City of Combes
Cameron, Texas
How we verified this
As of August 2026 the Combes category on RadioReference's Lower Rio Grande Valley Regional Radio System page contains a single encrypted talkgroup, "61200 D Enc Combes PD 2 Police Car-to-Car", while the Cameron County sheriff talkgroup that dispatches Combes, "60007 D CamCo SO 6 Sheriff 6 Small Town 1 Dispatch", is listed in the clear.
Encryption Details
Cameron County Context
Cameron County is a mixed picture: 2 of 5 agencies we track here are fully encrypted (40%), which means some neighboring departments are still audible on a scanner.
See every agency we track in Cameron County → County encryption overview →
What This Means
This is a split system: certain talkgroups are encrypted while others remain in the clear, which means partial monitoring is still possible.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is City of Combes radio encrypted?
Yes. City of Combes uses P25 AES-256 encryption. This is a split system: certain talkgroups are encrypted while others remain in the clear, which means partial monitoring is still possible.
Can I listen to City of Combes on a police scanner?
Partially. City of Combes encrypts some of its talkgroups while leaving others open, so some channels may still be accessible. Check RadioReference for specific talkgroup status.
Why did City of Combes encrypt their radio?
Agencies cite officer safety and operational security. Those are assertions rather than findings — no local evidence is typically produced — while the effects are concrete and land straight away on anyone who relied on hearing City of Combes to know what was happening nearby.
Can Cameron County reverse the encryption decision?
It can. The radios support open and encrypted operation equally well, so this is a configuration and a policy, not a constraint — and policies set by Cameron County officials are policies those officials can revisit when constituents press for it.
What can I do about City of Combes encryption?
Three things carry weight, in this order: a public-records request for City of Combes's encryption policy and radio recordings, a turn at the microphone during Cameron County budget discussions, and finding the other people locally already asking the same question. Individually these are easy to deflect; together they are not.