A group of retired police chiefs is urging New York state elected officials to back a bill in Congress to preserve the AM radio in new cars as a simple means to get the word out to the public in emergencies.
The chiefs, including former NYPD Chiefs of Department Terence Monahan, Kenneth Corey and Rodney Harrison, who also a former Suffolk County police commissioner, sent a letter supporting the “AM Radio for Every Vehicle Act” and other “public safety priorities” Monday to Gov. Hochul, Sen. Chuck Schumer and Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, among others.
“It’s the strongest frequency that’s out there,” Monahan told The News Friday. “It’s the easiest way to get the message out in a major emergency like Superstorm Sandy. There has to be somewhere for people to turn to to get information.”
copshoot
Gardiner Anderson/for New York Daily News Retired NYPD Chief of Department Terence Monahan (Gardiner Anderson for New York Daily News)
The bill, which was initially introduced in Congress in 2023 and reintroduced last week, was spurred by a trend among automakers, such as Ford, Volkswagen and Tesla, to remove AM radios for new vehicles, claiming it interferes with other electronic signals in the cars.
Critics point out automakers profit from selling data collected from news and entertainment services in the vehicles but not from AM radio.
As for other modes of emergency communication, despite criticism from media associations and some elected officials, the NYPD began encrypting police radio transmissions during the Adams administration.
Monahan, who served as NYPD Chief of Department from 2018 to 2021, said he supports encryption but not across the board.
“There’s too much information out there but I never had an issue with the media having access,” he said. “It was that any Tom, Dick or Harry can log on and listen in. I believe in encryption but there needs to be exceptions for some entities — even if there’s a five-minute delay.”
The letter from the chiefs also touches on a need to hire more cops and increase police presence on the subways. The Adams administration already spent vast amounts of overtime on subway crime and recently began placing two cops on every nighttime train.
It calls for the creation of a Public Safety Infrastructure Fund, which Monahan said is necessary to offset cuts in 2020 and 2021. The NYPD budget is roughly $10 billion.
“This would give departments the ability to purchase new vehicles and invest in new technologies like artificial intelligence which could make them operate more efficiently,” Monahan said.
The group behind the letter also includes former NYPD Chief of Counterintelligence John Hart, former New York State Police superintendents Steven Nigrelli and Keith Corlett and recently retired Buffalo Police Commissioner Joe Gramaglia.
A similar letter was sent in December by other New York law enforcement officials.
