Auxiliary Communications (AUXCOMM) courses have been scheduled.  They are in Train PA for registration. (Home - TRAIN PA - an affiliate of the TRAIN Learning Network powered by the Public Health Foundation)  

Entering ID# 1112064 is the easiest way to search for the class. There are three offerings:

  • October 13th-15th, 2023 in Wilkes-Barre at the PSP Northeast Training Center
  • November 3rd-5th, 2023 at the York County Emergency Services Center
  • January 2024 at the PSP Southwest Training Center in Greensburg (actual dates to be determined in January, but you can join the waitlist to be notified when the dates are determined)

The Auxiliary Communications (AUXCOMM) course trains amateur radio operators to serve as auxiliary communicators during all-hazards emergency operations or planned events. Since 2011, the Cybersecurity Infrastructure Security Agency Emergency Communications Division (CISA ECD) has conducted AUXCOMM courses across the nation and trained more than 3,900 students in this course.

This class is designed for those auxiliary emergency communicators and groups who volunteer to provide backup emergency radio communications support to public safety agencies. Typically, this includes amateur radio and Radio Emergency Associated Communications Team (REACT) communicators but may include other volunteer emergency communicators.

Volunteer emergency communications operators/groups, using amateur radio, have been providing backup communications to public safety for nearly 100 years. Event planners, public safety officials, and emergency managers at all levels of government utilize their services. Often, amateur radio services have been used when other forms of communications have failed or have been disrupted. Today, nearly all the states/territories have incorporated some level of participation by amateur radio auxiliary communication operators into their Tactical Interoperable Communications Plans (TICPs) and Statewide Communications Interoperability Plans (SCIPs).

This course focuses on auxiliary communications interoperability, the relationship between the COML and the volunteer, emergency operations center (EOC) etiquette, on-the-air etiquette, FCC rules and regulations, auxiliary communications training and planning, and emergency communications deployment. It is intended to supplement and standardize an operator’s experience and knowledge of emergency amateur radio communications in a public safety context.

Class Prerequisites

To attend this course, applicants must have the following prerequisites:

  • An active FCC amateur radio license
  • Past experience in auxiliary emergency communications
  • A desire to work with COMLs in a NIMS/ICS environment
  • An affiliation with a public safety agency

Completion of the following FEMA training courses:

  • IS-100, Introduction to the ICS
  • IS-200, ICS for Single Resources and Initial Incidents
  • IS-700, National Incident Management System (NIMS), an Introduction
  • IS-800, National Response Framework (NRF), an Introduction

Applicants should submit a copy of their current FCC amateur license with scanned copies of all prerequisite Certificates of Completions, for IS prerequisite courses, along with the FEMA General Admissions Application b_fema general admissions application form.pdf to Holly Caudill at hcaudill@pa.gov.

Copies of prerequisite documentation which verify applicants have met the prerequisites and are eligible to participate in the course must be submitted and reviewed at least ten (10) days prior to the course start date.

Registration is not complete until all documentation has been received and verified by Holly Caudill. Admittance is limited to 30 qualified applicants. Holly Caudill will notify applicants when they are registered.