First Responders
The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) announced Friday that its Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA), part of the department’s Office of Justice Programs (OJP), had awarded nearly $187 million to support public safety and community justice activities.
The Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance... Read More »
U.S. Sens. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) and Alex Padilla (D-CA) urged Senate leadership to include a minimum of $7.7 billion and targeted tax relief in the disaster supplemental funding package requested by the State of California to respond and recover from the 2021 wildfire season.
“California is... Read More »
Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Science and Technology Directorate (S&T) officials said the agency is seeking participants for the 2022 First Responder Electronic Jamming Exercise (JamX 22).
There has been a Request for Information (RFI) issued for the endeavor at White Sands Missile... Read More »
U.S. Rep. Frank Pallone, Jr. (D-NJ) is touting the inclusion of $2.86 billion for the 9/11 World Trade Center (WTC) Health Program in the Build Back Better Act.
Officials said the funds would be included in the Energy and Commerce Committee’s portion of the measure, which is slated to be... Read More »
U.S. Reps. Rodney Davis (R-IL) and Darin LaHood (R-IL) announced Friday that their request for a Illinois National Guard project will be included in the FY 2022 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA).
The NDAA passed out of the House Armed Services Committee with a bipartisan 57-2 vote, and... Read More »
In a national first, the House Armed Services Committee voted last week in favor of a bill that would grant the mayor of the District of Columbia authority over the D.C. National Guard, adding that provision to the 2022 National Defense Authorization Act.
Since its inception, the D.C. National... Read More »
Sen. Alex Padilla (D-CA) recently hosted local leaders in Santa Rosa, Calif., during a roundtable discussion regarding wildfire prevention, response and recovery efforts.
The discussion and listening session stemmed from the White House's approval of Calif. Gov. Gavin Newsom’s request for a... Read More »
Air Force officials said the military branch has selected Ohio’s Mansfield-Lahm Air National Guard Base as the preferred venue for a new Cyber Warfare Wing mission.
Officials said the transformation would support Air Combat Command’s future requirements -- resulting in operational mission... Read More »
Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Science and Technology Directorate (S&T) officials said the agency is exploring the use of technology to aid with crowd count and analysis.
Officials cited the potential to prevent delayed, inadequate, or misplaced responses to crowds in detailing a request... Read More »
The governing body of FirstNet Authority, the only nationwide, high-speed broadband communications entity dedicated to and purpose-built for first responders, has approved the platform's Fiscal Year 2022 budget.
The First Responder Network Authority Board passed a $253 million budget focusing on... Read More »
U.S. Department of the Interior Secretary Deb Haaland and U.S. Department of Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced Tuesday that they would be implementing President Joe Biden’s pay increases for federal wildland firefighters.
The announcement ensures that the approximately 3,500... Read More »
Device Solutions, Inc., based in Hillsborough, N.C., has been awarded $981,657.52 via the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Program for digital paging development.
The scope of work calls for Device Solutions to provide a standards-based, public... Read More »
First Responder Network Authority (FirstNet) officials recently joined AT&T personnel in unveiling tools designed to aid Rhode Island first responders.
AT&T has delivered a pair of Compact Rapid Deployables (CRDs) to the Rhode Island Emergency Management Agency (RIEMA) - adding the state is the... Read More »
In a letter to federal officials, eight senators from the Western United States called for coordination and development of a strategy to counter jet fuel shortages, which they fear could exacerbate the dangers of wildfire season through grounded aircraft.
“As you are well aware, the 2020... Read More »
Howe & Howe Inc., a subsidiary of Textron Systems Corporation, recently unveiled the Thermite EV2, an all-electric firefighting robot, as well as a new handheld controller.
“It’s important that we give our first responders the best we have to offer so that they can complete their missions... Read More »
Bipartisan legislation aimed at protecting firefighters, first responders, and communities from exposure advanced the Senate Thursday.
The Protecting Firefighters from Adverse Substances (PFAS) Act, co-sponsored by U.S. Sen. Susan Collins (R- Maine), co-chair of the Congressional Fire Services... Read More »
U.S. Reps. Dave Joyce (R-OH) and David Trone (D-MD) recently introduced a bill that seeks to protect law enforcement personnel and other first responders from lethal substances such as fentanyl.
The Protecting First Responders from Secondary Exposure Act would improve state and local government... Read More »
A new, joint effort between the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS’s) Science and Technology Directorate (S&T) and the nonprofit Beacon NGO will seek to build upon S&T’s Next-Generation Incident Command System (NICS) and pitch it to a larger emergency response community.
