Fw: [Scan-DC] Fairfax County's Public Access Plan (draft)

[Andy Long]

>Sent: Thursday, February 07, 2002 1:38 AM
>Subject: [Scan-DC] Fairfax County's Public Access Plan (draft)


> This is from Fairfax County PD public information officer Warren R.
> Carmichael.  Since this is only a draft, Mr. Carmichael welcomes feedback.
> Please pass it along to me and I'll make certain he receives it, or post
it
> directly to the list, since Mr. Carmichael reads this list.
>
>
>
> FAIRFAX COUNTY POLICE DEPARTMENT
> FAIRFAX COUNTY FIRE AND RESCUE DEPARTMENT
>
> PUBLIC SAFETY TRUNKED DIGITAL RADIO MONITORING FACT SHEET
>
>
>
> Fairfax County public safety agencies are now utilizing a 20-channel,
> trunked digital 800 megahertz radio system for all transmissions. This
> system is also being utilized by the police departments of the City of
> Fairfax and the Towns of Herndon and Vienna.
>
> At present there are no commercially available scanner radios capable of
> monitoring these transmissions. They can only be monitored with
> vendor-provided radios programmed to receive specific talk groups.
>
> While the primary police and fire dispatch/operational channels are
> currently being simulcast in analog form so they can be monitored by
> presently available scanners, such simulcasting cannot be continued
> indefinitely since the four police 800 range channels involved will be
> needed to accommodate the increasing volume of traffic on the trunked
> system.
>
> It has been determined that it is in the operational interest of the
public
> safety agencies for news media and interested citizens, such as
Neighborhood
> Watch participants, to be able to monitor the transmissions on certain
> police and fire talk groups. Consequently, it is appropriate for the
> agencies to facilitate monitoring access until such time as commercially
> available scanners are on the market.
>
> Such facilitation shall be accomplished as follows:
>
> Media organizations or citizens will be responsible for procuring their
own
> Motorola or Motorola system-compatible receivers from commercial dealers.
>
> Monitoring access must be requested from the public safety agencies. It
> shall be the option of the agencies whether to conduct any type of
> investigation or background check upon individual or organizational
> applicants.
>
> Applicants must sign a Memorandum of Understanding and Agreement which
will
> also be signed by the Chief of Police and the Chief of the Fire and Rescue
> Department. The agreement will specify the talk groups which will be
> programmed and the conditions of use of the receiving radios.
>
> The completed agreement will serve as authorization for a vendor
possessing
> the County system technical information and system key to program the
> applicant's radio to receive the specified talk groups.
>
> Individuals or organizations wishing to receive transmissions of the City
of
> Fairfax Police Department, Herndon Police Department or Vienna Police
> Department must execute separate agreements with each of those agencies.
>
>
> FAIRFAX COUNTY POLICE DEPARTMENT
> FAIRFAX COUNTY FIRE AND RESCUE DEPARTMENT
>
> MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING AND AGREEMENT REGARDING
> ACCESS TO PUBLIC SAFETY 800 MHz TRUNKED DIGITAL SYSTEM
>
>
>
> This agreement entered into on this _______ day of ________________,
_______
> by and between the Fairfax County Police Department and the Fairfax County
> Fire and Rescue Department ("agencies") and
> _______________________________________  located at
> _________________________________________ ("permittee") shall serve as a
> memorandum of understanding between the permittee and the agencies of the
> conditions governing the permittee's monitoring of  certain talk groups on
> the Fairfax County 800 megahertz public safety trunked digital radio
system
> "system"). The parties agree as follows:
>
> 1. The permittee certifies that monitoring of the system will be solely
for
> lawful purposes.
>
> 2. The permittee is responsible for procuring the required Motorola or
> Motorola system-compatible radio(s). All receiving radios must meet
> specifications defined by the County radio system manager. The permittee
is
> responsible for all costs associated with the procurement and maintenance
of
> the receiving radio(s).
>
> 3. The permittee shall take this agreement, which shall serve as an
official
> authorization, to one of the designated service vendors who possess system
> technical information and system keys, to have the permittee's radio(s)
> programmed for the talk groups specified herein. The permittee shall be
> responsible for all costs associated with said programming.
>
> 4. The service vendor shall ensure that the transmitting function of the
> radio is disabled, and the permittee agrees that the transmitting function
> will not be enabled at any time.
>
> 5. The permittee agrees to listen only to the talk groups specified in
this
> agreement.
>
> 6. The permittee and the agencies agree that the permittee's radio shall
