The Hearing Loss Association of America (HLAA), Bethesda, Md, has been invited to join the Federal Communication Commissions’ newly forming Communications Security, Reliability, and Interoperability Council (CSRIC), according to a statement from HLAA.

The Council is a Federal advisory committee that will provide recommendations to the Commission regarding best practices and actions the Commission can take to ensure optimal security, reliability, and interoperability of communications systems, including telecommunications, media, and public safety communications systems, according to the FCC.

Under its charter, CSRIC’s duties may include:

· Recommending best practices and actions the Commission can take to ensure the security, reliability, operability, and interoperability of public safety communications systems;

· Recommending best practices and actions the Commission can take to improve the reliability and resiliency of communications infrastructure;

· Evaluating ways to strengthen the collaboration between communications service providers and public safety entities during emergencies and make recommendations for how they can be improved;

· Developing and recommending best practices and actions the FCC can take that promote reliable 911 and enhanced 911 (E911) service;

· Analyzing and recommending technical options to enable accurate and reliable dynamic E911 location identification for interconnected Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) services;

· Recommending ways, including best practices, to improve Emergency Alert System (EAS) operations and testing and to ensure that all Americans, including those living in rural areas, the elderly, people with disabilities, and people who do not speak English, have access to timely EAS alerts and other emergency information;

· Recommending methods to measure reliably and accurately the extent to which key best practices are implemented both now and in the future; and

· Making recommendations with respect to such additional topics as the FCC may specify.

For further information, contact Jeffery Goldthorp, designated Federal official for CSRIC and chief, communications systems analysis division, Public Safety and Homeland Security Bureau, at (202) 418-1096, or via e-mail at [email protected].

The first meeting of the CSRIC will be held on December 7 at FCC headquarters in Washington.

[Source: HLAA]