress starts a 
new direction for public safety and to keep America safe.

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