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 NEWS  Federal  Communications  Commission  445  12  th  Street,  S.  W.  Washington,  D.  C.  20554  This  is  an  unofficial  announcement  of  Commission  action.  Release  of  the  full  text  of  a  Commission  order  constitutes  official  action.  See  MCI  v.  FCC.  515  F  2d  385  (D.  C.  Circ  1974).  News  Media  Information  202  /  418-  0500  Internet:  http://  www.  fcc.  gov  TTY:  1-  888-  835-  5322 
 FOR  IMMEDIATE  RELEASE  NEWS  MEDIA  CONTACT  November  26,  2002  David  Fiske  (202)  418-  0513 
 Robin  Pence  (202)  418-  0505 
 Homeland  Security:  Protecting  the  Nation’s  Communications  Network  Against  Attack  Tops  Agenda  for  Upcoming  National  Reliability  and  Interoperability  Council  Meeting 
 December  6,  2002 
 Washington,  DC.  –  Senior  representatives  from  the  telecommunications,  cable,  Internet  and  satellite  industries  will  consider  next  week  a  series  of  comprehensive  recommendations  to 
 protect  the  nation’s  communications  infrastructure  –  both  physical  and  cyber  –  against  attack.  The  proposals  will  be  presented  at  the  Network  Reliability  and  Interoperability  Council  (NRIC) 
 VI  quarterly  meeting  Friday,  December  6,  2002. 
 FCC  Chairman  Michael  K.  Powell  and  Richard  C.  Notebaert,  NRIC  Chairman  and  Chairman  and  CEO  of  Qwest  Communications  will  chair  the  meeting  which  will  run  from  10:  00 
 a.  m.  –  1:  00  p.  m.  at  the  Federal  Communications  Commission,  in  the  Commission  Meeting  Room  at  445  12  th  Street,  S.  W.,  Washington,  D.  C. 


 Chairman  Powell  chartered  NRIC  VI  January  7,  2002  to  focus  on  homeland  security  by  ensuring  the  security  and  sustainability  of  public  telecommunications  networks  in  the  event  of  a 
 terrorist  attack  or  national  disaster.  Membership  in  NRIC  was  significantly  expanded  through  NRIC  VI  to  include  corporate  representatives  from  the  cable,  wireless,  satellite  and  ISP 
 industries.  It  also  established  four  new  working  groups  to  address  homeland  security:  Physical  Security,  Cyber  Security,  Disaster  Recovery  and  Public  Safety. 


 Members  of  the  general  public  may  attend  the  meeting.  Real  audio  and  streaming  video  access  to  the  meeting  will  be  available  at  http://  www.  fcc.  gov.  The  public  may  submit  written 
 comments  before  the  meeting  to  Jeffery  Goldthorp,  the  Commissions’  Designated  Federal  Officer  for  the  Network  Reliability  and  Interoperability  Council  (jgoldtho@  fcc.  gov). 


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