https://urgentcomm.com/wp-content/themes/ucm_child/assets/images/logo/footer-new-logo.png
  • Home
  • News
  • Multimedia
    • Back
    • Multimedia
    • Video
    • Podcasts
    • Galleries
    • IWCE’s Video Showcase
    • IWCE 2022 Winter Showcase
    • IWCE 2023 Pre-event Guide
  • Commentary
    • Back
    • Commentary
    • Urgent Matters
    • View From The Top
    • All Things IWCE
    • Legal Matters
  • Resources
    • Back
    • Resources
    • Webinars
    • White Papers
    • Reprints & Reuse
  • IWCE
    • Back
    • IWCE
    • Conference
    • Special Events
    • Exhibitor Listings
    • Premier Partners
    • Floor Plan
    • Exhibiting Information
    • Register for IWCE
  • About Us
    • Back
    • About Us
    • Contact Us
    • Advertise
    • Terms of Service
    • Privacy Statement
    • Cookie Policy
  • Related Sites
    • Back
    • American City & County
    • IWCE
    • Light Reading
    • IOT World Today
    • Mission Critical Technologies
    • TU-Auto
  • In the field
    • Back
    • In the field
    • Broadband Push-to-X
    • Internet of Things
    • Project 25
    • Public-Safety Broadband/FirstNet
    • Virtual/Augmented Reality
    • Land Mobile Radio
    • Long Term Evolution (LTE)
    • Applications
    • Drones/Robots
    • IoT/Smart X
    • Software
    • Subscriber Devices
    • Video
  • Call Center/Command
    • Back
    • Call Center/Command
    • Artificial Intelligence
    • NG911
    • Alerting Systems
    • Analytics
    • Dispatch/Call-taking
    • Incident Command/Situational Awareness
    • Tracking, Monitoring & Control
  • Network Tech
    • Back
    • Network Tech
    • Interoperability
    • LMR 100
    • LMR 200
    • Backhaul
    • Deployables
    • Power
    • Tower & Site
    • Wireless Networks
    • Coverage/Interference
    • Security
    • System Design
    • System Installation
    • System Operation
    • Test & Measurement
  • Operations
    • Back
    • Operations
    • Critical Infrastructure
    • Enterprise
    • Federal Government/Military
    • Public Safety
    • State & Local Government
    • Training
  • Regulations
    • Back
    • Regulations
    • Narrowbanding
    • T-Band
    • Rebanding
    • TV White Spaces
    • None
    • Funding
    • Policy
    • Regional Coordination
    • Standards
  • Organizations
    • Back
    • Organizations
    • AASHTO
    • APCO
    • DHS
    • DMR Association
    • ETA
    • EWA
    • FCC
    • IWCE
    • NASEMSO
    • NATE
    • NXDN Forum
    • NENA
    • NIST/PSCR
    • NPSTC
    • NTIA/FirstNet
    • P25 TIG
    • TETRA + CCA
    • UTC
Urgent Communications
  • NEWSLETTER
  • Home
  • News
  • Multimedia
    • Back
    • Video
    • Podcasts
    • Omdia Crit Comms Circle Podcast
    • Galleries
    • IWCE’s Video Showcase
    • IWCE 2023 Pre-event Guide
    • IWCE 2022 Winter Showcase
  • Commentary
    • Back
    • All Things IWCE
    • Urgent Matters
    • View From The Top
    • Legal Matters
  • Resources
    • Back
    • Webinars
    • White Papers
    • Reprints & Reuse
    • UC eZines
    • Sponsored content
  • IWCE
    • Back
    • Conference
    • Why Attend
    • Exhibitor Listing
    • Floor Plan
    • Exhibiting Information
    • Join the Event Mailing List
  • About Us
    • Back
    • About Us
    • Contact Us
    • Advertise
    • Cookie Policy
    • Terms of Service
    • Privacy Statement
  • Related Sites
    • Back
    • American City & County
    • IWCE
    • Light Reading
    • IOT World Today
    • TU-Auto
  • newsletter
  • In the field
    • Back
    • Internet of Things
    • Broadband Push-to-X
    • Project 25
    • Public-Safety Broadband/FirstNet
    • Virtual/Augmented Reality
    • Land Mobile Radio
    • Long Term Evolution (LTE)
    • Applications
    • Drones/Robots
    • IoT/Smart X
    • Software
    • Subscriber Devices
    • Video
  • Call Center/Command
    • Back
    • Artificial Intelligence
    • NG911
    • Alerting Systems
    • Analytics
    • Dispatch/Call-taking
    • Incident Command/Situational Awareness
    • Tracking, Monitoring & Control
  • Network Tech
    • Back
    • Cybersecurity
    • Interoperability
    • LMR 100
    • LMR 200
    • Backhaul
    • Deployables
    • Power
    • Tower & Site
    • Wireless Networks
    • Coverage/Interference
    • Security
    • System Design
    • System Installation
    • System Operation
    • Test & Measurement
  • Operations
    • Back
    • Critical Infrastructure
    • Enterprise
    • Federal Government/Military
    • Public Safety
    • State & Local Government
    • Training
  • Regulations
    • Back
    • Narrowbanding
    • T-Band
    • Rebanding
    • TV White Spaces
    • None
    • Funding
    • Policy
    • Regional Coordination
    • Standards
  • Organizations
    • Back
    • AASHTO
    • APCO
    • DHS
    • DMR Association
    • ETA
    • EWA
    • FCC
    • IWCE
    • NASEMSO
    • NATE
    • NXDN Forum
    • NENA
    • NIST/PSCR
    • NPSTC
    • NTIA/FirstNet
    • P25 TIG
    • TETRA + CCA
    • UTC
acc.com

