NHP radio system may have to be scrapped

The new Nevada Highway Patrol radio system, which has already cost more than $15 million, will probably have to be scrapped.

NHP Col. Dave Hosmer said Monday the system has been either in planning or under construction for more than 10 years. It was to be a state-of-the-art system to help troopers communicate with both their dispatch centers and local authorities statewide.

But he said the manager he put in charge of it has discovered a serious problem: no one ever filed with the Federal Communications Commission to reserve the necessary radio frequencies to operate the system.

"Never in my wildest dreams did I think to ask, 'Are we legal?'" said Hosmer. "We are licensed for no frequencies at this time."

What's worse, he said there's almost no chance of getting those licenses since most of those frequencies are taken, and the FCC wants public agencies off the 150 megahertz radio band.

"We have not come to a conclusion as to what the fix is," he said. "Best case scenario: we can probably use it two or three years until we migrate to a new system."

That, he said, means about $14 million in highway fund money and $1 million or more state general fund cash down the drain.

"The highway patrol failed to manage this project from the beginning," said Hosmer. "It's buffoonery at its finest."

The Assembly Ways and Means Committee was given a brief report on the problem at its Monday meeting. They were advised they'll have to deal with the problem before the end of this session.

Chairman Morse Arberry, D-Las Vegas, said he and other lawmakers have repeatedly raised concerns about the radio system since it was originally approved in the 1997 session. They were assured time and time again it was going to work.

"Why does this come out now?" he asked.

Arberry said lawmakers will want a full explanation of what happened.