At the encouragement of Wyoming’s public safety community, the Wyoming Legislature recognized a need for a comprehensive and coordinated statewide emergency communications network and established Wyoming’s Public Safety Communications Commission (PSCC or the Communications Commission) effective July 1, 2004 (established through W.S. 9-2-1101).
The creation of the PSCC occurred at a time when federal funding for public safety communications peaked following the 9/11 incidents. Initially, the PSCC was assigned to the Department of Homeland Security.
Over the years, the Wyoming Department of Transportation (WYDOT) has primarily completed the field implementation of PSCC policy. Today, most of the previous federal funding for public safety communications is gone. State general funds and other WYDOT funding support the Communications Commission and inter-operative emergency communications in our state.
In 2017, W.S. 9-2-1102 was amended and, as a result, re-organized the Communications Commission. The changes in legislation transferred administrative support responsibilities from the Wyoming Office of Homeland Security to WYDOT — thereby improving oversight and accountability of the agency actually implementing the program, reducing the use of general funds, and stabilizing the program overall. As part of this change, WYDOT enhanced internal support for WyoLink by adding a new supervisor and telecommunications program manager; hiring a chief technology officer to oversee WyoLink; conducting meetings with local communities, city councils, and county commissions to better understand conditions; and securing $16 million for capital construction of additional towers to improve WyoLink coverage.
The amendments also streamlined the voting members of the Commission from seventeen to eleven and added the WYDOT director as an ex-officio member. The goal of this change was to improve local government presence, including representation from municipal government, county government, police chiefs, county sheriffs, fire chiefs, tribal representatives, and improved ambulance and medical service representation.
Additional amendments were made in 2022 with the passage of Senate File 0041 (SEA No. 38). This legislation gave the PSCC advisory authority over the development, implementation, and operation of next generation 911 (NG911) systems. The Commission is responsible for promoting the expansion of NG911 in the state. Furthermore, these amendments added two voting members to the Commission — increasing the total number of commissioners from eleven to thirteen.