Public Safety Interoperable Communications Grant Program
Connecticut (CT)
PSIC Federal Award: $12,999,879
(Awarded September 30, 2007)
Summary
PSIC Investment Justification Federal Funds
Enhancement and Integration of First Responder Practitioner Mobile Field
$3,000,000
Communications Through Equipment, Training, and Coordination (STR)
Interconnectivity of Public Safety Answering Points (PSAP) and
$6,732,960
Communications Systems
Enhancement and Migration of Regional Communications Systems to 700
$2,876,923
MHz
Management and Administration (M&A) $389,996
Statewide Planning -
Total PSIC Award $12,999,879
Pass Through: The State of Connecticut entered into Memoranda of Understanding with local
jurisdictions. The agreements authorize the State to expend PSIC grant funding on behalf of
these jurisdictions.
Strategic Technology Reserve (STR): Connecticut allocated $1,006,822 to its STR
Investment.
As of December 31, 2008 1
Investments
State-level Match Amount: $2,944,587
Enhancement and Integration of First Responder Practitioner
Mobile Field Communications through Equipment, Training, and
Coordination (STR)
Federal Amount: $ 3,000,000
Non-Federal Match Amount: $ 0
Total Project Cost: $ 3,000,000
90%* Acquisition & Deployment 5% Training & Exercise 5% Planning & Coordination
*Percentages include both Federal and non-Federal Match funds.
The State of Connecticut has 107 public safety answering points (PSAP) and multiple dispatch
centers serving the public safety emergency communications needs for State agencies and the
169 municipalities and towns. Most of the centers do not have adequate backup systems. This
Investment provides for six mobile interoperable communications vehicles, which will provide
support to primary communications systems by restoring communications in the event of a
catastrophic event. The vehicles will have all-weather, all-terrain maneuverability and will
operate in trunked, conventional, or analog mode in any frequency band allowing integration
within an hour of request. This Investment satisfies the program requirement to develop and
implement an STR that is pre-positioned, deployable, and able to re-establish communications
when critical communications equipment is damaged or destroyed.
Interconnectivity of Public Safety Answering Points (PSAP) and
Communications Systems
Federal Amount: $6,732,960
Non-Federal Match Amount: $ 0
Total Project Cost: $6,732,960
99%* Acquisition & Deployment <1% Training & Exercise <1% Planning & Coordination
*Percentages include both Federal and non-Federal Match funds.
Connecticut’s public safety answering points (PSAP) operate on individual, stand-alone systems
that are not interconnected and do not have adequate bandwidth for data transmission. This
Investment implements a fiber optic network that will allow for the interconnectivity of PSAPs
using an existing statewide 700/800 Megahertz (MHz) system. This Investment will improve
interoperability among emergency providers across the State, increase voice and data
capabilities to PSAPs, and provide the communications infrastructure needed for public safety
agencies at all levels of government and across jurisdictions to communicate during emergency
events and natural or man-made disasters.
As of December 31, 2008
2
Enhancement and Migration of Regional Communications
Systems to 700 MHz
Federal Amount: $2,876,923
Non-Federal Match Amount: $ 0
Total Project Cost: $2,876,923
85%* Acquisition & Deployment 5% Training & Exercise 10% Planning & Coordination
*Percentages include both Federal and non-Federal Match funds.
Public safety agencies in Connecticut operate on a variety of frequency bands (e.g., VHF low
band, VHF high band, UHF, and 800 MHz) and most of the existing communicate systems are
only designed to serve a single jurisdiction or a single discipline. As a result, public safety
agencies in the same jurisdiction cannot easily communicate or interoperate during major
emergencies or disasters and multiple jurisdictional interoperable communications is difficult.
This Investment provides for the design, funding, and procurement of regional 700 MHz
systems and procedures to ensure greater interoperability between public safety agencies. The
new 700 MHz system will offer Radio over Internet Protocol (RoIP) technology, using existing
State and regional transmission sites, to improve interoperability among public safety agencies
serving Connecticut’s state agencies, tribal nations, and local municipalities. The Investment
will also help to develop a regional governance structure and protocols to ensure interoperability
and provide training to ensure proper and frequent use.
PSIC Administration and Statewide Planning Costs
Management and Administration (M&A)
Federal Amount: $ 389,996
Non-Federal Match Amount: $ 97,499
Total Project Cost: $ 487,495
The State was allowed to retain up to three percent of the total PSIC award for costs associated
with the administration of the State’s PSIC Investments. The M&A costs could include hiring
full-time or part-time staff or contractors for grant management services related to reporting,
monitoring and audit compliance, and associated travel and meeting expenses.
Statewide Planning
Federal Amount $ 0
The State was allowed to retain up to five percent of the total PSIC award for Statewide
Planning costs associated with the incorporation of the PSIC criteria into the Statewide
Communication Interoperability Plan (SCIP). The Statewide Planning period of performance
was April 1, 2007–December 3, 2007, with the submission of the SCIP. Connecticut, however,
chose not to allocate its PSIC funds in this manner.
As of December 31, 2008 3