Fremont County dispatch management reported to the board July 11 that the county’s 911/dispatch operation has received substantial capital investment in recent years but faces short-term staffing and cash‑flow pressures.
Finance staff presented an asset list that showed several million dollars in dispatch-related capital purchases over roughly six years and noted accumulated depreciation on older equipment. Dispatch managers said the radio, records and paging upgrades (including a major upgrade paid through a financing arrangement) were installed but some components still require planned migration and GIS updates; IT staff gave staff a target of roughly September 2025 for a server migration and GIS refresh.
Dispatch managers told commissioners that two dispatch positions are vacant (one recent hire resigned), and that current call volumes strain the center’s capacity even with active staff. Revenue for the dispatch fund was described as three primary streams: the statutory 75¢-per-line 911 fee (landline and wireless), prepaid wireless fee distributions from the state, and user fees billed to agencies dispatched by the county. Dispatch staff noted they split some prepaid wireless funds with the city of Riverton by population and that user fees are billed monthly to participating agencies based on recent call volumes and budget allocations.
Commissioners asked for more formalized memoranda of understanding and regular meetings among dispatch stakeholders. One commissioner also raised the dispatch fund’s reported negative balance in a recent treasurer’s statement and asked staff to reconcile asset transfers and pending grant reimbursements that affect the fund’s cash position.
Ending: County staff said planned software and server updates are scheduled for the fall, hiring is underway to fill two vacancies, and commissioners asked staff to return with reconciled finance statements and updated MOUs with agencies that use dispatch services.