DHS CAP Program Overview (definition from DHS S&T Website)
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security Science and Technology Directorate (S&T) partnered with the Department of Commerce Public Safety Communications Research program to establish the P25 Compliance Assessment Program (P25 CAP). P25 CAP is a formal, independent process for ensuring communications equipment declared by the supplier actually is P25 compliant and tested against the standards with publicly published results. Through this open standards testing process, P25 CAP provides responders confidence the communications equipment they use will be interoperable, regardless of manufacturer. Specifically, this voluntary program provides public safety agencies with evidence that the communications equipment they purchase is tested against and complies with the P25 standards for performance, conformance and interoperability. Compliance testing concludes with official summary test reports and suppliers’ declaration of compliance, which are available to first responders at https://www.dhs.gov/science-and-technology/p25-cap. This website also provides a repository of all information on P25 CAP. Helping
DHS OIC Compliance Assesment Program (CAP) Update
DHS OIC is updating and renewing the P25 CAP Testing program. A new Advisory Panel (AP) has been established and holds quarterly Open Meetings. New (2016) Compliance Assessment Bulletins (CABs) have been posted. P25 Test Laboratories will need to achieve ISO/IEC 17025 Accreditation from a 3rd-party certified Accreditation Body before P25 CAP testing based on the 2016-released CABs can occur. Testing based on the 2010 CABs is available in currently recognized labs but any SDoCs/STRs from testing done using the 2010 CABs will need to be re-submitted based on the 2016 CABs by the end of August 2017. The new CABs include additional tests. Previous testing does not need to be repeated for cases where the subject equipment has not changed and the test itself has not changed. Information and details about P25 CAP testing and the 2016 CABs can be found at https://www.dhs.gov/science-and-technology/p25-cap.
P25 CAP testing results are posted on the DHS P25 website.
https://www.dhs.gov/science-and-technology/approved-grant-eligible-equipment#
All the previously published and new Suppliers’ Declaration of Compliance (SDoCs) documentation and Summary Test Reports (STR) can be found at this site. If there are questions about any documentation, please send the questions to P25CAP @hq.dhs.gov .
Are CAP tested products “Certified” to meet P25?
The word “Certified” is not used in the description of CAP testing by DHS, NIST, TIA, or the PTIG member companies. A more appropriate statement would be: “The posting of SDoCs & STRs on the DHS OIC P25 CAP website means that the referenced products have been tested for specific features, functions and services listed in the P25 CAP Summary Test Report (STR), validated by a P25 CAP recognized P25 Test laboratory and approved by DHS OIC to be posted on the DHS OIC P25 CAP website https://www.dhs.gov/science-and-technology/p25-cap. If the SDoC and STR documents are not posted on the DHS website, they have yet to be approved by DHS OIC.
How are P25 Test Documents created?
P25 Test standards are typically created along with the associated P25 standard in TIA sub-committees.
"RCATS are TSBs, Telecommunications Systems Bulletins, and as such, are recommendations and not standards. The following describes how RCATS, Recommended Compliance Assessment Tests, are created.
- RCAT drafted by the creators of the associated TIA Standards with Industry lead and consultation with User Agency representatives.
- Project 25 Steering Committee adopts the TIA RCAT TSB as part of the suite of P25 Standards.
- TIA publishes and maintains the P25 RCAT TSB.
- P25 Steering Committee forwards P25 RCAT TSB to the DHS Compliance Assessment Program (CAP) Advisory Panel (AP) for consideration during Compliance Assessment Bulletin (CAB) creation or modification.
- The Compliance Assessment Bulletins (CABs) are the official documents used in P25 CAP Test laboratories for testing. CABs are published by DHS OIC.