Cochise County reviews CECOM budget, staffing and subscriber expansion

The Cochise County Board of Supervisors on May 1 heard a budget and operations briefing on Southern Arizona Communications (CECOM), the county’s regional public-safety communications partnership, including staffing plans, a proposed subscriber fee model and outreach to new subscribers such as Fort Huachuca and Graham County.

CECOM Executive Director Tammy Jo Wilkins told supervisors the center saw 127,405 incoming calls for service in the most recent year-end reporting, including 45,244 administrative calls and 50,479 calls routed to 9-1-1. “Currently, as of Monday, we are at 66,615 with 17,009 9-1-1 calls,” Wilkins said, adding that the center is “on track to beat these numbers in the next year.”

Wilkins outlined operational improvements and capacity additions made in the last budget cycle. The center added four consoles in November at a cost budgeted at $130,000, and Wilkins said CECOM now has 10 9-1-1 positions in the center with nine fully equipped for radio…