Suzanne Le Breton, St. Tammany News

Members of the Communications District No. 1 Commission, which oversees the 911 system in the parish, are looking at making changes to the contracts it has with the St. Tammany Parish Sheriff’s Office and the municipalities it serves.

Under the contracts the entity being served (the Sheriff’s Office or the municipality) provides the personnel and the office space for the dispatchers. The 911 commission is responsible for the purchase and maintenance of all required equipment.

In exchange for providing personnel and office space, the communications district pays each entity a fee each month. That fee is designed to pay the salaries and benefits of the dispatchers working at each location.

The contracts agreed on by the entities and the district include an annual 5 percent increase of the amount paid by the district each year.

This was designed to make up for pay raises and increases in benefit costs.

However, Woody Glover, director of Communications District No. 1, said to his knowledge the municipalities and the Sheriff’s Office have not given these employees 5 percent raises in recent past years.

In addition, he said, the district’s revenue has not increased by 5 percent annually in recent years.

Glover said the commission should consider changing the annual percentage increase to better match the increase in revenue the district has and the actual raises being paid to the dispatchers.

The contracts with the entities automatically renew every five years unless one of the entities or the district decides to change anything in the contract, such as the annual payment change being considered, and six months notice must be given.

Tom Buell, chairman of the commission, requested commission secretary Tammy Fleming send a notice to the entities to inform them the commission is considering a change.

Meanwhile the commission’s Finance Committee will work on crunching the numbers and will present a recommendation at the next commission meeting.