A year after awarding a potential multi-billion dollar contract to General Dynamics [GD] to develop and build a wireless communications network that links federal security officials and state and local first responders, the Department of Justice (DoJ) is seeking about $25 million to begin the program in FY ’09.
In its budget documents released in February and in recent congressional testimony, DoJ said it is seeking $121.7 million for law enforcement wireless communications next fiscal year, an amount that includes $24.9 million for the Integrated Wireless Network (IWN). GD beat Lockheed Martin [LMT] for the IWN award last April (Defense Daily, April 18, 2007).
If Congress appropriates the IWN funding request, that will allow GD and the DoJ to begin to implement the network, starting in the Washington, D.C., area. The new system would replace legacy stand alone networks with a single network that has better security, improved range and enhanced interoperability. Plans call for the network to be implemented nationwide over a number of years.
Although the IWN contract was awarded last year, Congress funded $72 million in FY ’08 to support legacy wireless communications systems and provided nothing for the new program.