NTIA/FirstNet


News

Fitzgerald cites confidential nature of e-mails in legal declaration

Fitzgerald cites confidential nature of e-mails in legal declaration

On at least two occasions, information was provided under non-disclosure agreements, Fitzgerald says, adding that others shared information openly only because believed that the e-mails would be kept confidential. Story County, Iowa, wants to release the e-mails under its open-records law, but FirstNet Secretary Uzoma Onyeije maintains that exposing the e-mails publicly would have a "chilling effect" on future communications among board members.
  • Written by
  • 7th November 2013

Information was provided to FirstNet board member Paul Fitzgerald in certain FirstNet-related e-mails because those communicating with him believed that the e-mails would be confidential, according to a legal declaration provided by Fitzgerald. This includes some information that was provided under non-disclosure agreements.

Fitzgerald provided the declaration in August as part of the federal government’s request to a U.S. district court to block the release of FirstNet-related e-mails sent and received by Fitzgerald on his e-mail account for Story County, Iowa, where he has served as sheriff for the past two decades. The declaration was a supporting document in the federal government’s motion for a temporary restraining order to prevent 63 Fitzgerald e-mails from being released to Politico reporter Tony Romm under the state of Iowa’s open-record law.

“It is my understanding and belief that most, if not all, persons with whom I communicated regarding FirstNet matters by e-mail between March 1 and June 30 of 2013, believed those communications to be confidential,” Fitzgerald stated in the declaration, which Urgent Communications obtained this week. “On at least two occasions, I was requested to—and did—enter into non-disclosure agreements with those with whom I was seeking information and advice.

“From my conversations and exchanges with these individuals and consultants, I know they would not share or provide their information, thoughts, opinions and insights with me regarding FirstNet, if they understood these communications would be made public.”

Fitzgerald made a similar statement regarding his e-mail exchanges with other FirstNet officials.

“There are also communications and exchanges with other members of the FirstNet board,” the declaration states. “I consider these to be internal deliberations and thought processes of the board. Many of these are expressions of frank and open opinions about the board deliberations. If these communications were to be disclosed, they could slow our progress in implementing the first-responder network, limit future frank and open deliberations and expose pre-decisional information that will damage relationships with partners, state entities and stakeholders.”

FirstNet Secretary Uzoma Onyeije also provided a legal declaration in support of the temporary restraining order, which was granted by the U.S. district court in southern Iowa. Onyeije’s declaration notes that several FirstNet board members opted to use e-mail accounts other than the ones provided by the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) until June 2013.

If a court allows Fitzgerald’s e-mails to be released, it will create problems for FirstNet, according to Onyeije.

“To the extent that communications at issue here are disclosed publicly, the disclosure will have a chilling effect on frank and open communications among the board members, between the board members and their staff, between the board members and other federal staff, and between the board members and the board’s public-safety constituents,” the Onyeije declaration states.

“Such a result is inconsistent with Congressional intent. While Congress has imposed an openness obligation on FirstNet that requires all of its board and committee meetings be open to the public, no such requirement exists for FirstNet’s internal deliberations. Congress wisely limited the scope of its openness requirements, because premature and widespread disclosure of FirstNet’s internal work product will significantly hamper the ability of FirstNet to perform its duties as directed by the Middle Class Tax Relief and Job Creation Act of 2012.”

Fitzgerald has been a focal point of attention on the FirstNet board since April 23, when he made several allegations that the board was conducting business improperly and that some board members had ethical issues. An investigation by an internal special review committee into the openness and transparency allegations found no wrongdoing by FirstNet. A second investigation into Fitzgerald’s procurement and conflict-of-interest claims recently was referred to the U.S. Department of Commerce inspector general.

Story County attorneys have argued that the Fitzgerald e-mails should be released under Iowa open-records law, because they are stored in the Story County e-mail system, and the U.S. government did not seek any protection in advance of Romm’s request. Federal attorneys have claimed that the FirstNet content of the e-mails determine that they are federal property, regardless who owns the server where they are stored.

Because of the temporary restraining order and a subsequent preliminary injunction, the Fitzgerald e-mails have not been released. On Sept. 30, Story County filed a motion to dismiss the injunction, and the federal government is due to submit a response next week.

