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Committee hears options to pay for DTRS contract upgrade; debate on 9‑1‑1 enterprise funding postponed
Summary
The Joint Budget Committee discussed a $15 million request to upgrade the Digital Trunked Radio System and asked staff to return with alternative funding options, including a possible role for the 9‑1‑1 services enterprise fund, before deciding.
The Joint Budget Committee reviewed a $15 million request to fund the next phase of the Colorado Digital Trunked Radio System (DTRS) — including a roughly $12 million vendor contract for Motorola and roughly $3 million for equipment and installation.
Alfredo Kim, JBC staff, reviewed the request and recommended several structural changes to how DTRS items are shown in the long bill, including separating vendor-contract spending from equipment costs and preserving a revolving-fund line for administrative services. Kim and other staff also said statutory language is ambiguous about whether the common-policy DTRS program can directly charge non-state users and recommended the staff and members consider clarifying statute if the committee wanted to broaden user charges.
Funding options discussed Committee members reviewed a departmental proposal and a prior committee decision to set aside severance-tax funds via the Department of Local Affairs (DOLA). Mr. Kim also proposed an alternative source: the 9‑1‑1 services enterprise fund created under the Department of Regulatory Agencies (DORA) by recent legislation, which the committee could tap if statute were amended to make DTRS an allowable enterprise expense.
Members acknowledged the DTRS upgrade is needed for public-safety communications. “We can’t not do this,” Kim said, noting the vendor contract and equipment are both necessary. But members also expressed concern about committing large General Fund sums in the near-term figure-setting process and requested a staff comeback with clearer fund-source options.
Next steps Committee members voted to defer a final funding decision. Mr. Kim said moving DTRS funding from the General Fund to an alternative source such as the 9‑1‑1 enterprise would require legislation and asked for direction; the committee chose to revisit the issue on Monday with further staff analysis and draft legislative options.
Ending note: The committee did not adopt an appropriation at this meeting; staff will return with options for an alternative fund source, statutory language to clarify user charges, and draft long‑bill structure for DTRS line items.
