DeSoto 9-1-1 Budget OK’d for $3.9M
Henry Bailey Jr., The Commercial Appeal (Memphis, TN)
The DeSoto District Emergency 911 Commission this week approved a budget for fiscal 2013 beginning Monday that will spend an expected $3.9 million, while they plan to hoard some funds for state-mandated radio system replacement in three years that’s expected to cost from $5 million to $8 million.
The largest expenditure in the $3,887,405 budget was an expected $2,363,422 for radio infrastructure over the next 12 months, 911 district director Debby Dunnaway said Thursday.
Commission members also have their eyes on an even bigger financial bite by 2015, she said.
Our present radio system is nearing the end of its optimal life span, and we have to meet new standards with our replacement. We have to be ‘P-25’ compliant, said Dunnaway, referring to the set of updated rules adopted by the state and set by the National Emergency Number Association.
The 911 district operates four cell relay towers across the county as well as five dispatch centers, one each to serve Southaven, Olive Branch, Horn Lake and Hernando, and another to service unincorporated areas including Walls. What will be replaced and upgraded to a computer-driven system are the 911 and radio infrastructure, including consoles which receive emergency calls, and the radio units used by the dispatchers to alert and send whatever service is called for firefighters, police or deputies or search and rescue Dunnaway said.
There’s an estimate floating out there of $5 million to $8 million, maybe more, she said. So I don’t expect us to be doing anything big as we near 2015, as far as spending goes.
The district’s only revenue source is the monthly 911 surcharge of 80 cents on land-line phone bills and $1 for cellphone bills. We’re probably the last county in the state still charging just 80 cents, said Dunnaway.
The commission’s radio committee will study systems and options to make sure the needs of our citizens are met at the best value, said DeSoto Emergency Services chief Bobby Storey. But we have to stay current with the FCC and other agencies. Communications is the basis of everything we do.
Meanwhile, in the coming year the district will negotiate for replacement of vital UPS (Uninterrupted Power Service) components at three of its cell towers; the other tower, near the 911 district office in the Nesbit area, already has a recent replacement.
Having UPS is important, Dunnaway said. It provides emergency power if there’s an interruption, as during a storm or disaster. If the generator doesn’t kick on, these systems can provide power for 30 minutes to an hour.
September 28, 2012
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