Michael (Mike) Toomey Texas Lobbyist News: Department of Homeland Security Launches FirstResponder.Gov
FirstResponder.Gov is a website by the department of homeland security. The Texas Lobby Group and Mike Toomey are posting this alert as a public service for all Texas citizens, Texas political lobbyists, Texas government officials and consultants, and other interested parties.
On September 28th, a great leap forward was made in the world of public safety and emergency response systems. The federal government, police officers, emergency medical service, and firefighters have come together and created a pledge to improve what they do. This call for improvement was a result of the tragedy in New York on September 11th, 2001. The goal is to strengthen emergency communications so that in an incident they can collaborate together and provide services more effectively. The name of this board is FirstNet, seen as a preventative and responsive system. After a long time of talking, FirstNet has finally had their first board meeting.
FirstNet hopes to utilize new equipment, solid organization, collaboration, and communication to bring these public safety organizations and professionals together to create a more effective safety net for citizens. FirstNet hopes to establish a nationwide network of aid, allowing for better care and assistance in any emergency situation that may rise. Interaction and communication between these branches of public safety can be greatly disjointed, and filling in the seams will allow for smoother transition and function. Assistance will be provided to states that agree to update their Statewide Communication Interoperability Plans.
“The establishment of the FirstNet Board represents an important milestone in the implementation of the Nationwide Public Safety Broadband Network, and today, I had the privilege of joining my fellow board members at the inaugural meeting to provide our nation’s first responders with a dedicated communications network to help them share information and communicate during emergency situations. The FirstNet Board will work directly with first responders to ensure that the design, construction, and governance of a nationwide network is done efficiently and effectively.”
This move towards synchronization is called the “Nationwide Public Safety Broadband Network”. It plans to enlist local, state, and federal governments and public safety departments in the fight to be well prepared and functioning in the event of a mass emergency. While large scale crises are in mind, the positive effects of improved public safety will trickle down to help individual, everyday accidents and emergencies. This will improve upon emergency response in general. We can all look forward to better security and more organized action in emergency situations, big or small.