be
> programmed to receive the following talk groups:
>
> Police: Dispatch Groups one through nine.
> Fire and Rescue: Groups 4A through 4E.
>
> 7. The permittee agrees that the agencies may conduct a background
> investigation of the permittee at their discretion.
>
> 8. The permittee agrees not to use the receiving equipment on the system
> prior to obtaining an identification code from the County radio system
> manager.
>
> 9. The permittee shall always use only the assigned identification code.
>
> 10. The permittee shall immediately report to the agencies the loss, theft
> or damage of any receiving equipment.
>
> 11. The permittee agrees to make the receiving equipment available upon
> request by the County radio system manager or designee.
>
> 12. The agencies reserve the right to suspend or terminate some or all of
> the permittee's listening privileges whenever the agencies determine, at
> their sole and absolute discretion, the permittee has violated the terms
of
> this agreement and memorandum of understanding.
>
> 13. To the fullest extent permitted by law, the permittee shall be and
> remain liable to the agencies, and shall defend, indemnify and hold
harmless
> the agencies and their officers, agents, employees and legal
representatives
> ("indemnified parties") from all losses, damage, expenses, suits, claims,
> demands, fines, penalties, awards liabilities and costs, including
> reasonable attorneys' fees ("liability"), to the extent that the
liability,
> or the underlying harm causing the liability, is attributable to, arises
out
> of, or is in any way related to permittee's use of the rights and
privileges
> granted in the agreement and/or to the permittee's accessing the system,
to
> permittee's breach of or failure to observe or perform the terms,
conditions
> and restrictions of this agreement. The permittee shall (1) defend the
> indemnified parties at the permittee's own expense; (2) pay on behalf of
the
> indemnified parties all fines, penalties, judgments and other sums related
> to any liability; and (3) otherwise satisfy and cause to be discharged any
> judgments that may obtain against the indemnified parties regarding any
> liability.
> The permittee hereby knowingly and voluntarily waives and releases the
> agencies, their officers, agents, employees and legal representatives from
> all claims, suits and causes of action which relate directly or indirectly
> to the subject matter of this agreement, including those relating to
> personal injury, to personal property, and to real property.
>
> 14. If the permittee is an organization, permittee affirms that the person
> signing on behalf of the permittee has been duly authorized to do so, and
> this agreement is legally binding on, and enforceable against the
permittee
> (and its governing body, if applicable) in accordance with its terms,
> without the need for any further action by the permittee.
>
> 15. This agreement becomes effective on the date first written above, and
> shall remain in effect until terminated by the agencies or the permittee.
> The agencies can terminate this agreement immediately after notification
to
> the permittee that the permittee is operating in violation of local, state
> or federal regulation or law or the terms of this agreement, if the
> permittee does not immediately stop operating in such manner. When this
> agreement is terminated, the permittee shall return all receiving
equipment
> to the County radio system manager or designee for de-programming and
system
> access shall cease.
>
> 16. Provision 13 shall survive the termination of this agreement.
>
> 17. This agreement is subject to the Communications Act of 1934, as
amended,
> subsequent acts, treaties and all regulations heretofore or hereafter made
> by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), and, further, subject to
the
> conditions and requirements set forth in the authorization from the FCC to
> Fairfax County for use of the system. Permittee agrees not to do anything
> whether permitted by the other terms of this agreement or not, to cause
> Fairfax County and the agencies to be in violation of the terms of their
> Private Land Mobile and General Mobile Radio Services Licenses. All FCC
> regulations and proper radio protocol shall be adhered to at all times by
> the permittee. This agreement is also subject to, and to be construed in
> accordance with the laws of the Commonwealth of Virginia.
>
>
> IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the parties hereti have caused this agreement to be
> executed by their duly authorized representatives.
>
>
> Permittee         Date
>
> By:____________________________________________________________________
>  Name       Title
>
>
> FAIRFAX COUNTY POLICE DEPARTMENT
>
> By:____________________________________________________________________
>  Chief of Police        Date
>
> FAIRFAX COUNTY FIRE AND RESCUE DEPARTMENT
>
> By:____________________________________________________________________
>  Fire Chief        Date