Service Capability Criteria Rating Scale

The assessment tool is also intended to provide the basis for discussion with funding bodies (Federal, State, County, Municipal, etc.) concerning the PSAP status in regard to their current technological position, and readiness or effectiveness to survive certain risks associated with local vulnerabilities.

Using the assessment tool, PSAP Managers and Administrators will have the ability to assess the validity and completeness of the public safety communications portion of agency “Continuity of Operations Plans (COOP)” against objective criteria. This evaluation is necessary to demonstrate a meaningful effort to anticipate and be
prepared for sustained emergency communications services amidst disaster.

PSAP Managers and Administrators also have the opportunity to identify PSAP capabilities that are desired, yet missing, or less than fully developed. This provides both practitioners and public policy executives with an implementation path that has clear logic. Priorities may be assigned to close the gaps in service capability that are documented during the assessment.

This tool may also be adapted for use as a “self-evaluation” tool, or as a tool that is utilized by a qualified outside organization on behalf of the PSAP or the Authority Having Jurisdiction (AHJ), such as an APCO-NENA program to conduct such evaluations for the PSAPs in a neutral environment, or any qualified entity chosen by the PSAP.

The initial focus of the PSAP Service Capability Rating Scale is in the area of PSAP Survivability. When  developing the evaluation matrix, a number of items were identified as being essential when considering PSAP survivability, with other items relating to day-to-day operations and anticipated future items. This document will provide the Survivability items, while subsequent revisions will include day-to-day and future items.