Radio Study Project

TUSA confirmed many of the issues we had already identified, but in much greater detail. They also discovered additional technical problems that significantly impact our current VHF system, including: 

• Time Delay Interference in our simulcast system 

• An extremely high VHF noise floor in Dodge County 

The TUSA report also identified several other critical challenges beyond coverage and interference issues: 

• Outdated Towers and Equipment 

Some towers in our system are so old that they cannot be adequately upgraded. For example, the tower located at the Beaver Dam Fire Department is still functional, but its design is so outdated that modern equipment cannot be installed on it. Furthermore, with ongoing discussions about relocating the Beaver Dam Fire Department, the future of maintaining a radio tower at that location is uncertain. 

• End-of-Life Equipment 

Much of the equipment in our radio system has reached its end of life. Many components are more than 20 years old, and replacement parts are no longer manufactured. In fact, the only way to repair some of this equipment is by purchasing used parts from auction sites like eBay. As you can imagine, these parts are not new—they already have years of wear and limited remaining lifespan.  Think of it as using a 20+ year-old laptop to run critical emergency software—it may boot up, but when seconds count, it freezes or crashes with that blue screen failure that no one likes to see. 

• Grounding Standards Have Changed 

When our system was installed decades ago, grounding standards were different. While the equipment was properly installed at the time, those standards have since changed. Today, many components do not meet current grounding requirements, which poses reliability and safety concerns. A significant portion of the TUSA report highlights that these outdated installations need to be brought up to modern standards. 

Review the TUSA Study

Think of the noise floor as background static on a radio channel. In Dodge County, the VHF noise floor is unusually high, meaning there’s a lot of interference from other sources—such as electrical equipment, industrial activity, and even atmospheric conditions. This interference competes with the actual radio signal, making it harder for radios to “hear” the message. The higher the noise floor, the stronger the signal needs to be to overcome it. In practical terms, this means our radios often struggle to transmit or receive clearly, even when they should have adequate coverage. 

Areas of white are where coverage is difficult and there are issues with sending and receiving spoken information. Emergency Services and Law Enforcement have had to piece together other ways of communicating through alternate technologies.

This project has already been through one RFP (request for proposal) as of January 2026 in order to secure a consulting firm that had the level of expertise to examine all angles of this project and determine the extent of changes needed. You can find the language for that RFP on our RFP Page.

Through the RFP process, TUSA Consulting was selected as the lowest-cost consultant that met all requirements. The Dodge County Board authorized entering a contract with TUSA, and they began work on the project. TUSA confirmed many of the issues we had already identified, but in much greater detail.

Dodge County has engaged TUSA to assist with developing a comprehensive RFP for a new radio system. This process began by reaching out to vendors capable of handling a project of this scale. Those vendors were invited to an informational vendor fair held on January 20 and 21, 2026, where they participated in a public forum to showcase their capabilities and technologies. This event was designed to educate the county on the various options available so that we can build an RFP that reflects the best possible solution for Dodge County. 

In the meantime, the Dodge County Board has agreed to allow TUSA Consulting to begin working with the county to make temporary improvements to the current system while long-term solutions are identified. This work has already begun and will continue over the next 2–4 months to ensure we can maintain high-level public safety services for our community during this transition period. 

Dodge County is actively pursuing all funding avenues for this project including grants.  While we understand that grants alone will not fund the entire project, we are committed to using every opportunity to reduce the financial impact on taxpayers. We have also provided local public safety agencies with the opportunity to apply for a statewide grant to further defray costs. Emergency Management Director Joe Meagher worked closely with all interested agencies to file these applications.