PUBLIC SAFETY RADIO COMMUNICATIONS PLAN FOR * REGION 25 * THE STATE OF MONTANA Submitted: 15 JUN 92 NATIONAL PUBLIC SAFETY PLANNING ADVISORY COMMITTEE Region 25 - Montana EXECUTIVE SUMMARY In December of 1983, the United States Congress directed the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to establish a plan to ensure that the communications needs of state and local public safety authorities would be met. By their regular means of initiation, the FCC began the process of developing such a plan. Through their efforts, and the efforts of the National Public Safety Planning Advisory Committee (NPSPAC), the plan was begun. The National Public Safety Planning Advisory Committee provided an opportunity for the public safety community and other interested members of the public to participate in an overall spectrum management approach by recommending policy guidelines, technical standards, and procedures to satisfy public safety needs for the foreseeable future. After consideration of NPSPAC's Final Report and comments ftled in Docket No. 87-112, the FCC released its Report and Order in December 1987. It established the framework of a national public safety plan and allocated 6 megahertz of spectrum in the 800 MHz band for its implementation. The National Plan provides guidelines for development of forty-eight regional plans. The particulars of the National Plan are found in FCC 87-359, which contains the required developmental steps and contents of regional plans. We have based this plan for Region 25, the State of Montana, upon these guidelines and requirements. Major elements of this plan include: • How the Committee was convened, constituted, and operated (Sections 2.1, 2.2, and Appendix A); • How the final plan was adopted (Section 2.2); • How spectrum is put to best possible use by requiring minimum coverage areas (Section 3.4.2), providing for maximum frequency reuse (Section 3.5.1), encouraging consolidation of small systems (Section 3.3.3), establishing requirements for trunking (Section 4.2), and packing assignments through an efficient mechanism (Section 3.5.1); • How interoperability is achieved through use of the International Common Channels and additional regional mutual aid channels (Section 4.1); • How requirements of all eligibles were considered (Section 5.1) and spectrum allotted (Section 5.2) • How this plan has been coordinated with adjacent regions (Section 3.5.9); • How this plan will be carried out by a continuing Regional Review Committee (Section 2.2), an appeal process (Section 5.9), frequency give-backs (Section 3.4.6), and with slow growth provisions (Section 4.2.2); and • Who the Committee members were (Section 6). NATIONAL PUBLIC SAFElY PLANNING ADVISORY COMMITI'EE RegIon 2S • Montana . i . NATIONAL PUBLIC SAFElY PLANNING ADVISORY COMMITrEE Region 2S • Montana • Ii • TABLE OF CONTENTS 1.0 SCOPE 1.1 Introduction .................................................................................................................................... 1 1.2 Purpose ................................................................................................................................................... 1 2.0 AUTHORITY 2.1 Planning Committee Formation ...................................................................................................... 2 2.2 Regional pJanning Committee ...................................................................................................... 2 2.3 National Interrelationships ..................................................................................................................... 3 2.4 Federal Interoperability ..................................................................................................................... 3 2.5 Regional Review Committee ...................................................................................................... 3 3.0 SPECfRUM UTILIZATION 3.1 Region Defined .................................................................................................................................... 5 3.2 Region Profile .................................................................................................................................... 5 3.2.1 Montana Population ..................................................................................................................... 5 3.2.2 Geographical Description ...................................................................................................... 5 3.3 Usage Guidelines .................................................................................................................................... 5 3.3.1 State Level Systems ..................................................................................................................... 5 3.3.2 County/Multiple Municipality Systems ....................................................................................... 6 3.3.3 Municipal systems ..................................................................................................................... 6 3.4 Technical Design Requirements For Licensing ........................................................................ 6 3.4.1 Definition of Effective Coverage Area ....................................................................................... 6 3.4.2 System Coverage Limitations ...................................................................................................... 6 3.4.3 Estimation of Coverage ...................................................................................................... 7 3.4.4 Annexations and Other Expansions ....................................................................................... 8 3.4.5 Coverage Area Description ...................................................................................................... 8 3.4.6 Reassignment of Frequencies ...................................................................................................... 8 3.5 Initial Spectrum Allocation ........................................ :............................................................................ 8 3.5.1 Frequency Sorting Methodology ....................................................................................... 8 3.5.2 Geographic Area ..................................................................................................................... 9 3.5.3 Environment Definition ...................................................................................................... 9 3.5.4 Blocked Channels ..................................................................................................................... 9 3.5.5 Transmitter Combining ...................................................................................................... 9 3.5.6 Special Considerations ......................................................... ............................................................ 9 3.5.7 Protection Ratios ..................................................................................................................... 10 3.5.8 Unused Spectrum ..................................................................................................................... 10 3.5.9 Adjacent Region Coordination ...................................................................................................... 10 4.0 COMMUNICATIONS REQUIREMENTS 4.1 Mutual Aid and Common Channels ....................................................................................... 11 4.1.1 Implementation ..................................................................................................................... 11 4.1.1.1 International Calling Channel...................................................................................................... 11 4.1.1.2 International Tactical Channels ....................................................................................... 11 4.1.1.3 Interagency Incident Management Channels ........................................................................ 12 4.1.1.4 Wide-Area Administrative Channels ....................................................................................... 12 4.1.2 Operations ....................... :................................................................................................. ........... 12 4.1.2.1 General Procedures ..................................................................................................................... 12 NATIONAL PUBLIC SAFETY PLANNING ADVISORY COMMITrEE Region 2S • Montana • iii - 4.1.2.2 International Calling Channel (ICALL) ........................................................................ 13 4.1.2.3 International Tactical Channels (ITAC-l) ........................................................................ 13 4.1.2.4 Interagency Incident Management Channels ........................................................................ 13 4.1.3 Tone Coded Squelch ..................................................................................................................... 13 4.1.4 Cross-Band Operation ..................................................................................................................... 14 4.1.5 Network Operations ..................................................................................................................... 14 4.2 General System Requirements .....................................................................................................