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BACKGROUND The cities of Pleasanton and Livermore 800 MHz Motorola Smart Net Trucked radio system consists of a single five - channel repeater site located off Doolan Canyon Road, just north of Interstate 580 in Livermore. The radio system is used by all Pleasanton departments including public safety, operations services, community services and paratransit. Each city is responsible for maintaining its equipment and operating its dispatch center. The system is also programmed to operate on state mutual aid channels and the Alameda County trunked radio system. The system is fully paid for and maintenance is handled by both cities. The current system is outdated and due to its age and condition, it is scheduled for replacement. In anticipation of this replacement and the emergence of the EBRCSA as an alternative to the City's stand alone system, in 2007 the two cities entered into an agreement with Macro Corporation to complete a study of radio communication needs and options. The study reviewed a number of radio options, including retaining a stand alone system, joining the EBRCSA, and a hybrid system that involves joining the EBRCSA and retaining portions of the existing Pleasanton /Livermore radio infrastructure to improve reception and create some level of radio redundancy. After reviewing all three options, it was determined that joining the EBRSCA represented the best alternative for meeting long term radio needs. Critical to this determination is that EBRSCA offers the ability for system users to roam within Alameda and Contra Costa counties and communicate on their primary talk groups (commonly referred to as interoperability). Further, overall cost for joining EBRCSA would be less, a new Pleasanton /Livermore system would cost up to $8 million, and no changes would be required to existing dispatch systems. All three options require the cities to purchase new hand held and mobile radios. As a result, staff has been working closely with the EBRSCA regarding system implementation and cost. EBRSCA has completed its initial planning and implementation stages and is requesting its member cities approve the Project Operating Agreement establishing a financial commitment to the radio program. Membership in the EBRCSA currently includes 36 agencies consisting of the counties of Alameda and Contra Costa, 29 cities, 4 special districts, and the University of California. The JPA Board of Directors is comprised of 23 members represented by elected officials, police chiefs, fire chiefs and city managers. (Mayor Hosterman is an active member of this Board.) The estimated cost to complete the new system is $69,952,910. This cost includes all system infrastructure including antennae, head end equipment, licensing, etc. but does not include member agency mobile and hand held radios and dispatch equipment for each agency. EBRCSA has secured $38,965,190 in funds from the Bay Area Super Urban Area Security Initiative, Urban Area Security Initiative, State Homeland Security and COPS grant programs. To date, funds have been used to develop the system and purchase equipment. The West Contra Costa County Cell is now complete and will be available for use once the testing has concluded. The East Alameda County Cell is Page 2 of 6