Mobile Command Vehicle Operators of the World, UNITE!: "For many agencies, receiving interoperable communications equipment only replaces one problem with another. Yes, they now have the equipment they need to communicate with other responders on different bands and using different radio equipment. However, having such equipment doesn't automatically make a department's personnel knowledgeable in using it. Besides, even when the techs have read the manuals, the equipment tends to stay in the box until a crisis hits."

Interoperability Grant Meeting in Missouri: "The state's Chief Interoperability Officer Jim Lundsted convened an all-day planning session Monday, Nov. 5, in Jefferson City with public safety communications representatives from each of the nine Regional Homeland Security Oversight Committees (RHSOC) and the two Urban Area Security Initiatives (UASI) of Kansas City and St. Louis.

'The purpose of the meeting was to brief the communications reps from around the state on requirements of a $17 million federal grant available to Missouri and for me to gain insight as to how best invest this one-time grant money,' Lundsted said."

Sometimes, even at 800 MHz, no one in Anderson County can hear you scream: "ANDERSON COUNTY, S.C. — On the Smith-McGee Bridge at the Georgia border, the radios in Sheriff David Crenshaw’s car are dead. Once he turns right off Sara Simpson Road, onto S.C. 181, within 15 feet, the 800-megahertz radio in the car beeps to let him know he’s back in range and back in communication with Anderson County dispatch. His UHF/VHF radio works now as the crackle of another call lets him know where emergency personnel are needed. Dead spots such as this one are at the center of a decision to spend more than $8 million to join with the Palmetto 800 communications system and upgrade communication between emergency personnel."