Laying the Groundwork for Integrated Public Safety Communications Systems
When American police departments started using radios in 1933, they typically bought radios without consulting with their neighboring departments. The radios in one department were almost always incompatible with those in another.
Today public safety agencies routinely collaborate to create communications systems that allow different agencies to exchange data, listen and talk to one another using sophisticated equipment.
Drawing on the experiences of states and counties that have successfully moved toward integrated communications systems, NIJ has published a brief fact sheet about "governance" agreements. These agreements lay the groundwork for law enforcement agencies that want to improve their communications with neighboring agencies.
Date Entered: September 30, 2008