Feb. 18--RICHMOND -- Finding a long-term, constant stream of funding for the county's consolidated 911 service was the focal point Thursday of a joint meeting of Richmond, Berea and Madison County governments.
"The biggest hurdle for us and the reason why we're here today is we need some upgrades," said E-911 Director Wendy Lynch. "We're looking at a $600,000 project."
The current equipment used for taking 911 calls was purchased in 1998 and 1999 and is not "next-generation 911 compliant," according to Lynch. "This system will only do audio and to be next-generation compliant, we need to have the ability to do audio, stream data and video. This equipment is what logs the caller's location and gives us the carrier or customer information on the 911 screen to log their physical address if it is a land line 911 call, or their latitude and longitude if it is a cellular call."
Funding also is needed for an upgrade in CAD (Computer Aided Dispatch) equipment.
"It just so happens that we need both at the same time," Lynch said.
The consolidated E-911 operation receives $3.50 from each local landline customer every month and 70 cents monthly for each locally based cell phone. The charges are added to customers' bills.
The volume of annual land line calls has increased only slightly over the years, going from 8,809 in 2008 to 8,852 in 2011. However, the volume of cell phone calls has increased from 33,277 to 46,700.
The money collected from cell phone bills is running low because "hardly anybody has a land line," Lynch said.
Richmond Fire Chief Buzzy Campbell said his department has not felt the effects of E-911's outdated equipment, but he does have fears for the future.
"The possibility of a big storm that overwhelms the phone lines, that is a big cause of concern," he said. "The main concern is that we've let this technology get so far behind and so old that there's a possibility of failure at any time. We have backup, but it's never as good as the original equipment."
Some equipment being used is seven years old and some is 12 years old, said E-911 board member Carlos Coyle, who is assistant director of the county's emergency management service
"It's saving the taxpayers $1.2 million because everybody's equipment was bought at the same time," Coyle said. "Had we not consolidated, each entity would have had to spend that."
Coyle said he is grateful for the three governments' support, but a problem lies ahead.
"What we have to do now is figure out where we can get the money from," he said. "The tax on landlines, that's not going to be a sustainable (revenue stream) for us. There has to be something out there the board can count on."
Madison Judge/Executive Kent Clark asked questions Thursday about what would happen if another taxing district was created.
"I think (another taxing district) is something worth looking into if we can't find another guaranteed revenue for 911," Lynch said.
No one would want to live without 911 services, said interim Richmond City Manager Jimmy Howard.
Future funding for consolidated 911 "should have been planned for ahead of time," Howard said. "We did budget our $40,000, but I thought it was just in case of an emergency. But now, it sounds like they're having to operate on it."
Richmond Mayor Jim Barnes agreed that the E-911 board needs an adequate revenue stream.
"No one likes taxes," he said. "I do know we can't do without 911. I don't have the answer as to how we fund it. There has to be something out there the (E-911) board can count on. There's no consistency."
The county and Berea joined emergency response efforts in 2008, but Richmond did not join until 2010.
In addition to the tax added to phone bills, "Each (local government) gives $40,000 per year and that all goes to operating costs," Lynch said. "Out of that, we have nothing left over for capital expenses. We have people come in and do maintenance every week, and we definitely can't make it another fiscal year."
Ronica Shannon can be reached at [email protected] or 624-6608.
Copyright 2012 - Richmond Register, Ky.