To achieve... Read More »
The National Emergency Number Association (NENA) announced this week the organization's approval of a new version of its Next Generation 9-1-1 standard.
The action would aid the process of accelerating the transition to faster emergency response, detailing NG9-1-1 infrastructure updates that... Read More »
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) this week awarded $997,526 to SecureLogix, a San Antonio, Texas-based small business, for Next Generation 9-1-1 technology meant to help secure data during emergencies.
Data, in this case, refers to text, images, video, and traditional voice calls... Read More »
On Tuesday, the U.S. Department of Commerce’s National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) awarded $2.99 million in grant funding for new interoperable public safety communication systems.
Initially funded by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Science and Technology... Read More »
The FirstNet network expanded the number of unthrottled, deployable network assets for fire, EMS, law enforcement, and other public safety personnel to more than 100 land-based and airborne portable cell sites as of last week.
“When disaster strikes, FirstNet is there to support first... Read More »
Three legislators recently introduced legislation designed to enhance national wildfire policy by establishing a commission of federal and non-federal stakeholders addressing prevention and mitigation.
U.S. Sens. Mitt Romney (R-UT) and Mark Kelly (D-AZ) joined Rep. John Curtis (R-UT) in... Read More »
U.S. Sens. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), Lindsey Graham (R-SC), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), and Thom Tillis (R-NC) recently reintroduced a measure designed to provide law enforcement with resources to enhance cybercrime combating initiatives.
The International Cybercrime Prevention Act would update... Read More »
The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), in coordination with the Federal Communications Commission, will conduct a nationwide test of the Emergency Alert System (EAS) and Wireless Emergency Alerts (WEA) at 2:20 p.m. on Wednesday, Aug. 11.
The WEA portion of the test will be sent only... Read More »
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Science and Technology Directorate (S&T) announced this week that funding opportunities are available for research and development into 10 new first responder technology areas.
To that end, the agency is seeking documents from industry, academia,... Read More »
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Science and Technology Directorate (S&T) announced Thursday that it had successfully tested early wildfire detection technology prototypes this week in California.
Conducted during a controlled, prescribed burn at the Dye Creek Preserve near Red... Read More »
On Monday, U.S. Reps. Bill Pascrell, Jr. (D-NJ), Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA), and Michael Bost (R-IL), co-chairs of the Congressional Fire Services Caucus, introduced legislation that would help fire departments build and upgrade their facilities.
The Fire Station Construction Grants Act would... Read More »
A group of lawmakers recently reintroduced the Law Enforcement Training For Mental Health Crisis Response Act, which was designed to improve police training best practices.
The legislation was presented by U.S. Reps. Tim Ryan (D-OH), Anthony Gonzalez (R-OH), Marcy Kaptur (D-OH), Stephanie Bice... Read More »
U.S. Rep. Bill Pascrell, Jr. (D-N.J.), co-chair of the Congressional Law Enforcement Caucus, urged Congress to support a bill that would increase the benefits to first responders who die or are injured in the line of duty.
The bill, H.R. 2936, or the Protecting America’s First Responders Act... Read More »
U.S. Reps. Don Bacon (R-NE), Bill Johnson (R-OH), and Steve Stivers (R-OH) joined Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX) Tuesday to introduce legislation that would give greater protections to federally funded public service officers.
The Back the Blue Act creates new criminal provisions for killing,... Read More »
U.S. Reps. Joe Wilson (R-SC) and Andy Kim (D-NJ) introduced legislation last week to strengthen the nation’s cybersecurity by enabling governors to decide how the National Guard responds to cybersecurity threats.
The National Guard Cybersecurity Support Act would enhance states' readiness and... Read More »
Rep. Bill Pascrell, Jr. (D-NJ) and Sen. Charles Grassley (R-IA) recently reintroduced a measure they said would enhance benefits for first responders injured or killed in the line of duty and their families.
The Protecting America’s First Responders Act of 2021 would improve the Department of... Read More »
U.S. Reps. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA) and Bill Pascrell, Jr. (D-NJ) join 26 members of the House to seek federal funding of the Patrick Leahy Bulletproof Vest Partnership (BVP) Grant Program.
The grant program would provide $30 million in FY 2022 to help state and local law enforcement purchase... Read More »
A group of lawmakers recently requested increased funding for the Byrne Justice Assistance Grant (Byrne JAG) and the Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) programs in Fiscal Year (FY) 2022.
U.S. Reps. John Rutherford (R-FL) and Bill Pascrell, Jr. (D-NJ), co-chairs of the House Law... Read More »
