In keeping with this theme, today's hearing examines the safety and security of our nation's communications infrastructure. Through the testimony of today's witnesses, we hope to assess both how our wireless and wireline networks performed and responded to the events of September 11th and how, in the future, we might improve the reliability and robustness of these networks in emergency situations.

Before going further, let me first express my personal thanks to the emergency personnel, government officials, and the many communications workers who worked tirelessly both during and after the September 11th tragedy to restore voice and data communications. Their relentless efforts, often in the face of extreme adversity, deserve both our recognition and our gratitude.

The events of September 11th placed an enormous strain on our communications network in both New York City and Washington, DC.

In New York, damage to a Verizon central office caused by the collapse of the World Trade Center cut phone service to tens of thousands of businesses and residents in lower Manhattan. In Washington DC, as individuals attempted to contact their loved ones, wireless traffic demand spiked to over 200 percent, leaving consumers struggling to get a dial tone. And in both places, officials on the ground struggled to communicate and coordinate among the various emergency response teams dispatched to Ground Zero and the Pentagon.

While we in Congress, along with all Americans, hope and pray that our wireline and wireless networks will never again face so severe a test, we must continue to explore ways to improve the resiliency and reliability of our communications infrastructure. Moreover, because reliable communications are critical to the success of emergency personnel, our efforts should also include a consideration of ways in which new technological tools -- such as location information, peer-to-peer communications, reverse messaging, and broadband applications -- can be utilized by emergency personnel in order to help save lives.

Accordingly, I look forward to the testimony of the witnesses and to their responses to questions posed by members of this subcommittee.