AT&T was recently awarded a 10-year contract to provide the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) with Government Emergency Telecommunications Service (GETS) and Wireless Priority Service (WPS) according to a news release today. The contract, initially awarded in March 2024 and valued at $146 million, was expanded in August to extend these services into next generation 5G networks.
This contract is the latest in a more than 30-year relationship between AT&T and DHS. DHS’s Cybersecurity & Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) will provide mission-critical communications services that support the agency’s national security and emergency preparedness mission.
WPS is a service managed by CISA that, when triggered by dialing the *272 service code before making calls, provides authorized devices with end-to-end voice priority over the AT&T commercial wireless network, including interoperability with other carriers. WPS, paired with GETS, provides enhanced voice call Quality of Service (QoS) and increased probability of call completion during network congestion on AT&T’s fully integrated wireline and wireless networks.
As public safety’s partner, AT&T also delivers mission-critical communications through FirstNet®, Built with AT&T – the only nationwide, high-speed broadband communications platform dedicated to and purpose-built for America’s first responders and the extended public safety community. FirstNet is the only network that gives first responders always-on, 24-hours-a-day priority and preemption across voice and data. Agencies on FirstNet can also use WPS on their FirstNet Ready® devices when making calls to users on non-public safety networks.
“AT&T has enjoyed a long-lasting relationship with DHS and CISA since the inception of these services and is dedicated to support the national security and emergency preparedness mission for the foreseeable future,” said Jill Singer, Vice President of Federal Solutions, AT&T.