A.J. Gary, director of the Division of Emergency Management and chair of the newly reconfigured Arkansas 9‑1‑1 board, told the joint committees the board has met three times since appointments and is advancing preparations for NextGen 9‑1‑1 and PSAP consolidation.

Gary said the board completed a transfer of responsibilities from the old ETSB board and has begun reviewing county/city addressing and GIS readiness, a keystone of NextGen 9‑1‑1. He said the board is considering bringing consultants to develop a technical plan for NextGen and to study consolidation options for public safety answering points (PSAPs).

Renee Hoover, administrator for the Arkansas 9‑1‑1 board, described how the new public safety trust fund will be managed. She explained the timing for distributions after the statutory fee changes: funds remittance should begin mid‑November (statute requires providers to remit 15 business days after month close), quarterly distributions will continue through December, and the board will begin an interim monthly average payment to PSAPs in January for six months. Hoover said the full increase to PSAPs' payments would phase in during the April–June timeframe.

Lawmakers asked about whether the board or PSAPs would be locked into particular vendors for NextGen systems. Gary said the board has not yet determined procurement specifics and expressed a preference for competition to secure better prices.

The committee also discussed fee design and prepaid phone charges, which several members said appear to show steep increases for prepaid customers. Gary and Hoover said the statutory language applies a 10% charge on prepaid transactions as drafted; the committee asked staff to provide a clear apples‑to‑apples comparison of the prepaid impact on consumers.

No formal actions were taken on the briefing. Committee members asked for follow‑up information on consultant scopes, the vendor competition plan and a timeline for when PSAPs should expect increased distributions.