Friday, May 16, 2003 | 11:47 a.m.
CARSON CITY -- A major foul-up in building a communications system for the Nevada Highway Patrol has left the state police operating without proper federal licenses for three years, the chief of the highway patrol said Thursday.
The Federal Communications Commission is investigating the violation and could levy hefty fines, Col. David Hosmer said. In addition, the highway patrol is conducting an internal investigation that could result in charges of malfeasance or nonfeasance on the part of employees who failed to get the licenses.
"This was buffoonery at its best," Hosmer said of $14 million to $15 million spent on a communication system that may have to be junked. Hosmer took over the highway patrol six months ago.
Hosmer said the potential fine could be $1 billion, but he doesn't think that will be imposed.
The FCC confirmed this morning that an investigation was under way and that fines are accrued on a per-violation basis. But spokesman David Fiske said that the highest fine the FCC has ever actually imposed was $6.5 million, levied earlier this month against Qwest Communications.
The error will force the highway patrol to switch to an old system by June 9, and in the long term the patrol may have to start over to get a system that that can work as fast and carry as much traffic. Some experts say that the problem can be resolved without replacing the system, but that will depend on FCC approval of the frequencies.
The patrol contracted with Motorola to build the computer radio system to tie in troopers with each other, the dispatch center and other law enforcement. But nobody ever applied to the FCC for permanent licensing of the frequencies. It was activated in 2000.
In October the agency discovered it was not licensed for the frequencies it is using, Hosmer said. The FCC has asked the patrol to get off those frequencies by June 9, he said.
That will force the patrol to return to a conventional system in which mountaintop units relay the messages, he said.
This old system, Hosmer said, is slower and less effective and can't carry as much traffic. But troopers will at least be able to communicate.
The new system that was built "works far better than the old system," Hosmer said. But the FCC has told his department that it won't have the frequencies available after June 9. Hosmer said the FCC has only a limited number of frequencies left to allocate.
A Las Vegas engineer who recently advised the highway patrol on the issue disputed the statement that no frequencies were available.
Chuck Rogers, the frequency adviser for Nevada for the Associated Public-Safety Communications Officers Inc., which nationally coordinates requests for frequencies so there is no overlapping, said he was asked to coordinate getting the frequencies once the error was discovered.
Applications were initially filed with his organization to start the process of identifying and reserving frequencies, Rogers said. A temporary FCC license was obtained for authority to operate during the licensing process.
"Unfortunately, the temporary authorization was not extended," he said.
Wayne Peterson, account manager for Motorola Inc. in Reno, said it was up to the highway patrol to obtain the frequencies from the Federal Communications System.
"It was the responsibility of the customer," Peterson said.
At the beginning of the project, Peterson said he understood that the patrol was "in the process of obtaining the frequencies." He said they had a "special temporary authority" for the frequencies.
"Our understanding they were moving forward," he said. Peterson said he was surprised to learn a couple of months ago that the patrol did not have a license for the frequencies. "I'm still surprised," he said.
Peterson said his company has offered to help the patrol secure FCC approval for no added cost. He added he believed there were some frequencies available. He did not know how long that process would take.
The FCC recommends in its regulations that a group get the frequencies approved and then build the system, Hosmer said. That didn't happen in this case so the patrol is left with an expensive communication system that won't have any licensed frequencies.
"You would never build a house in a swamp without a good foundation," he said.
The highway patrol is preparing a summary report that will be turned over to legislators and the state attorney general's office to determine if there should be prosecution for malfeasance or nonfeasance.
"We deserve a whack on the head. It was extremely bad management of state funds," Hosmer said.
To keep the communications flowing, Hosmer said he will have to send programmers to the 56 mountaintops to activate the units there so messages can flow back and forth between patrol officers, dispatchers and other law enforcement units.
The Senate Finance Committee told Hosmer recently to develop a plan for switching to a new system. Most of the present hardware would not be compatible with any new system, Hosmer said.
Assemblyman Morse Arberry, chairman of the Assembly Ways and Means Committee, said members raised concerns on numerous times since the first money was approved in 1997. He said they were assured the system was going to work.
Hosmer said "several different people have been trying to get us legal" with the FCC and the unlicensed frequencies. But that has not panned out.
The planning for the system started in 1993 or 1994, he said, and money was allocated in 1997 and 1999. He said the communications manager for the project was concerned there were not enough frequencies in 1998 but "he never spoke up." And when the money was appropriated, some people in the division knew there were frequency problems.
He said the contract with Motorola never required that company to get the frequencies.
His recommendation is to join with the state Transportation Department, which has an 800-megahertz radio band that is approved. But he said that would take several years to convert.
He said he would rather pay a use fee to the Transportation Department than have the highway patrol running these complex systems. "We're cops and this is not our expertise," he said.
The problem, Peterson said, is that if the patrol switched from a 150- to an 800-megahertz system as used by the Transportation Department, that much of the equipment could not be used.
Rogers believes the system can be saved.
Rogers, who retired from Motorola, said a study shows there are 54 frequencies available in the Las Vegas area that could be licensed by the FCC. He said some money would have to be spent on these so they would not interfere with other frequencies.
Rogers said he is confident there are enough frequencies in the rest of the state to take care the needs of the highway patrol.
He said the 800-megahertz communications system operated by the state Transportation Department is partially owned by Nevada Power Co. and "It will last only a number of years and than be scrapped. This is taxpayer money."
In a letter to legislators, Rogers said, "As a citizen and taxpayer of Nevada, I ask that you (legislators) not support funding any money to replace the 150-megahertz Nevada Highway Patrol radio system. This would be a gross waste of taxpayer money. The radio system is not broke and does not need fixed. Only the proper FCC licensing needs to be addressed."
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