First Responders Network Authority

The governing board for the First Responders Network Authority (FirstNet) has approved network reinvestments of $547 million for its fiscal year 2024, focused on increasing coverage and transitioning FirstNet to a full 5G network. FirstNet says that as of the …

First Responders Network Authority CEO Edward Parkinson is leaving his role in two weeks, for a position in the private sector. The FirstNet Authority said that its deputy CEO, Lisa Casias, will step into the position of acting CEO as of …

AT&T execs say that the pandemic is building awareness of FirstNet services FirstNet now has 1.3 million connections, AT&T executives say, which reflects a 30% increase from the 1 million that the carrier reported in December. FirstNet is now serving …

The FirstNet network operated by AT&T has been accepting subscribers for more than a year now, with service offered across all of AT&T’s commercial spectrum bands, a private network core for public safety users and Band 14 coverage built out …

The Secretary of Commerce has appointed six members to the First Responders Network Authority board, filling five vacancies and making one re-appointment of a board member. FirstNet Chair Edward Horowitz, who was appointed board chair in September after serving as …

FirstNet customers have access to deployable network assets A fleet of 72 deployable cell sites are available to public safety agencies who subscribe to AT&T-FirstNet’s services, according to the carrier. Those network resources are housed at 40 locations around the …

FirstNet’s new leaders include an acting CEO and board vice chair The First Responders Network Authority has a new acting CEO and board vice chair, as the public safety communications agency fills spots left by a number of recent departures. …

Mike Poth led the FirstNet Authority for three years The First Responders Network Authority’s CEO is leaving for the private sector after serving for three years as head of FirstNet. FirstNet CEO Mike Poth has accepted a position in the …

AT&T-FirstNet says that it has more than 150,000 connections for public safety use AT&T-FirstNet said in a blog entry that it has nearly doubled the number of agencies signed on as customers of its network since its last update in …

Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross now has seven FirstNet board seats to fill The chair and vice-chair of the First Responders Network Authority board are stepping down, two years into their three-year terms. Chair Sue Swenson and Vice-Chair Jeff Johnson …

FirstNet board approves budget, recognizes Swenson In its first fiscal year of being funded by payments from network contractor AT&T, the First Responders Network Authority board allocated funds nearly evenly to operations, reserves and network reinvestment. The FirstNet board approved a …

AT&T has activated FirstNet spectrum at some 2,500 sites As the carrier activates the FirstNet LTE network dedicated for use by first responders, while simultaneously augmenting its own consumer-facing network capabilities, AT&T reports Band 14 support has been added to …

AT&T is moving forward with its nationwide build of a public safety LTE network for the First Responders Network Authority, or FirstNet, equipped with priority and preemption — but the move to a broadband cellular network for first responders isn’t …

In a lofty shared workspace in San Francisco, more than 200 developers and public safety officials recently gathered to work on developing new applications first responders. It was the first official hackathon for FirstNet, which seeks to support a comprehensive …

Competition for public safety customers continues to heat up, with AT&T launching its network core for the First Responders Network Authority — and Verizon responding with the general availability of its own public safety network core. FirstNet said that AT&T …

The First Responders Network Authority and carrier partner AT&T have passed another hurdle in achieving a nationwide public safety broadband network: the deadline for opt-in/opt-out decisions ended with all fifty states, the District of Columbia, and two U.S. territories deciding …

Making good on its promise to deliver preemption capabilities to First Responder Network Authority customers by the end of the year, AT&T says that it is now offering “ruthless preemption” services on its network, at no additional charge, to FirstNet …

Vermont has already decided to opt in to AT&T’s build-out of a nationwide public safety LTE network, but leaked documents from consultants’ assessments of the First Responders Network Authority plans in Vermont have made some state officials fear that they …

FirstNet oversight hearing highlights different perspectives on opt-in/opt-out In a hearing yesterday on Capitol Hill, representatives from multiple states and the First Responders Network Authority were quizzed on topics ranging from the potential costs looming over states that opt to …

Former governors criticize FirstNet effort; congressional oversight hearing set for next week FORT WORTH, Tex.–Former governors Jeb Bush and Martin O’Malley took to the stage at the Competitive Carriers Association show for a fireside-chat-style discussion of public safety communications that …

24 states have opted in, the rest have until Dec. 28 to decide After a brief delay, the deadline for governors to decide whether to opt in or opt out of the First Responders Network Authority Radio Access Network build-out …

Arkansas, Wyoming and Kentucky join Virginia as the first states to opt in to FirstNet network The First Responders Network Authority is gaining momentum as states begin to declare their official decisions to opt in to the national public safety …

Although the nationwide build of a dedicated LTE network for first responders has faced numerous delays, federal officials are looking to give the First Responder Network Authority a shot in the arm by way of a new grant program offering …

The First Responders Network Authority is planning to award a contract for a new, nationwide public safety LTE network to a commercial partner by November 1, with caveats that the service will start out as essentially a mobile virtual network …

The First Responders Network Authority has extended the deadline for responses to its call for bids for a national public safety LTE network for another two weeks. Request for Proposal responses are now due by May 31, and FirstNet still …