U.S. Department of Homeland Security Washington, DC 20472 National Preparedness Directorate Information Bulletin No. 258 July 18, 2007 TO: All State Administrative Agency Heads All State Administrative Agency Points of Contact All State Homeland Security Directors All Urban Area Core City/Core County Points of Contact FROM: Corey D. Gruber Acting Deputy Administrator, National Preparedness Directorate SUBJECT: Public Safety Interoperable Communications (PSIC) Grant Program Allocation Announcement The Department of Commerce National Telecommunication and Information Administration (NTIA), in consultation with the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), announces the allocation of over $968 million to all 56 States and Territories for the PSIC Grant Program. These one-time grants will be awarded by September 30, 2007 and grant projects will be completed by September 30, 2010. PSIC Grant Program applications will be due August 20, 2007. The PSIC funding allocation determination leveraged the existing Fiscal Year 2007 DHS risk methodology. In making grant determinations, NTIA and DHS considered the threat, vulnerability, and consequences of natural disasters and an attack on critical infrastructure using an all hazards approach. To ensure effectiveness, funding will be released to the grantees after an interagency review of their Statewide Plans and Investment Justifications. The PSIC Allocation Announcement complies with the deadline set forth in the Call Home Act of 2006. The specific allocation amounts for each of the 56 States and Territories are included as Appendix A. NTIA and DHS signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on February 16, 2007 to implement the PSIC Grant Program. NTIA and the DHS, Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) National Preparedness Directorate (NPD) have worked together to develop the grant guidance and additional PSIC requirements for the DHS required Statewide Communications Interoperability Plans. As stated in the Deficit Reduction Act, the purpose of the PSIC Grant Program is to improve public safety agencies’ interoperable communications capabilities through the “acquisition of, deployment of, or training for” the use of interoperable communications systems that can utilize reallocated public safety spectrum in the 700 MHz band for radio communication. The eligible applicants for this grant program are the 56 States and Territories. The State Administrative Agency (SAA) is responsible for obligating PSIC funds to eligible pass-through recipients. A recipient www.fema.gov must be a public safety agency that is a State, local or tribal government entity or nongovernmental organization authorized by such entity, whose sole or principal purpose is to protect safety of life, health, or property. Accordingly, the relevant SAA is the only entity eligible to apply for the funds identified in this program announcement. A forthcoming “PSIC Investment Justification Reference Guide” will provide best practices and further define criteria for State and Territories to consider when soliciting, collecting, and prioritizing Investment Justifications. Each State and Territory is required to develop a portfolio summary of all of its investments indicating how they were selected by the SAA and then forwarded to the Federal government. All States and Territories may submit preliminary Statewide Plans by September 30, 2007 for a mid-term review, and the final plans are due by November 1, 2007. These deadlines have been revised from previously identified in the FY 06-07 Homeland Security Grant Program (HSGP) in order to more closely align with the September 30, 2007 PSIC Grant Program award date, as directed by the Call Home Act of 2006. Key PSIC Grant Program deadlines: . 30 Days After Posting to the Federal Registry Notice: Submit application and narrative on www.grants.gov. . September 30, 2007 (Optional): Submit preliminary Statewide Communications Plan. . November 1, 2007: Submit final Statewide Communications Interoperability Plans to the NPD Secure Portal, which can be accessed at https://odp.esportals.com. . November 1, 2007: Submit Investment Justification and project narrative to the NPD Secure Portal, which can be accessed at https://odp.esportals.com. Should you need additional information or have further questions regarding the PSIC Grant Program, please visit the NTIA website http://www.ntia.doc.gov/psic/index.html or contact your Preparedness Officer or the Centralized Scheduling and Information Desk (CSID) at 1-800-368-6498 or askcsid@dhs.gov. Appendix A Final Award Amounts by State and Territory for PSIC Grant Program States and Territories Funding Allocations California $ 94,034,510 Texas $ 65,069,247 New York $ 60,734,783 Florida $ 42,888,266 Illinois $ 36,414,263 Pennsylvania $ 34,190,555 New Jersey $ 30,806,646 Ohio $ 29,377,337 Georgia $ 25,311,354 Michigan $ 25,039,781 Virginia $ 25,012,521 Maryland $ 22,934,593 North Carolina $ 22,130,199 Massachusetts $ 21,191,988 Louisiana $ 19,672,287 Washington $ 19,180,347 Indiana $ 18,291,735 Arizona $ 17,713,050 Tennessee $ 17,540,752 Missouri $ 17,465,576 Kentucky $ 15,405,625 Wisconsin $ 15,367,216 Colorado $ 14,336,638 Minnesota $ 14,262,071 Alabama $ 13,585,399 South Carolina $ 13,499,308 Connecticut $ 12,999,879 Oregon $ 12,182,532 Nevada $ 12,042,417 District of Columbia $ 11,857,972 Oklahoma $ 11,684,183 Arkansas $ 11,169,402 Mississippi $ 10,989,345 Iowa $ 10,935,974 Kansas $ 10,667,169 Utah $ 10,353,261 Puerto Rico $ 9,590,025 Nebraska $ 8,582,108 West Virginia $ 8,429,484 New Mexico $ 8,288,725 Delaware $ 8,196,842 Hawaii $ 8,069,879 Maine $ 7,567,579 Rhode Island $ 7,365,694 Idaho $ 7,289,795 Alaska $ 7,250,345 North Dakota $ 7,052,490 South Dakota $ 6,549,691 Montana $ 6,549,685 New Hampshire $ 5,966,760 Wyoming $ 5,952,187 Vermont $ 4,476,761 Guam $ 2,600,678 U.S. Virgin Islands $ 856,907 Northern Mariana Islands $ 719,236 American Samoa $ 691,948 Total $ 968,385,000 Tier 1 Urban Areas Funding Allocation New York City Area, NY $ 34,812,602 Los Angeles/Long Beach Area, CA $ 22,278,788 Jersey City/Newark Area, NJ $ 17,495,751 Chicago Area, IL $ 16,195,438 Houston Area, TX $ 14,586,128 Bay Area, CA $ 14,528,292 National Capital Region* $ 11,857,972 Total $ 131,754,972 *This allocation only represents District of Columbia funding, which may support the National Capital Region Tier 1 Urban Area. In submitting their investment justifications, the District of Columbia, Maryland, and Virginia SAAs should consider both State-specific as well as National Capital Region interoperability projects.