Federal Communications Commission FCC 10- STATEMENT OF COMMISSIONER MICHAEL J. COPPS Re: In the Matter of Effects on Broadband Communications Networks of Damage to or Failure of Network Equipment or Severe Overload, Notice of Inquiry, PS Docket No. 10-92 I commend Chairman Genachowski for launching this examination of broadband network survivability and our Public Safety and Homeland Security Bureau for their hard work in fleshing out this important item. We all learned the hard way that natural disasters and man-made attacks can have devastating effects on our communications infrastructure and how integral communications are to our safety and security in a dangerous world. Network survivability has a lot to do with national survivability when tragedy strikes. The Commission has worked hard in recent years, especially starting with our follow-up to Hurricane Katrina under Chairman Martin, to improve the reliability, redundancy and security of our nation’s network infrastructure. Under the new Commission we are moving even closer to an integrated approach to public safety communications. That’s exactly what we should be doing because, as my old boss Senator Fritz Hollings often reminded me, the safety of the people is always the first obligation of the public servant. Today, consistent with recommendations in the National Broadband Plan, we begin a focused look on the impact of physical damage (whether natural or man-made), inadequate redundancy, and severe network overloads on IP-based broadband networks. I look forward to working with the Bureau and with my colleagues on this critical inquiry—based on what I hope to be, and expect to be, a robust record with comprehensive input from industry, security experts and all concerned citizens.