VHF TDMA Systems Concern Public Safety Coordinators

The Public Safety Communications Council (PSCC) has advised the PSHSB that, effective February 6, and for a period of no longer than 90 calendar days, the four public safety coordinators that constitute the PSCC will not coordinate TDMA (7K60) fixed facilities in the VHF band at more than 10 watts ERP.  This action is in response to reports of harmful interference to existing systems from TDMA VHF stations.  The letter says that the PSCC is working with a predominant manufacturer of these systems to identify the problem, but that testing has not been conclusive.  The PSCC now has asked TIA to test “all currently available TDMA hardware operating in the VHF band to assess their impact on existing equipment.”  EWA has received a number of inquiries from public safety licensees concerning this PSCC announcement.