APCO International is an American National Standards Institute (ANSI)-accredited Standards Developer (ASD). As such, APCO ensures that public safety communications has a role in the development of standards that affect our industry. APCO’s standards development activities include developing standards as well representing public safety communications in other standards development areas. Learn more about the standards development process.
Contribute to Producing Public Safety Communications Standards
Take your professional game to the next level and contribute to producing standards for public safety communications.
It may seem intimidating but it is not. You will meet people from across the country who share common interests and goals in public safety communications. Not only will you be contributing your knowledge and experience to the standard but you will learn a lot from your peers during the process.
You do not need to be an expert to participate. You just need to be willing to contribute and use your skills to accomplish a common goal.
Join a Working Group
When APCO creates a new standard or revises an existing one, the working groups are the creative minds behind the standard. Groups include about 15 volunteers with training, operations or technical backgrounds who research and write a standard together. Working groups will generally meet twice a month for a 50-minute conference call and conduct some work offline. Before you join a working group, be sure you have time in your busy schedule to join the monthly meetings and to conduct some additional work offline. You do not need to be an APCO member to participate in APCO Standards Development activities. All parties with a direct and material interest are encouraged to participate.
The following working group are currently seeking members.
Best Practices for Artificial Intelligence Integration Into the Emergency Communications Center (ECC)
This standard will provide best practices for Emergency Communications Centers (ECCs) to implement Artificial Intelligence (AI). It will discuss various integrations and outline both operational and training aspects. It will include considerations for the following topics: alleviating ECC challenges, training, cybersecurity, ethical and legal considerations, mental health support for Public Safety Telecommunicators (PSTs), and implementation consideration.
Industry professionals, technology experts, emergency communications specialists, and stakeholders are invited to participate in this groundbreaking effort to shape the future of AI in emergency services. Interested participants can contribute their expertise to ensure this standard reflects real-world operational needs and promotes safe, effective AI implementation that enhances emergency response capabilities while protecting both the public and the dedicated professionals who serve them.
The Working Group will meet on the first and third Tuesdays at 1:00 p.m. ET for 50 minutes each meeting.
Best Practices for the Use of Social Media in Public Safety Communications
Emergency Communications Centers (ECCs) continue to face evolving challenges in managing social media usage by employees and departments, requiring updated guidance to address emerging best practices and technological advances since the current standard was established. The revised standard will provide comprehensive coverage of social media applications across critical operational areas: crime and emergency reporting, non-emergency requests, public education, emergency alerting, on-duty employee usage, and off-duty employee conduct, while delivering enhanced standardized guidelines and methodologies that enable ECCs to effectively navigate the complex landscape of social media integration with consistent, professional protocols that protect confidentiality and maximize public safety benefits.
The working group will meet virtually twice a month — on the second and fourth Tuesdays at 3 PM ET — or 50 minutes each.
Public Safety Communications Common Status Codes for Data Exchange
The revision of the Common Status Codes for Data Exchange standard addresses the ongoing need for enhanced interoperability among emergency response agencies by providing an updated comprehensive list of descriptive terms for tracking emergency responder activities across police, fire, emergency medical services, and multi-disciplinary resource deployments. This revised standard will expand and refine the standardized status codes that enable disparate agencies to seamlessly share critical incident data through common terminology mapping, while maintaining each agency’s existing internal code structures and simply providing an enhanced framework of universal codes to which agencies can align their proprietary data systems for improved coordination during emergency operations.
The working group will meet virtually twice a month — on the first and third Thursdays at 3 PM ET — for 50 minutes each.
Check back often to join this important work and contribute to the future of public safety communications.
Join a Standards Development Committee
APCO has five committees that are involved in governing and managing the standards development process, the Standards Development Main Committee (SDC) and four subcommittees for Operational, Technical and Training Standards, plus the Occupational Analysis Subcommittee.
- SDC Operational Subcommittee
- SDC Technical Subcommittee
- SDC Training Subcommittee
Recruitment for the standards development committee is continuous. At different times, we might need:
- Users of public safety equipment and processes
- Producers of public safety equipment and processes
- Those with a general interest in public safety standards, such as academia, consultants, and other governmental agencies.
If you are interested in joining one of the committees, complete the survey now to be considered for current needs or as they arise. You do not need to be an APCO member to participate in APCO standards development activities. All parties with a direct and material interest are encouraged to participate.
APCO's Standards Development Process
As an ANSI-accredited Standards Developer (ASD), APCO International must adhere to ANSI’s essential requirements for due process. APCO has developed policies for the development and coordination of American National Standards (ANS). These procedures provide a method for:
- Announcing standards development activities
- Ensuring that qualified organizations develop them
- Harmonizing duplicate or conflicting standards
- Coordinating the approval of standards
ANSI further ensures that persons directly or materially affected by the activity under development has access to the standards process – including an appeals mechanism. It also requires periodic reviews to ensure the standard is a “living” document.
Adherence to these guidelines ensures that APCO’s standards development process provides due process, balance and lack of dominance. It provides opportunities to address all interests and work together toward a common solution.
Questions?
Email [email protected] or call the Standards Program Manager at (386) 944-2459 .