Tags: News NTIA/FirstNet Public-Safety Broadband/FirstNet News

Most Recent


  • Microsoft Outlook vulnerability could be 2023's 'It' bug
    Microsoft recently patched a zero-day vulnerability under active exploit in Microsoft Outlook, identified as CVE-2023-23397, which could enable an attacker to perform a privilege escalation, accessing the victim’s Net-NTLMv2 challenge-response authentication hash and impersonating the user. Now it’s becoming clear that CVE-2023-23397 is dangerous enough to become the most far-reaching bug of the year, security researchers are […]
  • Getting to know the how—and why—of the telecom cloud
    A funny thing happened during the pandemic: The giant cloud hyperscalers burst into the telecom industry. And now it’s time for everyone to get acquainted with them. Why? Well, it seems increasingly inevitable that a certain percentage – ranging from “a little” to “most” – of telecom operators’ network functions are going to run in […]
  • Zipline delivery drone docks, charges by itself
    Zipline has unveiled its new autonomous drone platform, designed to provide accurate everyday delivery to homes in the U.S., including in busy residential areas. Zipline’s previous delivery system worked by parachuting parcels into a specified area. Now the new drone, dubbed Platform 2 or P2 Zip, sends its goods down to customers via a tether […]
  • State and local leaders can alleviate the burden on public-safety personnel by tackling three workforce trends
    Government officials and public safety leaders wear many different hats. They serve as sounding boards for constituent complaints and for new ideas that need vetting. They are change agents charged with improving the lives of citizens and colleagues and are tasked with keeping order. Their most daunting responsibility, however, is keeping members of their community […]

2 comments

  1. Avatar Anonymous 7th November 2013 @ 9:09 pm
    Reply

    “While Congress has imposed
    “While Congress has imposed an openness obligation on FirstNet … Congress wisely limited the scope of its openness requirements”

    That’s a pretty hefty oxymoron, isn’t it? You are obligated to be open … within limits, of course, wink wink say no more.

  2. Avatar Lima Echo Sierra 8th November 2013 @ 12:43 pm
    Reply

    All I can say is if they
    All I can say is if they wanted to control the confidentiality of the organizations emails and not have to follow the laws of other agencies they should establish their own organizational email account and all members sign a no release agreement. The Sheriff and Story County must follow the laws of the state of Iowa.

Leave a comment Cancel reply

To leave a comment login with your Urgent Comms account:

Log in with your Urgent Comms account

Or alternatively provide your name, email address below:

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Related Content

  • Fitzgerald cites confidential nature of e-mails in legal declaration
  • Fitzgerald cites confidential nature of e-mails in legal declaration
  • Fitzgerald cites confidential nature of e-mails in legal declaration
  • Fitzgerald cites confidential nature of e-mails in legal declaration

Commentary


Updated: How ‘sidelink’ peer-to-peer communications can enhance public-safety operations

  • 1
27th February 2023

NG911 needed to secure our communities and nation

24th February 2023

How 5G is making cities safer, smarter, and more efficient

26th January 2023
view all

Events


UC Ezines


IWCE 2019 Wrap Up

13th May 2019
view all

Twitter


UrgentComm

Microsoft Outlook vulnerability could be 2023’s ‘It’ bug dlvr.it/SlC3Hh

20th March 2023
UrgentComm

Getting to know the how–and why–of the telecom cloud dlvr.it/SlBbD1

20th March 2023
UrgentComm

Zipline delivery drone docks, charges by itself dlvr.it/SlBNWy

20th March 2023
UrgentComm

State and local leaders can alleviate the burden on public-safety personnel by tackling three workforce trends dlvr.it/SlBH89

20th March 2023
UrgentComm

6G is shaping up to disappoint, and the industry can blame itself dlvr.it/Sl918J

20th March 2023
UrgentComm

Change is coming to the network detection and response (NDR) market dlvr.it/Sl4cts

18th March 2023

Newsletter

Sign up for UrgentComm’s newsletters to receive regular news and information updates about Communications and Technology.

Expert Commentary

Learn from experts about the latest technology in automation, machine-learning, big data and cybersecurity.

Business Media

Find the latest videos and media from the market leaders.

Media Kit and Advertising

Want to reach our digital and print audiences? Learn more here.

DISCOVER MORE FROM INFORMA TECH

  • American City & County
  • IWCE
  • Light Reading
  • IOT World Today
  • Mission Critical Technologies
  • TU-Auto

WORKING WITH US

  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Events
  • Careers

FOLLOW Urgent Comms ON SOCIAL

  • Privacy
  • CCPA: “Do Not Sell My Data”
  • Cookie Policy
  • Terms
Copyright © 2023 Informa PLC. Informa PLC is registered in England and Wales with company number 8860726 whose registered and Head office is 5 Howick Place, London, SW1P 1WG.