Commission Document

• Print
• Email

NEWS
Federal Communications Commission

News Media Information 202 / 418-0500

445 12th Street, S.W.

Internet: http://www.fcc.gov

Washington, D. C.  20554

TTY: 1-888-835-5322

This is an unofficial announcement of Commission action.  Release of the full text of a Commission order constitutes official action.
See MCI v. FCC. 515 F 2d 385 (D.C. Circ 1974).

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

NEWS MEDIA CONTACT:

April 17, 2012
Neil Grace, 202-418-0506
Email: neil.grace@fcc.gov

JAMIE BARNETT, FCC PUBLIC SAFETY AND HOMELAND SECURITY BUREAU CHIEF, 

TO RETURN TO THE POTOMAC INSTITUTE; DAVID FURTH NAMED ACTING CHIEF

Washington, D.C. – FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski today announced Jamie Barnett, Rear Admiral 
USNR (Retired), Chief of the FCC’s Public Safety and Homeland Security Bureau (PSHSB), will leave 
his position at the end of the month to return to the Potomac Institute for Policy Studies, a leading science 
and technology policy think tank, where he will be Senior Vice President.  David Furth, currently a 
Deputy Chief in PSHSB, will serve as Acting Bureau Chief. 
Chairman Genachowski said, “Jamie is an extraordinarily talented and effective leader, a valued 
colleague, and an outstanding and dedicated public servant. Thanks to his efforts, our country’s 
communications networks are stronger and more resilient, and Americans are and will be safer in 
significant ways. I wish Jamie the best as he moves on to the next stage of an already distinguished 
career.”  
Rear Admiral Barnett has been the Chief of PSHSB since he came to the Commission in July 2009.
Under Admiral Barnett’s leadership, the bureau played a leading role in the establishment of the public 
safety broadband network.  He created the Cybersecurity and Communications Reliability Division within 
PSHSB, which supported major cybersecurity work by a federal advisory committee known as the 
Communications Security, Reliability and Interoperability Council (CSRIC). In March 2012, CSRIC 
delivered a voluntary Code of Conduct for Internet service providers (ISPs) to remediate botnets as well 
as recommendations to secure the Domain Name System and prevent Internet route hijacking. 
Barnett also proposed the first ever nationwide test of the Emergency Alert System (EAS), which was 
conducted on November 9, 2011, to identify and correct problems in the nation’s ability to notify 
Americans of a major disaster or crisis.  During his tenure, PSHSB has adopted rules to increase the 
location accuracy of 9-1-1 calls coming from wireless callers and has laid the ground work for Next 
Generation 9-1-1, which will include the ability to reach 9-1-1 with text, photos and videos.  
Barnett also led an effort to defeat contraband cell phones in prisons through the use of innovative 
technologies. Admiral Barnett served in the Navy and Navy Reserve for 32 years, and his last position 
before retiring in 2008 was Deputy Commander of the Navy Expeditionary Combat Command.  Before 
joining the Commission, he was a Senior Research Fellow at the Potomac Institute for Policy Studies.  
Admiral Barnett earned his Juris Doctor and undergraduate degrees from the University of Mississippi.
-- FCC --

---