Fraternal Order of Police: Lack of statewide law enforcement radio could imperil lives
By Anthony Leonardi
April 22, 2021
As the 2021 General Legislative Session enters its final days, the Florida Fraternal Order of Police is expressing concerns about the future of the statewide law enforcement radio system (SLERS), a tool law enforcement and first responders use to communicate with one another.
SLERS has been managed by L3Harris Technologies since 2000, but the state’s contract with the vendor is due to expire at the end of June. In 2016, the state initiated a procurement process to revamp the SLERS and decided to move forward with a new contract with Motorola Solutions in 2018.
However, Motorola declined to enter into the $687+ million contract with the state last year. The state’s contract with L3Harris is set to expire at the end of June.
The imminent contract expiration with no post-June 30th plan for SLERS could imperil the lives of Florida's first responders. In an interview with the Sayfie Review, Robert Jenkins, the President of the Florida Fraternal Order of Police, said that the time it takes for first responders to address crises, whether they be large-scale or individual, can be a matter of life or death.
“[Hurricanes] happen every year, where people from south Florida are sent to north Florida where they’re hit, and it’s a totally different radio system if they don’t have it. They can’t communicate with each other,” Jenkins said.
“Most 9-1-1 systems, except for big cities, go through the county. And then the county – the sheriff’s office sends it to the local people. That’s all a time delay,” Jenkins said. “Timing is everything. A couple minutes can mean life or death.”
Earlier this week, Gov. Ron DeSantis signed legislation that continues to fund state agency radios by extending a $3 surcharge for all criminal offenses and “non-criminal moving traffic violations” that was set to expire July 1. The law requires those funds be given to the Department of Revenue to fund the system, but it doesn’t address the issue of the system’s management. Lawmakers also set aside millions in funding to upgrade police radio headsets.
Colonel Gene Spaulding, the Director of the Florida Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles, warned Senate President Wilton Simpson in a letter at the start of April that first responders and law enforcement would be put “at risk” if the legislature had not funded and properly maintained the system.
Matt Pucket, the Executive Director of the Police Benevolent Association, said in an earlier statement that PBA was “encouraged” to see lawmakers include funding for the SLERS in the budget, but emphasized the importance of the contract.
“At this point it is critical to find a solution with the current vendor before the contract expires at the end of June. First responders need to have certainty with SLERS. We remain hopeful that our front line officers will continue to have a reliable communications system along with new radios in hand soon,” said Puckett.
Florida TaxWatch, a nonpartisan, nonprofit taxpayer research institute and government watchdog, issued a report earlier this month recommending that the state renew its contract with L3Harris.
The Department of Management Services describes the SLERS as a “single, unified digital radio network that meets the radio voice communications needs of state law enforcement officers and other participating agencies throughout the state” that “covers over 60,000 square miles (including 25 miles offshore) with 98% mobile coverage and portable coverage in selected areas.”
