FirstNet names PSAC vice chairs

All executive-committee members of the Public Safety Advisory Committee (PSAC) are in place, after First Responder Network Authority (FirstNet) Chairman Sam Ginn yesterday announced the four vice chairs for the advisory group.

Serving as the four PSAC vice chairs are:

• Chief Bill McCammon from Alameda County, Calif., representing the Metropolitan Fire Chiefs Association;
• Paul Patrick from Salt Lake City, Utah, representing the National Association of State EMS Officials;
• Heather Hogsett from Washington, D.C., representing the National Governors Association; and
• Tom Sorley from Houston, Texas, representing the U.S. Conference of Mayors.

"I'm pleased that Bill McCammon, Paul Patrick, Heather Hogsett and Tom Sorley have agreed to serve as vice chairs of FirstNet's PSAC," Ginn said in a prepared statement. "We welcome their advice and input as we begin our crucial dialogue with these governmental and first-responder leaders on how we can best deploy and operate the nationwide public-safety broadband network."

Earlier this month, Ginn announced that Harlin McEwen will serve as PSAC chairman. McEwen and the four vice chairs will be the PSAC executive committee.

"I'm very happy," McEwen said during an interview with Urgent Communications. "I know all four of them and have worked well with them over them, so I'm comfortable with all of them. I believe we'll be a good working group."

Both Ginn and FirstNet board member Jeff Johnson, who helped in the formation of the PSAC, have indicated that the advisory committee will play a key role in helping FirstNet oversee the deployment and maintenance of the 700 MHz LTE network for public safety.

RELATED: Public Safety Advisory Committee a key to FirstNet success

"We're very optimistic, having Harlin as the chair, and he's assembled a tremendous executive committee," Johnson said during an interview with Urgent Communications. "We've just got so much confidence that this is going to be productive, and Harlin hit the ground running, so it's nice."