National Communications System
National Security and Emergency Preparedness (NS/EP)
The genesis of the National Communications System (NCS) began in 1962 after the Cuban missile crisis when communications problems among the United States, the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, and foreign heads of state threatened to complicate the crisis further. After the crisis, President John F. Kennedy ordered an investigation of national security communications, and the National Security Council (NSC) formed an interdepartmental committee to examine the communications networks and institute changes. This interdepartmental committee recommended the formation of a single unified communications system to serve the President, Department of Defense, diplomatic and intelligence activities, and civilian leaders. Consequently, in order to provide better communications support to critical Government functions during emergencies, President Kennedy established the National Communications System by a Presidential Memorandum on August 21, 1963. The NCS mandate included linking, improving, and extending the communications facilities and components of various Federal agencies, focusing on interconnectivity and survivability.
On April 3, 1984, President Ronald Reagan signed Executive Order (E.O.) 12472 which broadened the NCS' national security and emergency preparedness (NS/EP) capabilities and superseded President Kennedy's original 1963 memorandum. The NCS expanded from its original six members to an interagency group of 23 Federal departments and agencies, and began coordinating and planning NS/EP telecommunications to support crises and disasters.
NCS provides priority telecommunications services, coordination and information sharing operations, and other related programs to support NS/EP efforts across Federal, state, and local government, critical infrastructure industry and other authorized NS/EP organizations. NCS services support the initiation, coordination, and restoration of NS/EP telecommunications during crises, emergencies, or national disasters.
The NS/EP Priority Telecommunications Services enable NCS customers to acquire information on NCS priority communications services, programs, and operations from a single source by consolidating user support, operational, subscription, and help-desk type services for the NCS telecommunications information. This call center provides one centralized access point with multiple selections for the various NCS NS/EP telecommunications services.
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