Enhanced 9‑1‑1 board seeks $5.3 million in FY26 budget; requests $300,000 capital replacement line

The Enhanced 9‑1‑1 Board presented a FY26 budget request of approximately $5.3 million to the Senate Appropriations Committee and asked legislators to restore a $300,000 capital replacement line the board said is needed for periodic equipment and system refreshes.

"The 9 11 board was established in 1994 as the single governmental agency responsible for statewide enhanced 9 11," Barbara Neal, executive director of the Enhanced 9‑1‑1 Board, said while introducing the board’s role and request.

Neal told the committee the board oversees statewide NG911 (next generation 9‑1‑1) design, standards and policy, but does not control local dispatch operations. The board administers the statewide call‑handling technology used by Vermont’s public safety answering points (PSAPs) and maintains a GIS database and network infrastructure that connect call takers around the state.

The board testified there are six PSAPs in Vermont that answer 9‑1‑1 calls (two operated by the Department of Public Safety and others by local police departments and a county sheriff). Technology routes calls among PSAPs and to overflow locations as needed. Neal reported 2024 statistics showing the system received about 232,372 calls, with roughly 77 percent from wireless devices, 16,000 abandoned calls and more than 1,000 text‑to‑911 messages.

The $300,000 capital replacement line is intended as a carry‑forward fund to support core system refreshes and replacements—hosting, network elements (referred to in testimony as the EZNET that connects PSAP workstations), call‑handling workstations and related software licensing. Neal said the line was previously removed while the Vermont Universal Service Fund (VUSF) faced revenue shortfalls; a change in the VUSF revenue mechanism will shift the fee to a per‑access‑line charge (72¢ per line) beginning this July, which the board expects will stabilize revenue and allow the restoration of the capital line.

Committee members asked about the composition of the request and whether the $300,000 push the request above the Governor’s 3 percent target; Neal replied that without the $300,000 the request would meet the 3 percent target. A member asked for details on the recurring monthly costs the board pays for the hosted system; Neal said recurring charges increased and she would provide the specific annual contract costs to the committee.

Neal and other board staff emphasized the distinction between 9‑1‑1 call‑handling equipment (provided and maintained by the board for PSAPs) and local dispatch equipment (for which PSAPs or local agencies are responsible). The board said it provides the call‑handling monitors, mapping displays and network connectivity that form the NG911 core services.

No formal appropriation vote was taken at the hearing; the board requested the appropriation for committee consideration and offered to provide further documentation on the budget changes and contract costs.

(Reporting note: direct quotes are attributed to named speakers in the committee transcript.)